He was just LION there! Bold tortoise climbs over king of the jungle that was in its way
- The unbelievable moment a fearless tortoise climbed over a sleeping lion was captured by a wildlife guide
- The South African guide, Johan Adolf Smalman, 35, said the pride had recently finished eating buffalo
- He had been viewing the lions relaxing after their feast when he spotted the tortoise
- Trapped between two of the lions, the tortoise made its escape by climbing over the legs of a sleeping beast
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The incredible moment an audacious tortoise climbed over a sleeping lion relaxing in the South African sunshine has been captured by a wildlife guide.
The animal had become trapped between two lions that were sleeping after feeding on Buffalo carcasses, but made its brave escape by clambering over the legs of the ‘king of the jungle’.
Johan Adolf Smalman, 35, a head guide from Hoedspruit in the Limpopo province of South Africa, said: ‘A pride of lions was relaxing after they had finished feasting on a Buffalo carcass.
The brave Speckes Hinged Tortoise in South Africa considers its options as it has become trapped between two sleeping lions
‘As we were sitting there viewing them sleeping I noticed a Spekes Hinged Tortoise close to one of the lions – he was trapped in between all of them,’ Smalman said.
The pictures taken of the tortoise show it in its predicament, seemingly eyeing up the sleeping lion’s legs as its escape route.
Left: The tortoise assesses its options and determines climbing over the legs of the sleeping lion is its best option. Right: Making its move, the tortoise climbs up onto the sleeping Lion, likely hoping not to disturb it
In a move that Steve McQueen would be proud of, the tortoise climbed up onto the lion, likely hoping not to disturb the sleeping giant.
While it didn’t stick the landing, the tortoise manages to escape its difficult situation without waking the sleeping giant
Luckily, the tortoise did not wake the big cat, and while its dismount was far from perfect – falling face-first into the sand – the amphibian was able to escape its rather dangerous situation.
King of the jungle? Despite lions being one of the most ferocious animals in the wild, the tortoise was able to walk all over this particular beast