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Tourist Leans Out Of Open Window To Pet Lion, Instantly Regrets It

Tourist Leans Out Of Open Window To Pet Lion, Instantly Regrets It

The tourist had leant out of the window to touch the big cat, who did not seem impressed

Jess Hardiman

Jess Hardiman

Footage shows the moment a tourist in an African national park almost had a nasty run-in with a lion, after they leant out of the window of the tour van to stroke the big cat.

The clip was filmed in Serengeti Nation Park in Tanzania, and was shared online on YouTube account Maasai Sightings.

In the video, which has been captioned 'Still the dumbest tourist ever?', we see as one of the tourists in the van leans forward to reach out of the open window, outstretching their arm to pet a lion that is minding its own business on the grass, its back facing them.

Maasai Sightings

The beast then turns towards the duo and stares at them, which is when the second unnamed tourist - who is sat in the window seat - begins to feel uneasy.

A voice from inside the vehicle then says: "Close the window."

As the second tourist struggles to slide the window shut, the lion jumps up and roars.

After some scrambling, eventually they manage to close the opening - the lion still visible in the distance, staring into the car at the people.

Many people on YouTube commented to criticise the tourists' actions, with one writing: "Somebody has a brain the size of a flea sitting between their ears."

Maasai Sightings

Someone else said: "Lions are freaking strong... that window wouldn't hold Mufasa back if he wanted to get in."

A third added: "Yeah sure, just ignore the signs that say don't get out your car, do not attempt to touch or feed the animals etc, dumb tour or dumb people taking the tour?"

Another YouTuber commented: "People see lazy lions in zoos, or snoozing during the day in the parks, and have absolutely no idea how freakin' fast a lion actually is. I mean, less than a second and this guy could've had a faceful of claws. Go pet your house kitty... feels much the same. House kitty can also tear your face off."

The moral of the story probably shouldn't be one you needed to hear, but if you still have a desire to lean out of a safari car to annoy a massive lion, then don't.

Featured Image Credit: Maasai Sightings

Topics: News, Animals, Lion