We’ve all bitten off more than we can chew at one point or another in our lives, and as it turns out, hyenas aren’t any different.
South African wildlife photographer Mike Dexter stumbled upon quite a sight when he headed out to Mashatu Game Reserve in Botswana recently to take photos of an elephant carcass.
"An elephant had died two days previously and I was on my way to it to see if there was any action, such as if there were any predators or scavengers around or any interesting interactions taking place," he explains.
It turns out he was in luck. Nearing the remains, Dexter spotted a particularly ambitious hyena making off with some serious bounty.
"When I was about 500 metres from the elephant carcass, I rounded a corner in my Land Cruiser, and there, crossing the river bed towards me, was a young spotted hyena carrying part of the elephant's leg and foot,” recalls Dexter, who leads specialist photography safaris.
Dexter watched as the hyena made its way towards a den, and managed to snap a few photos as the animal stopped to take a bite of its decidedly supersized meal along the way.
Top header image: Mike Dexter
Fossils
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