Crocodile hunting zebra

Crocodiles hunting Zebra at Mara river

During the months July to November each year the great migration brings more than a million wildebeest and some half a million of other plains’ game into the Masai Mara Game Reserve. With them come many predators such as lion, but some other predators have been waiting many months for their chance. These are the monster crocodiles of the Mara River.

Large herds of zebras congregate on the bank of the Mara River. They need to cross it to continue their search for grass. However, they are scared of crossing the river. They hesitate for hours near the water until peer pressure from behind or thirst is instrumental in driving the first animal in the water. Once the first zebra begins to cross the rest will follow.

Clearly their fears are well justified as danger lurks nearby. In deep calm water they are easy prey even of relatively small crocodiles that can pull them under water and drown them. In rough water the weak ones can drown and the ones that panic can injure themselves. (See separate article).

Some foals became separated from their mothers and cross the river repeatedly looking for them thus, becoming easy prey of the crocodiles.

A mother zebra cannot give any help in these circumstances.  Helped by the current, a crocodile drags this foal in deeper water and it disappears.

Crocodiles prefer to take fully grown zebras in deeper water because it easy to pull them under regardless of their size and strength. Crocodiles do not have to be very big to do this. This zebra is taken on the edge of a deep hole on the bottom of the river.

The zebra struggles briefly but the crocodile pulls it under and drowns it.

Another Zebra rushes across shallow water.

As it reaches deeper water something attacks it under the surface.

The crocodile has it by its hindquarters…

…and slowly drags the zebra under drowning it.