Motherhood is a life-changing experience, as well as an all-consuming passion.
Mothers will go to great lengths to protect their children.
When a mother sees that her baby is in danger, she'll always listen to her instinct.
That's especially true with the mother giraffe you're about to meet.
You'll be shocked to see how she tries to defend her young calf from dangerous and hungry
wild lions!
All mothers have very high opinions of their children and would place the child's needs
ahead of themselves.
A study conducted by journalists the Kruger National Park at Wild Card Online, it was
discovered that any mother giraffe would go beyond the call of duty for her child, being
able to take on an entire pride of lions – and winning.
But our story is a bit different…
On the day this story happened, the mother giraffe and her baby were living a normal
day on a wildlife reserve in South Africa.
The reserve was there so that animals like the giraffe could be watched over by rangers
in case they fall victims to an illegal poacher or worse… a hungry lion.
But unfortunately for the pair, this was not an average day.
They were in great danger and there were no rangers around to help them.
The lions crept up on them, slowly positioning herself for the kill.
Then, suddenly…
As the hungry lions came closing in on the pair, the mother tried to save the calf – but
ultimately failed.
She had to watch as her baby was savagely attacked.
Although this was a worst-case scenario, the mother didn’t give up.
You won’t believe what she did next!
What came next was absolutely terrible.
The Lions had managed to strike down the baby giraffe right in front of its own mother.
Scared and heartbroken, she frantically looked around for help.
Then the unexpected happened!
The baby giraffe was down and badly injured.
The hungry lions then dragged the calf into some bushes, where they ate it right in front
of the helpless mother giraffe.
This is the way of life in nature, but it doesn’t make it any easier to handle.
The mother then displayed her signs of grief, and it was heart-breaking to watch.
This heart-breaking moment where a mother giraffe was forced to watch her baby being
eaten by lions was caught on the nature reserve cameras and went viral.
They violently tore through the flesh of her baby, while she helplessly watched in horror.
The rangers rushed to the site, hoping it wasn’t too late.
When they saw what was happening, they were shocked!
The rangers were alerted to the horrific events but they were too late and came upon the heart-breaking
discovery after the fact.
The mother attempted to stop the lions, but she was no match for the giant cats.
Here’s what one of rangers said about the incident, it’s heart-breaking…
Tarryn Rae, a field guide for Mankwe Game trackers at the reserve told The Daily Mail:
‘I was informed that lions had attacked a baby giraffe with a broken leg, but the
mother giraffe had chased them off.”
Then he found out that he came a little too late…
Was this a lone incident of a mother defending her young?
Or is this more common than we think?
is it horrific or is it just nature’s way?
During a study conducted by Wild Card Online at the Olare Conservancy in the Masai Mara
reserve, in Kenya, a pack of hungry lions were caught on camera.
These lions approached the mother and her young but this time, with a swift hoof to
the jaw, the mother defended her young from the lions.
The following acts stunned scientists watching as they couldn’t believe how she was claiming
her victory.
Dr. Francois Deacon, a lecturer at the University of the Free State’s Department of Animal,
Wildlife and Grassland Science, was interviewed by Wild Card Online and describes the sighting
as incredibly interesting.
“I have taken photos of many instances where lions patiently wait at waterholes to hunt.
But when giraffes are present, they show very little to no interest.”
Thanks to their sheer size and powerful kick, giraffes can overpower most predators.
Another incident of a mother giraffe viciously engaged in battle with a lioness was witnessed
again by scientists.
The act of a hungry lion or lioness striking down a baby giraffe is actually quite common,
even in protected nature reserves.
But it is interesting to see the differences in how the predator reacts to the mother defending
its young depending on the situation and setting of the situation.
This type of behaviour suggests that each individual animal has its own set of morals
and will to fight.
Researchers from Wildcard Online shed some light on an interesting topic, are these differences
commonplace?
Or are these instances one-of-a-kind acts of bravery when the mother wins.
It can be a balancing act being between life and death.
You might win at a point and then lose when the circumstances change or vice versa, but
it all comes back to what happens.
Sometimes you are able to save the baby but, other times for whatever reason, she loses
her life.
This can all be chalked up to the circle of life and the way all living things coexist
within the same environment as one another.
The giraffes and the lions have different needs, and sometimes those needs work against
each other and sometimes they don’t.
That seems too just be natural.
In the end, there is not much stopping the circle of life and the will of nature itself.
But the systems in place to preserve wildlife on these reservations work well against other
potential threats.