002 Male Lion prowling in the Serengeti National Park Photo by Giles Laurent

A CLOSER LOOK

Male Lion ( Panthera leo ) prowling in the Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. Prowling primarly consists of walking slowly low-to-the-ground with head down while fixing the target and trying to be as stealthy as possible. This action is a behavior commonly expressed by large carnivores to assess their surroundings, stalk preys, or approach with reduced detectability. In this instance, the lion was pursuing a cheetah ( Acinonyx jubatus ) mother and her three cubs, that where close to a recent kill. Lions frequently engage in kleptoparasitism by usurping kills from smaller predators and may also attack cheetahs or their offspring to reduce interspecific competition for prey resources.

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