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Nikon 850 +200-500 ,FL290mm ,ISO400, 1/400s ,March , 2022,Kabini .A huge male tiger was stalking a herd of Gaur from a stream bed below when he was spotted and unceremoniously escorted away from the herd by two valiant matriarchs who bayed in symphony with the roaring tiger. I could manage only one of the matriarchs in the frame .
Fantastic drama captured on camera...(a similar drama we also witnessed when we visited Kabini)...a Tiger would find it difficult to bring down a fully grown Gaur!.....Tigers dont hunt in groups;like Lions;otherwise they have a better chance of bringing down a Gaur.
Regards
V S Sankar
Lucky you were able to witness this natural history moment unfolding before you. Agree with Sankarji, attacking a gaur/buffaloes is difficult even for a pack of lions. As they protect their memebers. This frame shows how the tiger is leaving from the side, while the gaur stands gaurd to see that he does not turn back. Nice composition. Thanks for sharing.
The massive male is on retreat in the face of two charging mothers with calves. It has assessed strategic power balance and decided to leave knowing fully well the enormous power, arsenal it possesses.
Look at its judicious assessment to keep itself injury-free, as Shri Saroj Roy Chowdhury once told Shri M. Krishnan --''I saw the freshly killed adult Gaur cow in Palamau N.P, killed single handedly by a male tiger..... no claw marks..... two sets of two deep, punctured wounds, inflicted by canines, on either side of the nape, the throat has not been bitten.''
Thanks for sharing.
SaktiWild
I am so happy to see that you have experienced a really lovely moment. Whereas lions often bunch together to bite the hamstring of a cape buffalo and throttle it to death, the enormous power of a tiger is evident as it single handedly kills adult gaur. Predators are always careful that they don't want to get injured, as they will not be able to hunt and will fast lose strength. Main goal is to survive. If you fail in getting a prey now, there would be more opportunities later. If we humans had such careful understanding of risk, then many people would not die due to reckless driving.
Thanks for sharing.
Cheers,
Sabyasachi