These photos reveal the intense moment a hyena was surrounded by a pack of African wild dogs.
The hyena found itself in a tough spot, backed up against the wall with nowhere to run…
Encounters between hyenas and African wild dogs typically lead to intense, aggressive interactions marked by vocalizations and displays of aggression, occasionally escalating to physical skirmishes. The larger group generally dominates.
In this case, the hyena fought back, but was heavily outnumbered. The situation looked bleak for the hyena… until it decided to make a bold move.
At first the hyena snarled at the pack, but the dogs were clearly unfazed.
In a sudden twist, the hyena made a last ditch effort and dashed into the river.
The wild dogs were seemingly stunned at the sight of the hyena in the river, and did not follow.
Photographer Marc Mol, a 56-year-old Australian, captured the amazing scene on camera.
He described the encounter as follows: “The cackling and laughing sounds of the hyena, coupled with the snarls of the dog squadron were amazing to watch.
“The scene had eight wild dogs terrorising a lone hyena and while normally encounters like this are very fleeting, this one lasted for ages.”
“The hyena was trapped by high ground on one side and water on the other, with the dogs bearing in from all other angles.”
“Eventually, the hyena thought it was better taking its chances with the gaping jaws of the hippo and sat it out in the water.
“Wild dogs have a massive fear of the water as they associate it with crocodiles, so they kept their distance and eventually got bored an slunk away to find something else to eat.”
Photos by Marc Mol/ via Caters News
