High up in the Spiti Valley of the Indian Himalayas, a snow leopard crept through the snow. As her cubs waited eagerly, she was on the hunt, tracking a group of ibex. The snow leopard saw her chance when a large, male ibex was foraging and distracted, and she took it. Andres Novales was watching.
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“Today I experienced the best wildlife moment of my life,” wrote Novales in an Instagram post sharing his dramatic footage. “It was our last afternoon in Kibber. We had been stuck inside for two days because of a heavy snowstorm. When the clouds finally cleared, the entire valley was buried in deep snow. Not long after, we saw her again. The same female snow leopard we had watched a few days earlier. [. . .] She went straight for the biggest male. At first, it looked like she might bring him down quickly. But the ibex fought back.”
The two animals fought as Novales looked on, shaking with excitement and anticipation.
Watch a snow leopard vs. ibex here:
Header stock image by Kathleen Reeder Wildlife Photography/Getty Images
