Rare Sighting of 'Best Mammal of All' Caught on Tape

It's rare to spot a black-maned Ethiopian lion—they were actually feared extinct until a small population was discovered last year—but during a recent trip to Ethiopia, an ornithologist and National Geographic Explorer not only saw one, he caught it on video, Nat Geo reports. Çagan Sekercioglu was inside his vehicle at Bale Mountains National Park when "we hit upon the best mammal of all," he says. He managed to keep the camera steady even when the male got within a few feet of the vehicle, though a conservation biologist explains that the lion likely didn't view Sekercioglu as prey—and also couldn't see him properly, thanks to the light shining in his face and blinding him. (More endangered species stories.)