Come over here and say that: The cheetah and gazelle who have become friendly next door neighbours



If these two creatures came across each other in the wild, it would end in swift and certain death for one of them.

But this easy-going cheetah has decided to befriend his gazelle neighbour instead.

The trusting Dama gazelle spotted the pacing cheetah in the next door enclosure of a zoo and came to meet it at the boundary.



The animals sized each other up tentatively before stepping closer and closer together.

Up close and personal: A young Cheetah and a Gazelle become friends at the Marwell Zoo in Hampshire

Before long they acquainted themselves by rubbing noses through the holes in the wire fence and have become the unlikeliest of friends.

These touching pictures were snapped by a visitor to Marwell Zoo, Hants, where the placid pair have been keeping tourists amused.

Patrick Costello, 45, who works in IT, was visiting the park with his wife Angela, when he saw the close encounter.

Patrick, from Portsmouth, said: 'It was very sweet and it did make everyone chuckle.

'We love watching the animals and visit the zoo often. On this occasion we noticed these animal's very cordial relationship.

'They had both been wandering around their enclosures and they seemed to catch each other's eyes.

'Before we knew it, they both approached the fence and got up close and personal.

Unlikely pair: In the wild the Dama gazelle would flee at the first sign of the lightning fast predator - but with the reassurance of a chain link fence the two have become best friends



'It's not what you really expect to see. They even looked like they were talking to each other.

'At first I thought the gazelle had completely lost its sense of self-preservation, but it must have known it was safe.

"They stayed there for maybe five or ten minutes before they parted ways.

'I think everyone was really surprised to see it - it's the total opposite of what you would see in the wild.'

Bill Hall, animal information officer at Marwell Zoo, said: 'Animals can be curious about each other.

'When you see situations like this you do think to yourself "What are they doing that for?" but it does happen.



'Normally the cheetah would be a lot more alert and interested in the gazelle as dinner, and the gazelle would realise it should keep out of the way.

'But if the cheetah was in a relaxed mood and had just been fed, it would be a lot more patient.

'The gazelle was probably thinking 'I've never seen a cheetah up close before, this is my opportunity.'

