Watch A Male Buffalo Heroically Save His Partner From A Lion Pride

Help is on the way! This is a remarkable example of herd animals working together to repel a predator. It shows a male buffalo scaring away several lions to help a female herd member. It’s heartwarming stuff!

Watch the Action Below!

Buffalo To The Rescue

Lions are large and powerful predators. They are also highly social animals and live in groups called prides. These are made up of mainly females and their offspring but there are also one or two males who have the mating rights to the pride and defend the territory.

By working together as a team, the pride can hunt animals that are bigger than they are. They will take on buffalo, giraffes and antelope. Once the animal is caught, the females will often allow the males to eat first but cubs have to wait to polish off what the adult lions have left behind.

Lions are perceived as a threat by many species who will do their best to injure a lion to ward it off. Catching buffalos is not a risk-free activity for lions!

Defense Against A Lion

At the start of the clip, we see the male buffalo striding over to a female that is pinned to the ground by three lionesses. As he approaches, two of the lionesses retreat but a third stays where she is. It looks as if she is mauling the buffalo who is grunting in distress. Some other herd members approach but they don’t get too close.

Eventually, all three lions are forced to retreat and the female buffalo can struggle to her feet. However, she seems to be injured and is limping as she walks away. An adult male buffalo is a formidable foe. They weigh around 1,600 pounds and are up to seven feet long. They have sharp horns and can run up to 37 miles per hour. These lions clearly decided that they risked injury if they stayed where they were. Buffaloes like to congregate in large herds which can be made up of between 50 and 500 members. This gives them protection from predators and it is not unusual for herd members to protect each other.

However, this female buffalo looks weak and injured. The lions will be aware of this and they seem to be in no hurry to leave the buffalo alone. They may be waiting until they have another opportunity to attack.