No, it’s not a low-budget horror film – though the concept of a large predatory cat attacking an even larger predatory reptile seems both tacky and ludicrous, the struggle was documented by a photographer in a South African game reserve.
Crocodiles are rarely preyed upon, and even more rarely killed by predators. Between their powerful jaws and thick skin, few animals could even appear threatening to the crocodile; on top of that, the effort required to kill such a beast would not be paid off well, as the crocodile has very little edible meat. For these reasons, even top-tier predators like the leopard give crocodiles wide berth.
But according to observers in the Kruger National Park, the impossible did happen: A leopard dragged a crocodile out from where it was swimming, struggled to bite its throat, then inevitably sat on the crocodile to suffocate it. In one final image, the large cat can be seen dragging the dead crocodile away to feast in privacy.
