'Brave Little Crab' Mesmerizes Pride Of Lions In South Africa

A “brave little crab” caught the interest of a pride of lions in South Africa, rangers at the MalaMala Game Reserve said.

The scrappy crustacean raised its pincers to one of the big cats, and appeared to keep its cool as the gang surrounded it, video posted Tuesday shows. (Watch the encounter below.)

“The lions were surprised by the appearance of perhaps something they had not seen before,” wrote rangers and videographers Ruggiero Barreto and Robyn Sewell.

Before long, a handful of the predators had sauntered over for a very close look at the unintimidated creature.

The standoff finally ended when the crab retreated down its hole in the river bank, the rangers said.

“Not many betting people would have given the crab good odds on making it across the river past a pride of lions, but this little fella was up for it,” they said.