By way of Matt Franko, we come across this video of water buffalo who rescue a calf from a pride of lions (the revenge begins at around the 4:45 mark):
While Franko argues that the buffalo are being altruistic, I prefer a darker message: sometimes the prey fight back, and when they do, there are usually many more prey than predators.
Remember kids, the marginal tax rate at the end of a pitchfork–or the barrel of a gun–has historically been one hundred percent.
Just saying.
mikethemadbiologist
They’re Cape Buffalo, not water buffalo/
Do individuals retaliating against the predator achieve status in the herd? Do retaliating males have higher chances of achieving alpha, or mates? Do retaliating females have greater numbers of males fighting for mating rights? I’m not a scientist, so I don’t know if these are even the right questions to ask, but I’d appreciate any insight.