The tawny lion slinks through golden grass, stealthy and sinuous, utterly concentrated on the hunt, a perfect predator awaiting only the instant when pure instinct triggers the rush, the spring, the ferocious slash of sharp claws and merciless fangs that will bring down her prey. It's a scene as old as Africa itself, yet its sudden, violent drama is always new.

Dereck and Beverly Joubert know it well. For decades they've lived among lions, winning international acclaim for their unique photographs and pioneering documentaries, which record lions' previously unknown behavior such as nocturnal forays and a willingness to stalk their quarry through water. Of all their long experience, the Jouberts consider their two years with the lions of Duba the most exciting, important research they have done—here presented in fascinating text and 100 gripping images.

Month after month, they battled floods, hardship, and danger to capture these spectacular shots of the relentless blood rivalry played out on the Okavanga Delta every day as three separate lion prides harry a huge herd of buffalo. These massive beasts are challenging prey; they fight back fiercely, aggressively seeking out the big cats and attacking them with deadly thrusts of their sharp, sweeping horns. The lions leap and dodge, but not always swiftly enough to escape—and so the ancient struggle goes on.

The companion volume to a new National Geographic film airing in 2006, this is an unforgettable once-in-a-lifetime glimpse of the world's most awe-inspiring hunters, the lethal and beautiful lions of Duba.