Young Lion Learns Lesson After Buffalo Fights Back

A young lion has learned a very important lesson after the buffalo it was trying to hunt fought back.

The three-year-old lion, living in Kenya's Nairobi National Park, was left behind by its pride being severely injured by the buffalo.

Benard Rono, a senior principal veterinary officer at the Kenya Wildlife Service, found the lion unable to move, with injured legs, on March 20.

"The lion was in pain, it was visible even when prodded by a vehicle it didn't move an inch we sedated it and moved to quarantine cages for further examination," Rono told NTV Kenya.

Upon closer examination, officials noticed puncture wounds on the lion's abdomen and severe damage to its vertebral column, an NTV broadcast reported. It had also suffered several fractured bones.

"We could see the lion was in pain and we gave it painkillers and antibiotics because of the swelling on its back," Rono told the news outlet.

The lion was provided with veterinary care, however it is likely to suffer long-term consequences due to the severity of its injuries.

Kenya Wildlife Service officers have moved the lion to a quarantine unit so that it may receive veterinary care.

X-rays and further examination on the animal will determine if it needs any other treatment.

Lions hunt everything from ostriches to small crocodiles. However, their preferred prey is larger mammals like buffalo, giraffe or zebra. But buffalo are large animals and can weigh up to 2,000 pounds.

Although buffalo are not predators like lions are, they are huge animals and can inflict serious damage if they feel provoked.

And as this lion was young, it took on more than it could chew when trying to hunt a fully-grown buffalo.

In January, two South African lions were similarly terrorized by buffalo after they attempted to hunt an individual in a herd.

As one lion attempted to close in on a buffalo calf, another member of the herd turned on them and threw one of them in the air "like a rag doll."

After the lion was thrown in the air, it landed a few feet away. Meanwhile, the other lion was now being targeted by about 20 other buffalo chasing after him. The lion ran for its life and eventually disappeared into the reeds.

Buffalo have very specific herding tactics that can prove lethal to lions. Herds will often gang up on lions, using mobbing techniques to chase them away, or sometimes even kill them.

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