PUBLISHED: 20 March 2013
A cheeky cheetah cub gets the drop on a wildlife photographer, sneaking up behind him and perching brazenly on his shoulder.
Photographer Stu Porter had been scanning the savannah of Tanzania’s Ngorongoro conservation area for a great wildlife picture when the inquisitive cub popped up to say hello.
Despite the interruption, Mr Porter’s patience paid off when he captured a brilliant sequence of pictures in which a mother cheetah gave chase to a fox before the much smaller animal turned the tables.
Looking for me? An inquisitive cheetah cub climbs onto the back of wildlife photographer Stu Porter
The female big cat had been stalking a Thomson’s gazelle around when two bat-eared foxes wandered a little too close to her cubs.
Deciding that the foxes would maker an easy dinner, the cheetah allowed the gazelle to escape and set off after one of the foxes instead.
However after it twisted and turned to get away the fox decided it wasn’t going down without a fight and ended up charging the cheetah taking her by such surprise she ran away with her tail between legs.
Leaps and bounds: The cheetah begins by chasing the desert fox around the savannah in Tanzania’s Ngorongoro Conservation area
Scram: The female cheetah appears to have the fox on the run after she noticed it was snooping around her cubs
As the humbled mum regrouped with her cubs they left hungry while the foxes kept watch looking pleased they had lived to see another day.
The photographer said: ‘The female cheetah was clearly intent on hunting and she zeroed in on the gazelle but while she was in mid-hunt a group of bat eared foxes bundled towards the two cubs.
‘They immediately got interested in the foxes and stalked right up to them - at first the foxes stood their ground and faced the cheetahs but then they decided to run.
‘This kicked off the chase instinct in the mum and she began chasing the foxes all over the place as which didn’t go unnoticed by the gazelle which took off.
Standoff: After slipping away from the Cheetah the fox stops in its tracks and confronts the much larger predator
My turn: The fox turns the tables charging the Cheetah and sending her packing
Victorious:The group of foxes look especially pleased with themselves after seeing of the much larger animal
‘All of a sudden the foxes decided they had enough and turned on the cheetah and chased it off almost in a split second before regrouping and looking very satisfied with their efforts.
‘It all lasted a few minutes and as the foxes made off the cheetahs caught their breath realising they had missed out on two meals in the space of minutes.
‘I would assume this kind of confrontation happens quite a lot in the wild however it would be rarely witnessed, we were very lucky to be in the right place at the right time.’
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