A safari guide in the huge park in northeastern South Africa captured the moment a mother honey badger attacked a hungry leopard that was trying to eat her cub.

Sahara Wulfsohn, a 28-year-old guide at Kirkmans Kamp in the Sabi Sands Game Reserve, was taking guests for a tour of the park in hope of spotting a leopard.

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"On our drive, we had seen a few elephants but I was really looking forward to showing my group of five guests a leopard," Wulfsohn told wildlife sighting website Latest Sightings.

"When Joel, one of the other rangers called in that he had found a female leopard not far from the lodge, I quickly responded to the sighting," Wulfsohn added.

When the group arrived at the scene they saw the leopard moving slowly through some trees and then realized there was a young honey badger just 10 meters (32 feet) away. That was when Wulfsohn started to film.

"The leopard stalked closer and closer until its nose was practically touching the rear end of the badger," Wulfsohn said. "The leopard launched its attack in a fury of claw and tooth with the small badger fighting bravely and valiantly but not really a match for the leopard."

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That was when the mother honey badger came charging at the leopard and scared it away, before dragging her large cub by the scruff of the neck to the safety of a nearby hole in a termite mound.

Honey badgers are known for their aggressive defensive abilities. They also have very sharp claws and few natural predators, due to their thick skin.

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