Creeping lioness flipped through the air by buffalo's horns

Dec. 28 (UPI) -- A lioness' hiding spot in some bushes near a buffalo herd in South Africa was found out by one of the animals, which used its horns to flip the predator through the air.

Bathabile Shakwane, 22, a field guide at Kruger National Park, captured video of the unusual encounter at the park.

Shakwane said she started filming when she spotted the lone female lion stalking the buffalo herd -- or perhaps sleeping in an unlucky spot.

"We were just leisurely driving down from Satara towards Skukuza on a relatively hot day. We were rewarded with lots of buffalo sightings. We stopped in at Kumana dam and happened to notice a lone lion lying in the bushes nearby a herd of buffalo," Shakwane said. "A single buffalo bull seemed to notice the lion lying in the bushes and decided to tread carefully towards the lion to see what she was up to!"

The video shows the lion get up and start to flee from the buffalo, but the larger animal uses its horns to flip the big cat through the air.

Shakwane said the lioness appeared emaciated and was likely weakened by hunger during the encounter.

"The video is kind of tragic but just that scene was beyond amazing for me because you don't get to see this every day," the guide said.