A mother giraffe accidentally broke her newborn calf’s neck with a fatal misguided kick after attempting to fight off a savage attack from a hungry lioness.
A mother giraffe accidentally broke her newborn calf’s neck with a fatal misguided kick after attempting to fight off a savage attack from a hungry lioness
The brutal encounter shows a frantic mother wildly kicking out at the deadly lion but tragically striking her own child
As her calf lay dying, the distraught giraffe frantically tries to revive her baby before mournfully traipsing away, circling back to look at her lost child every few metres.
Mike Dexter, 33, had spent hours tracking the proud mother and her newborn take its first fumbling steps
Dexter says: ‘We had been following the two giraffes for some time as they made their way across the plains, the calf was just a few hours old so they were moving slowly, not much going on’
A lioness approaches the pair as the mother tries to shield the young calf from the predator as Dexter watches on primed with his camera
The lioness narrows in on the baby giraffe as its mother looks on protectively before the violent scenes unfold
‘We had been following the two giraffes for some time as they made their way across the plains, the calf was just a few hours old so they were moving slowly, not much going on,’ says Dexter, who uses the Instagram handle @mikedexterphotography.
The giraffe is distressed as she realises she’s killed her newborn calf as the lioness circles her in the Maasai Mara in Kenya
As her calf lay dying, the distraught giraffe frantically tries to revive her baby before mournfully traipsing away, circling back to look at her lost child every few metres
The mother giraffe continues to pursue the lioness for a while but her attempts are futile as the predator lies some way off
‘Tragically her aim is slightly off and it is her baby’s neck that receives the full force of the blow, rather than the lion’s.
‘The mother giraffe continues to pursue the lion for a while but her attempts are futile. The lioness lies down a little way off, comfortable in the knowledge that she just has to wait it out