These are some of the macabre moments as one of the herd’s shadows emerges from the vegetation with the severed head of a zebra after a feast in a South African nature reserve.
In one of the images, the hyena is seen covered in blo.od while holding the head of a zebra in its mouth as a trophy.
In other images members of the clan’s shadow clan feed around the carcass of the sla.in zebra.
The crude images were taken by Kruger National Park owner Louis Kruger, 63, in Pretoria, South Africa.
“I was driving through the national park when I saw animals in a pond and thought I’d stop for a rest,” says Louis.
“After about an hour, the hyenas started to emerge from the nearby vegetation, probably after the feast, as one of them was holding the severed head of a zebra in its mouth.”
“There were four hyenas in total and I believe their clan had k.i.ll.ed the innocent zebra in the thick vegetation.”
“Even though we didn’t see their at.ta.ck, I was thrilled that they captured the footage of the party after the feast, as it was also unique.”
“The photos were taken in the afternoon sunlight, and this added another dimension to them, perhaps emphasizing the macabre nature of the event.”
Plains zebras are native to southern and eastern Africa, and live in areas with medium to high vegetation.
They reach up to 1.3 m in height and feed on grass and leaves.
Spotted hyenas live in sub-Saharan Africa and are also known as “laughing hyenas”, from their cries when chasing prey.
In another development from the region, a photographer recently brought the picture of the lion standing proudly on the carcasses of de.ad animals.
The British Simon Needham had captured the rare photo known as the “Lion King” in another reserve in South Africa.
