Mother antelope gores eagle to protect her baby

Kenyan gazelles go head-to-head with martial eagles, Africa's largest eagle, and try to save their young from the predator's claws.

Mother antelope gores eagle to protect her baby — Mother gazelle confronts martial eagle. Video: *Latest Sightings*

Conservation and tourism company Great Plains Protection shared footage of a special confrontation between a gazelle and a martial eagle at Mara Plains Camp in the Masai Mara Reserve, Kenya, Latest Sightings reported on December 8.

Meanwhile, during a tour with his passengers, the tour guide spotted unusual activity in the sky. A martial eagle was swooping down at high speed, possibly preparing to catch something. At first, the tour group couldn’t see what prey the eagle was targeting. But as the hunter touched down, they spotted a young gazelle hiding in the grass.

The eagle caught the young antelope before the little animal could do anything. But there was still hope because the mother antelope was nearby. It watched the big eagle and then swooped in to attack it.

For a moment, the mother antelope knocked the eagle back and forced the hunter back a few meters. However, the eagle’s size and ferocity were still too much for the mother antelope. The hunter then returned, grabbing the calf in its claws. Finally, the mother antelope realized that she could not defeat the martial eagle and left.

The martial eagle ( Polemaetus bellicosus ) is the largest eagle in Africa. With a wingspan of up to 2.6 metres, the bird is renowned for its strength and hunting ability. It preys on a wide range of animals, including small antelopes, monkeys, large birds, and even reptiles. Despite its impressive hunting ability, the martial eagle faces major challenges due to habitat loss and is listed as endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.

Thu Thao (According to Latest Sightings )

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