Baby gazelle killed by cheetah seconds after birth after mistaking predator for mother in a very quick circle of life
A CONFUSED female cheetah mistook a newborn gazelle for her own offspring and ‘kissed’ it affectionately – before realising her error and swiftly slaying it.
Incredible images show the tiny gazelle innocently approaching an adult cheetah just minutes after its birth at Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya.
For quite some time, the cheetah appeared to mistake the gazelle for her own cub as it attempted to nurse from her.
She loving played with the frolicking fawn – nuzzling it and even appearing to kiss it on its head.
However, in the cruellest example of the circle of life the cheetah’s instincts eventually take over, with the tiny gazelle realising its mistake a little too late.
Wildlife photographer and safari guide Federico Veronesi’s captured the rare moment.
He said: “It shows a side of the cheetah’s psychology that does not often come out. The maternal side and the apparent compassion for its prey.
“What is surprising is how the baby’s instinct to stand up and approach its mother to nurse continued despite the fact that the mother had been replaced by the predator.
“This unusual behaviour but the little fawn appeared to have triggered the cheetah’s maternal instincts, even though the baby was not her own nor her own species.”
Federico, from Italy, has been snapping wildlife photography for almost 30 years.
He was stunned to witness such an unusual encounter.
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He added: “I was captured by the frailty of this creature and upon seeing the cheetah I realised that this fawn’s life would be very short. The harshness of nature.
“When the cheetah appeared in the distance I was sure that if she saw the newborn baby she would certainly come to try to hunt it.
“It’s an easy meal for the cheetah, an opportunity that she would not miss.”
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