Africa by night: hunter and prey watch each other

When darkness falls on the African savanna, the animals come to life — they play, hunt, rest and mate. British nature photographer Martin Dohrn can capture nocturnal activities, thanks to cameras designed to film the animals without disturbing them. The recordings reveal that, in many cases, the animals’ behavior at night is very different from during the day.

Wounded zebra is brought down by lions. The lions may have found the wounded animal by listening for its uneven hoof beats.

Hunters in the dark

Spotted hyenas are able hunters and communal social animals. Clans are matriarchal: The alpha female and her cubs outrank all other members. Though hyenas are often viewed as scavengers, studies indicate that they actually kill some 95 percent of their food.

Wounded zebra is brought down by lions The thermal camera reveals an inflamed and swollen area on the zebra’s right foreleg. It’s probably the same individual the photographer observed earlier, limping around with its herd. The lions may have found the wounded animal by listening for its uneven hoofbeats.

Horned

A row of wildebeests, on the Masai Mara.

Cheeky lions practice hippo surfing

A gang of young lions has developed a special sport, terrorizing the local hippos almost every night. The lions hook onto the backs of passersby with their iront claws and use their hind legs to jump along.The playful felines rarely hunt hippos and so do not pose any real danger to them, but the hippos still run panicked toward the river.

Giraffes steal a break

During the day, girafies are almost always on foot, but one pitch-black night, a group of the large herbivores lie down to rest for a short while. They probably assume that with no moonlight, the lion threat is minimal.The lightest areas represent the highest temperatures, so the photo reveals that giraffes are very hotbeaded. '