Who’s the king of the jungle?


Not always the lion, Yahoo News Gordon Donovan learned on a trip to Namibia’s Etosha National Park last year. Donovan captured three young lions behaving more like scaredy-cats than fierce felines when they tried to join a group of elephants at a watering hole.

At the end of the dry season in southwest Africa, daytime temperatures soared as high as 116 degrees. The parched lions were desperate for a drink, but the elephants would chase the cats away from the Gemsbokvalakte waterhole.

What ensued was an entertaining cat-and-mouse affair. For more than a half-hour, the young lions tried to slip past the larger slower mammals to sneak a sip only to be muscled out.

The cat trio eventually laid in wait for the elephants to have their fill. As the elephants departed for a rest in the shade, the lions made their move. But they enjoyed the moment with caution, constantly peeking up at their nearby enemies.

Refreshed, the lions became play-fought with one another — pausing only to chase zebras away from the prized watering hole. Ultimately, they too, needed a respite and relinquished their rights to nature’s fountain. (Yahoo News)

Photography by Gordon Donovan

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