The incredible battle between a leopard and a porcupine: who won? | the Chronicle

A leopard and a porcupine were the protagonists of an unusual duel in the Kruger National Park in South Africa. And although it was in principle a very uneven showdown, the end result surprised viewers who enjoyed nature at its best.

The battle took place in early August on the highway of the African country, traffic was therefore stopped for an hour and a half, which allowed witnesses to film it.

In the pictures, the leopard can be seen making several attempts to crush its prey, but the porcupine remains steadfast and repeatedly turns its back on its attacker and presents the ferocious feline with its sharp quills.

Whenever the predator attempted to pounce on the rodent, the rodent would escape and defend itself by displaying its characteristic spikes that covered its skin. In this way, he managed to prevent the leopard from attacking him as it would hurt his legs

According to the Earth Touch News website, it was a specimen of the Cape porcupine, the largest rodent in Africa, which are equipped with a mass of spikes that extend over a large part of his back.

There are myth that these animals can shoot their thorns like arrowsBut in reality, when threatened, they scare off predators by waving their hollow feathers to create an intimidating sound. While the jolts don’t deter potential attackers, they spread the spikes, spiking anything in their path.

According to witnesses, after an hour, the leopard withdrew without being able to hunt its prey. Mariette Langman, a South African photographer in attendance, captured minutes of the fight. As the days go by, the video has gone viral and has already been around the world.

“It was something I had never seen before. The fight lasted around 90 minutes and the leopard took three short breaks, licking its paws before continuing the fight. Afterwards, the two of them simply walked away. It was definitely a once in a lifetime experience “said the photographer.

Although in this case it can be said that the porcupine was victorious, this is not the usual result.. Leopards can be relentlessly persistent, and porcupine tactics aren’t foolproof. In most of the altercations recorded between porcupines and leopards, it is the felines that win.

According to witnesses, the porcupine with its tactics gained enough time to crawl through a burrow. While the cat was left to lick the wounds on its paws.

How do leopards hunt?

Leopards are animals that have mastered the art of porcupine hunting to perfection. According to the site, these cats are able to get under the sharp thorns or attack the animal’s head (where they don’t have spikes). Although they specify that it is the older and more experienced who tend to be successful.

This species found in a wide variety of fieldssuch as sub-Saharan Africa, West and Central Asia, southern Russia, India and East Asia.

Son famous for their opportunistic hunting style and versatile diet, which has helped them survive and adapt to a wide variety of environments and conditions.

Baboons, hares, rodents, birds, lizards, wild boars and fish are part of their usual diet.

Watch the fight between the leopard and the porcupine