Watch: Leopard, crocodiles and hyenas take down impala

An impala faces many threats in the wild, but when it had to face various predators – all at the same time – it didn’t stand a chance.

IT consultant Travis Carreira captured a once-in-a-lifetime sighting at the Kruger National Park and shared his footage and story with LatestSightings.com.

According to Carreira, his friends spotted a leopard from within the fence at Marloth Park, on the other side of the Crocodile River. As the day progressed, they watched the leopard attempt hunt after hunt, with no success.

When he finished his workday, Carreira went to the same spot, hoping to see the leopard.

“I was watching the beautiful sunset on the river when a gentleman came up to me and asked if I could see anything. I explained to him that there had been a leopard hanging around all day, but I couldn’t see it. He then pointed and said, ‘There! There’s the leopard!’ We jumped up and ran closer to the fence to get a visual.”

When running to the fence, he lost sight of it again but caught a glimpse of a hyena that moved into a gully.

“Then I noticed a small herd of impala, and they were moving in the direction of the hyena. I knew something was about to happen, so I started to film them. As Murphy’s law would have it, I readjusted to get more comfortable, and the next thing, the leopard jumped up and caught one of the impalas!

“Shortly after that, the hyena tried to catch one of the other impalas but failed. A little disheartened, the hyena turned its attention to the leopard. Seeing that the leopard was successful, it thought that it would be easier to steal a meal rather than to try hunting again. The hyena moved in quickly and stole the impala right from the leopard’s mouth. The impala was still alive at this point, and the hyena began dragging it up the hill to a safe spot to eat it. The hyena had a firm grip on the impala; even though it was still kicking, there was no way it could break free,” said Carreira.

Crocs join the attack

Out of the corner of his eye, Carreira noticed more movement.

“Two massive crocodiles, likely attracted by the commotion, emerged from the river, complicating the situation. The larger crocodile went straight for the impala that was still kicking in the hyena’s jaws. Once the crocodile got a hold of the impala and crushed it with its powerful jaws, that was the end of the impala’s life.

“The leopard that made the initial kill was [weary] of the hyena and the crocodiles, so it made one or two half-hearted attempts at getting its food back, but was not successful. All this commotion and noise attracted another hyena. This one was bigger and seemed to be more confident. It instantly went to the crocodiles and bit into the impala, trying to steal it from them.

“The first hyena, now also confident with its buddy around, joined the tug of war. The two hyenas tried using tactics to steal the meal again, but this time, they were left with just some scraps of meat, and the majority was taken by the crocodile.”