This topi and her calf were running from a hyena. It wasn’t much of a chase as the hyena quickly got tired and gave up. Topi were the most conspicuous animals we saw in the Masai Mara and every mother seemed to have a baby with her.
Hey Tom,
Yeah, I was surprised at how fast they were. Easily distancing themselves from the hyena. Of course, if it was a cheetah chasing, it would have been a completely different story altogether.
I believe that baby was a couple of weeks old. And yes, the baby was actually running faster than the mother and eventually outlasted her. They were pretty fun to watch — all legs at that stage of life.
Hi Sean:
I was just visiting the Masai Mara last September and am creating a watercolor sketchbook of my travels. I got great reference shots of the Topi and their calves, but none running. Would you be OK if I created a watercolor from your beautiful image? If I post the final art on @gerrity_pegasus I will tag you. Let me know!
Thanks,
Peg Gerrity
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This topi and her calf were running from a hyena. It wasn’t much of a chase as the hyena quickly got tired and gave up. Topi were the most conspicuous animals we saw in the Masai Mara and every mother seemed to have a baby with her.
Nicely done. How fast can they go Sean? They seem to be trucking along pretty good in this shot.
Hey Tom,
Yeah, I was surprised at how fast they were. Easily distancing themselves from the hyena. Of course, if it was a cheetah chasing, it would have been a completely different story altogether.
beautiful as always Sean
Well, cheetahs are the “Porsches” of the animal kingdom, right? How fast do they go? 70 mph?
So cool! Looks like the baby is able to keep up too!
Just out of curiosity, how old is the baby? What an amzaing physical feat to be able to do, keeping up with mom. Thanks for all of your photos.
Hi Karen,
I believe that baby was a couple of weeks old. And yes, the baby was actually running faster than the mother and eventually outlasted her. They were pretty fun to watch — all legs at that stage of life.
Hi Sean:
I was just visiting the Masai Mara last September and am creating a watercolor sketchbook of my travels. I got great reference shots of the Topi and their calves, but none running. Would you be OK if I created a watercolor from your beautiful image? If I post the final art on @gerrity_pegasus I will tag you. Let me know!
Thanks,
Peg Gerrity
Thanks for asking Peg. Yes, feel free to use as reference. Would love to see the final.
Absolutely! I’ll tag you and add your IG handle to the link tree. And thank you! Your work is incredible!