The remarkable footage was filmed by Zandri White, a 27-year-old guide at AndBeyond Phinda Private Game Reserve. Recounting the event, White shared, “On a rainy afternoon, while heading home along the reserve’s main road, I noticed movement at the edge of my vision off the road. I slowed down and spotted a female cheetah and her cub.
“She suddenly trotted across the road ahead of me, then swiftly increased her pace to a run. Disappearing into tall grass on the opposite side, she reappeared moments later on the road with a common duiker in her mouth!
“It seemed she struggled to secure a firm hold because the wet clay soil under her feet made it quite slippery. The duiker’s cries seemed to drive her to work even harder to silence it, as it could attract other predators in the area. It was fascinating to observe her attempts to use her body weight to pin the duiker down, while the duiker fought back, kicking at her soft belly with its sharp hooves when it had the chance.
“There was a moment where the duiker almost slipped from her grasp, indicating how vigorously it was fighting. It took at least 6 minutes for the duiker’s body to finally go limp, longer than expected, but it put up a good fight! At the end of the video, you can see her dragging the duiker closer to where she left her cub and hear her calling out to it.
“It all happened so quickly, and I couldn’t believe my luck! She managed to catch the duiker so swiftly and right in front of me. Once she pulled it onto the road, it was hard not to feel sorry for the duiker as it fought for its life. But at the same time, I felt happy and excited for her as she secured food for herself and her cub. I started worrying that nearby predators might hear the duiker’s cries and potentially steal her food. Luckily, she and her cub were seen again later that afternoon, with full bellies.
“The sighting ended as she pulled the duiker further down the road toward where her cub was hiding in the tall grass. She called out, and the cub immediately came to feed while mom took a moment to catch her breath.
“I’ve been fortunate to see a few cheetahs during my time as a guide at Phinda. This one was particularly unique in that the takedown of the duiker happened so rapidly yet took such a long time. Usually, when cheetahs catch something slightly larger like an impala or nyala, it’s relatively quiet and the takedown is swift. Yet, in this case, a small antelope put up a big fight.
“If anyone else is fortunate enough to witness a sighting like this, try to observe and appreciate nature at its finest. It might not always be easy to watch, but you’ll likely never witness anything quite like it again. Some people spend years on safari to experience interactions like this.”