Jackal Battles it Out With Vultures in the Air

In the African veld, word spreads fast when food is available. In this sequence, a predator’s meal was disrupted by the arrival of various scavengers.

Regular contributor Mark and Gail Fox, founders of Exploring Kruger, sent these images to Latest Sightings. Mark photographed them while on the S28, a popular road in the southern section of Kruger National Park.

Cheetahs With A Kill

One of the most sought-after sightings for visitors to the Park is to see a predator with a kill. And, it was just such a scenario that Mark found himself in.

In an area known for cheetah sightings, Mark found a coalition of three that had just made an impala catch. As he watched, the predators ate as quickly as possible, eager to eat their fill before the inevitable arrival of scavengers or worse, other predators!

The light was just perfect for photography, and Mark took dozens of photographs of the faces stained with trophies from their catch, while Gail filmed.

Then, the cheetahs’ concerns were realised. Shortly after the kill happened, a jackal arrived. However, being much smaller, it didn’t pose a threat. The next arrivals did.

Lions!

Six hungry lions were en route, and the cheetahs caught wiff, quickly leaving the scene.

Much smaller than lions, the cheetahs would have faced immense danger if they had stayed.

As a result, the lions would eventually turn up to tuck into their stolen prize uncontested. As the proverbial ‘king of the jungle’, no other creature would easily shift them from their meal.

But this was not to happen before something spectacular played out, with the scavengers that were one step ahead of the big lions.

Cleaning Crew

Jackals do hunt small prey, but they rely heavily on scraps left behind by larger predators to supplement their diet.

However, this time, the jackals weren’t the only ones who’d been keeping an eye on proceedings. Circling above, various species of vultures were well aware of the meal below and started their descent.

Onslaught From Above

For a hungry jackal, there was no intention of sharing, and it was determined to defend the meal come what may.

As the vultures came in to land, the jackal rushed towards them, attempting to bite them while they were still in the air. In the above image, a vulture narrowly avoids the jackal’s jaws.

However, the vultures were equally determined to get their share of the spoils. Time and time again, as the various vultures tried to land, the jackal would go airborne in its efforts to keep them at bay.

The jackal then started launching itself directly at a vulture. But while this was happening, another vulture came in to land, and it was the number of the birds that eventually won the face-off.

For Mark, the interactions between the jackal and the various vulture species were arguably the most entertaining part of the entire sighting.

It is not often that you can say that you saw cheetahs feeding on a kill. Still rarer is seeing lions arrive to steal it.

But that the supporting cast of scavengers provided the most entertainment makes it a very rare and special sighting indeed.

Which all goes to show that there is so much more to see in the bush than just the Big 5 or predators.

In the end, of course, the lions went on to claim all for themselves, leaving the lurking scavengers waiting around hungry all over again.

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Author: Steve Bebington