It’s heart-wrenching when a mother loses all her babies in one go, and it’s a common occurrence in the harsh world of wildlife. Coping with such pain is a tremendous challenge for these mothers, but they have no choice but to face it. In the case of a young lioness in Etosha National Park, Namibia, she decided to heal her emptiness by nurturing a very special youngster from a completely different species.

Shortly after a male lion took the lives of all her precious cubs, the lioness, filled with sorrow, amazed everyone by adopting a springbok and nurturing him like her own. Photographer Gordon Donovan was fortunate to witness and capture their touching moments of bonding.

Initially, the 53-year-old man, Gordon, assumed that the small springbok would be seen by the lioness as nothing more than prey, as it should be. However, he was astonished by what unfolded next. The lioness not only engaged in gentle play, hugs, and licks with the springbok, but she also shielded him from other hungry lions in the vicinity, showing remarkable protection and care.

“It was a bizarre yet stunning sight to behold,” Donovan said. “I was excited about the lions, and when she captured the springbok I was waiting for the kill. But it never came and started cleaning the calf. That’s the mysterious way of nature, never knowing what will happen next.”

Donovan had made a long journey from New York to this stunning country, and it’s fair to say that this remarkable adventure lived up to his expectations. Many wildlife photographers spend their entire lives searching for such extraordinary moments, but not all of them are fortunate enough to capture what they seek. “These are the moments I seek when I go to Africa,” Donovan shared.