Incredible moment wildebeest reveals his fighting spirit by escaping the snapping jaws of a hungry crocodile
The lucky wildebeest escaped with just a small wound to its back
THIS is the incredible moment the will to survive overpowered the jaws of death when one lucky wildebeest escaped a hungry crocodile with nothing but a flesh wound.
The mighty battle began as a herd of wildebeest were crossing Mara River in Kenya hoping to avoid falling prey to predators lurking beneath the water’s surface.
But one of the horned antelopes was caught in the jaws of a crocodile just yards from the safety of the river bank.
Fighting for his life, the wildebeest bravely refused to give in to the crocodile’s attempts to drag him underwater – standing firm and avoiding being drowned.
The battle for survival, which lasted for around five minutes, was captured on camera by Jun Zuo, from Olathe in Kansas, USA.
He said: “The only way the crocodile could get the wildebeest was by dragging him into the river and drowning him to death.
“It was a deadly stalemate. The crocodile could not hold on because the wildebeest was firmly standing on the riverbed and slowly moved forward to the river shore.
“Finally the crocodile gave up and released his prey, and the wildebeest escaped with a wound.”
The 60-year-old explained how the 13ft long Nile Crocodile moved fast in the water, but picked a prey too large and ended up exhausted after the attack.
He added: “This is the first time I had seen such a brutal animal fight, and I was shocked. I was holding my breath and continuously pressed the camera shutter button.
“I could see a deep wound on the wildebeest’s body but he survived. I couldn’t say the same for others as there were some wildebeest bodies elsewhere in the water.”
Jun took the snaps during a safari with six other photographers, and stayed in Maasai Mara Game Reserve for four days.
He added: “The experience let me see a brutal side of nature, and the wildebeests and other animals have to face so many dangers in the wild.”
Earlier this month, shocking footage emerged showing the horrors of the wild as a buffalo escaped the jaws of two prides of lions.
The video, posted by LatestSightings, showed a herd of buffalo being chased by a pride of lions when one unlucky animal is cornered by the lions.
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