Watch: The Buffalo Mother's Ultimate Sacrifice for Her Calf (Video)

Watch: The Buffalo Mother’s Ultimate Sacrifice for Her Calf (Video)

Hluhluwe Game Reserve, Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park, Kwazulu-Natal, SOUTH AFRICA By Bernard DUPONT from FRANCE - African Buffalo (Syncerus caffer), CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=55001501

An intense battle between a buffalo mother and a pride of lions in Thornybush Game Reserve in South Africa highlights the depths of a mother’s love.

Setting the Scene:

A family encountered a lion pride and a buffalo herd during an early morning safari. The tension between the two groups of animals built up until a lioness targeted a vulnerable buffalo calf. The entire buffalo herd began to rally against the pride. One buffalo, likely to be the calf’s mother, stood out and selflessly defended her calf. However, this came at a significant cost; the lions shifted their attention to her, leaving the calf to escape.

Lion and Buffalo interactions

Buffalo lion pride attack — Buffalo and lion standoff for survival Image by R Boed via Flickr

Lions live in family units known as prides. Unlike other big cats, which lead solitary lives, the social structure of a lion’s pride enables them to collaborate effectively in hunting. This collective living proves advantageous when they cross paths with their powerful prey: buffaloes.

The buffalo is no ordinary prey. Adult buffaloes are massive, strong, and equipped with deadly horns. They fiercely defend their herd, especially when the young are threatened. Their defense mechanism is not merely about strength but also strategy. Upon sensing a looming threat, the buffalo herd often forms a protective phalanx, placing the vulnerable calves in the center.

Hunting buffaloes demands teamwork. The lions often work together to isolate a buffalo from the herd, especially targeting the young or the weak.

YouTube video — “Buffalo Mom Sacrifices Herself to Save her Baby from Lions”, Source: Youtube, Uploaded: “ Latest Sightings”

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Cayla de Souza, M.Sc. Ocean Sciences & Marine Biology

Author at Animals Around The Globe. MSc Ocean Sciences & Marine Biology

Cayla comes from a small coastal town in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, near the renowned diving destination Aliwal Shoal, where her deep-seated passion for the ocean first took root. Family trips to the Kruger National Park are some of her favorite memories; there’s nothing quite like being surrounded by wildlife. These experiences inspired her to study the natural world and its creatures, a path she's been on for the past 5 years. She attained her undergraduate and honors degrees in marine biology and recently completed her master's degree in applied ocean sciences, majoring in oceanography.

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