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Baboon cub-naps, carefully grooms lion cub in South Africa

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Feb. 5 (UPI) -- A safari guide in South Africa captured photos and videos of an unusual incident involving a baboon that cub-napped a young lion and was seen grooming it on a tree branch.

Kurt Schultz, director of the Kurt Safari company, said he was on his way to a meeting Feb. 1 when he stopped to take some wildlife photos at Kruger National Park.

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Schultz ended up capturing photos and video of a baboon carrying a lion cub across a road and climbing up a marula tree with the apparently stolen baby.

The photographer said the young male baboon was grooming the lion cub and appeared to be caring for it in a way similar to how female baboons care for their young.

Many online observers compared the scene to the opening of Disney animated film The Lion King.

Schultz said it's not unusual for baboons to kill young leopard and lion cubs, but he has been leading safari groups for about 20 years and had never before seen a baboon caring for a lion cub.

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