Two leopards had to be rescued after they rolled into a 50ft well during a fierce fight over territory.
The male big cats had been seen scrapping near sugarcane fields in Bhatkalwadi, Maharashtra, India, on Friday morning.
The frightened felines were heard growling by locals who called the Wildlife SOS team
But during the tussle, they fell into the well and were heard growling by concerned residents.
The two male leopards fell in to the 50ft hole in Bhatkalwadi, Maharashtra, India, on Friday morning when they were fighting
The Wildlife SOS team – who run the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Center in Junnar – was alerted after fears the beasts may drown in the waist-deep water.
The team drove 50 miles to reach the remote village as a team of forest officers arrived to assess the situation.
The two leopards – thought to be seven or eight years old – had stopped fighting and climbed on to a ledge together to avoid drowning.
Around 50 people gathered to watch the SOS team try to rescue the animals – which were thought to be seven or eight years old
The team lowered a makeshift cage down the well to the leopards and the crowd shouted encouragement for the beast to get in
As the team of conservationists arrived, a crowd of around 25 had gathered to watch the spectacle unfold.
One of the leopards looks hopelessly down into the water while the other looks up to the commotion outside the well.
The team lowered a cage towards the animals as they became weaker.
The large wooden box being used was attached to five long ropes and the crowd of people can be heard shouting encouragement to the leopards to get in.
One of the big cats mustered the energy to crawl into the makeshift elevator and a door was slowly slid across the exit.
They were lifted to safety one at a time during the three-hour operation and loud cheers came from the locals.
One of the leopards seemed unsure about the box and, after having a look at the inside, pushes off it and swims out of sight
The video cuts to a camera that appears to be on the top of the cage.
It shows one of the leopards nervously lift its front paws out of the water and on to the box, pausing to take one last look around the bottom of the well.
But the careful cat seems unsure and pushes off the base of the cage and swims to the left and out of sight.
However, the leopard reconsiders and can be seen returning to the entrance of the cage from the other direction and quickly hauling himself up.
He is gradually lifted out of the murky water to safety.
But after a short while he swims back into view and quickly jumps into the box, before being lifted to safety and taken to Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre
Both leopards were taken to the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre for observation and treatment.
Dr Ajay Deshmukh, Senior Veterinary Officer at the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre, said: ‘They bear wounds from their earlier scuffle, but we have not detected any internal injuries.’
He added: ‘They are both exhausted and in severe shock because of the ordeal and will be kept under observation for a few days till they are deemed fit for release.’
