The real stars of the night sky: Herd of wildebeest captured staring at the stunning heavens over the Masai Mara

By Daily Mail Reporter

The sky at night: A herd of wildebeest is silhouetted against the stars on the plains of the Masai Mara in Kenya


Silhouetted against a stunning night sky, these powerful wildebeest appear completely captivated by the stars.

The picture is just one of a series of incredible images captured by film-maker Martin Dohrn, who used imaging equipment adapted from military technology to show Kenya's Masai Mara game reserve as it has never been seen before.

Among the photographs are lions hunting, elephants trekking through the night and whole herds of animals grazing on the African savannah.

Mr Dohrn's images need no artificial light, which allows him to film the creatures without being seen.

'We were able to see that in the light of a full moon animals on the plain could see each other clearly, from any distance. Herds would spread out, graze and generally relax.

'By the light of a quarter moon, we saw a zebra pick out a lion in the grass almost 200m (650ft) away.


Big beasts: This group of elephants slowly winds its way across the plain, oblivious to the film crew tracking their movements


Extraordinary images: Lions surround two rhinos. The film was shot with no artificial lights

'Watching young inexperienced lions was great entertainment as they run towards non-existent prey. It was a completely new world, less than a game of cat and mouse, more blind man's buff.

Mr Dohrn's film The Night Of The Lion is currently showing on the National Geographic Channel.


In for the kill: Lions are seen bringing down a hippopotamus


All creatures great and small: A huge herd of antelope are highlighted against a dark background as they graze


source: dailymail