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Real-life angry hippos: Two males go head-to-head in brutal territory battle
- Photographer Tony Dilger captured these striking images in the Kruger National Park in South Africa
- Hippopotamuses are very violent and aggressive by nature and are often seen fighting between themselves
- The two males battled for ten minutes until the older bull defeated his younger challenger
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These incredible images show two aggressive hippos going head-to-head in a violent confrontation to prove themselves in front of their female mates.
The hippopotamuses can be seen locking jaws in battle as blood gushes out from their wounds.
Hippos are by nature very aggressive and males will often battle each other to mark their territory and claim to female mates.
The striking snaps were taken by Tony Dilger in the Kruger National Park, South Africa.
Face off: A young male, pictured right, challenges an older bull over his territory at Kruger National Park in South Africa
Tussle: The male hippos - which can weigh up to three tonnes - are the third largest land mammal in the world and are known for their aggressiveness. Here, the younger male can be seen pushing forward with an explosion of water towards his target
Mr Dilger, from Yorkshire, said: 'The two pink giant hippos met in a head-on collision. It was a spectacle so sudden and violent, it was painful to watch.
'If we thought this would be a lumbering, slow-motion drama we were in for a shock. It was explosive.'
Mr Dilger then went on to describe how the two hippos battled for ten minutes until a winner could be decided.
He continued: 'For ten minutes, water was thrown high into the air as they surged at each other, their foot-long tusks jabbing into pink flesh, each trying to turn or out-climb the other to deliver a decisive blow.
'The challenger, with slighter build, was more adept and his strategy of gravity-assisted plunge from above seemed to be winning the battle.
Killer tactics: But as the younger male surges forward, the older bull lowers himself into the water and impales the young hippo on his tusks
Lethal: With the younger male's momentum pushing him onwards, the older male lifts his bottom tusks up into his opponent's neck
Victorious: The older hippo manages to best his younger contender by impaling him further on his lower tusks as he pulls back his head
'But the old bull was not quite ready to surrender himself, or his mudbank of females, to the young pretender. The rival surged forward, rising through a mass of churning water in a last, towering effort, but the big guy had his own trick to play.
'Throwing back his head in an enormous gape, he slid deftly forward, the opposing colossus impaling heavily onto his massive lower tusks.
'The counterpunch worked. The rival's own weight had done the damage and with blood visibly gushing, he turned to escape. The heavyweight contest was over.
'Through it all, we had been shooting furiously, but now emerged from behind our cameras to watch, spellbound, as the animal celebrated his victory with a monster yawn.'
Angry, angry hippos: The younger hippo knows he is defeated and starts to retreat away from the old bull in surrender
Retreat: The older male hippo has maintained his territory and female mates for the time being
The sound of success: The older male hippo roars after fending off his younger competition