Watch This Leopard Turn Into a Heat-Seeking Missile and Launch a Sprinting Impala

Running down a hill is a norm for both impalas and leopards but when they collide in mid-air, it’s dizzying for both. In this clip, you watch how a leopard expertly stalks and ambushes its prey. The unsuspecting impala catches air along with the leopard, both spinning for a few moments before they hit the ground. The recovery of each is impressive in its own right but this story only has a happy ending for the leopard.

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How Fast Are Impalas?

Impalas can reach the same speeds you reach in your car on a two-lane highway, topping out at about 56 miles per hour. Aside from being able to run incredibly fast, impalas have also learned to change direction in the blink of an eye, which keeps predators on their toes.

How Do Leopards Overpower Impalas?

Leopards hunt by stalking and ambushing their prey. They are not nearly as fast as impalas, so they have to get more resourceful. At full speed, leopards top out at about 36 miles per hour. Along with impalas, leopards also hunt smaller animals, including warthogs and reptiles.

Once a leopard has caught its prey, it’s game over. They are incredibly powerful animals and use their paws and a 94-bite force quotient (BFQ) to immobilize and kill their prey. Although a challenge to hunt, once an impala goes down, the leopard is in charge.

This clip has a disclaimer that the footage may be disturbing to some viewers. When it starts, the impala and leopard are in full view. The impala is booking it down a hill and the leopard scurries over, crouches down on the hill (very well camouflaged), and lies in wait.

In full sprint, the impala is aided by the downward trajectory of the hill but the leopard already had the advantage. The impala runs straight for it and the leopard jumps up, grips it mid-air, and they both tumble down the hill. They’re not connected at this point, but the leopard has cleverly interrupted the impala’s full sprint.

The impala gets up quickly and tries to run but the leopard is not about to lose its meal. It does what it innately knows to do and goes for the impala’s neck. You can appreciate the difference in size between the two as the leopard keeps sinking its teeth deeper into the impala. As the video ends, you watch the impala’s limbs slowly go limp.

The photo featured at the top of this post is © iStock.com/UrmasPhotoCom