By dawn the lions had left the scene of the crime and the hyaenas had taken over what little there was left.

With dawn hardly showing its first light the vultures were coming in in their droves. There was hardly even enough light for landing. They knew there would be little to go around. And indeed there was especially as the hyaenas made it clear they weren’t sharing.

Scattered around was the odd little pocket of vultures pecking at a discarded bone but most of the attention was on the rib cage and vertebrae still semi attached.

Unfortunately this is where one or two hyaenas had focussed their attention too.
Every time they turned their backs on the carcass the vultures would pack in only to be chased off.

But towards the end of it, when there really was nothing more the hyaenas could get from the carcass, it was just a game to chase vultures sending out a panic of feathers.
Later in the morning I was horse riding in the area and the only signs of the buffalo carcass were a few scattered clean white bones lying in the grass, and of course the huge pair of buffalo horns.