Check Out These Huge Hippos In The Middle Of A Bloody Battle

In one image, the 3,000-pound hippos can be seen with their jaws locked together as blood gushed from their mouths.

Another shot showed one hippo brutally impaled on the other’s pointed tooth, as the fight neared its conclusion.

The intense images were shot by photographer Mike Dexter (35) from Durban, South Africa.

Mike took the photos in the Mara North Conservancy in Kenya from around 65-feet away, using a Canon 5D MK IV and a 100-400mm lens.

“Male hippos are highly territorial and dominion over prime river real estate is fiercely contested. Most altercations are resolved through displays of size and power – seldom escalating to this degree of physicality,” Mike said.

“Two days after this bloody battle, the bloated body of a similarly sized hippo was found floating downstream in the Mara River.

“As a professional wildlife photographer, I have spent a significant amount of time in these areas, but this was the first time I have witnessed such a brutal fight.”

Male hippos use their large teeth to block attacks or to wound each other during territory battles.

Hippos mark their territory by defecation – one male will rule over a small stretch of river, unless another male challenges him.

“From when I found them, until the moment that the smaller one high-tailed it to the river was around thirty minutes,” said Mike.

“I don’t know how long it had been going on before that. They were already bleeding profusely – my guess is that they had been tearing into each other for quite some time.”