Paolo Torchio photographs a leopard pouncing on a wildebeest in Kenya

These up-close shots show the moment a leopard makes quick work of a young wildebeest who was about to cross a crocodile infested river.

It was purely by accident that Italian photographer Paolo Torchio captured the rare and spectacular event on camera, who had been in position for four days to take shots of hungry crocodiles as a herd of wildebeest crossed a river in Kenya's Maasai Mara nature reserve.

'My target was to take pictures of the very hungry crocs - who had been fasting for almost a year - attacking and killing the wildebeest in the river,' the 54-year-old said.

But then he noticed the male leopard slinking out of the bushes, and stalking towards a herd of wildebeest.

Paolo, originally from Turin, Italy, has lived in Nairobi, Kenya for 25 years and has played an active role in wildlife conservation in the country.

The annual migration sees over a million wild animals move from one country to another, spanning the Maasai Mara National Reserve

Thousands of wildebeest are killed by crocodiles during the crossing but they are usually safe before entering the water.