This is the dramatic moment four fearless Indian bison managed to avoid certain death by chasing a giant tiger away from their herd . Praveen Siddannavar , 47 , captured the stunning shots as the Indian bison , also known as gaurs , teamed up to frighten away their would-be killer at the Nagarahole Tiger Reserve in the Karnataka State of India . The photographer , from Bangalore , says he looked on with amazement as the animals clashed near a water puddle - with the gaurs standing their ground before the tiger made a run for it . The chase : The group of Indian bison teamed up to frighten away their would-be killer at the Nagarahole Tiger Reserve in India . On the prowl : The tiger was walking in the open , heading straight towards a water pipe where the group of bison were having a drink . On high alert : One of the gaurs picked up on the scent of the approaching tiger and made all the others aware of its presence . Speaking of the incident , Mr Siddannavar said : ' I was enjoying a late afternoon drive and after scanning the forest and I drove to the sunset point on the backwaters of river Kabini that had gone completely dry due to poor monsoons ' . ' I was fortunate to spot a huge tiger resting underneath the shade of dried bamboo bushes , ' he added . 'After a while the tiger started walking in the open and loud alarm calls were given by spotted deer and also the Sambar deer . The tiger ignored these calls and headed straight towards the culvert [ water pipe ] to cool himself in a puddle , ' he went on to say . Mr Siddannavar said that a herd of gaurs were heading the same way to quench their thirst - a sight that 'really excited ' him as he knew he was going to see some action . One of the gaurs then picked up on the scent of the tiger and they were all alerted . 'The gaurs seemed uncomfortable upon seeing the tiger and decided to launch an offensive attack , ' the photographer said . Not going easy : The gaurs were uncomfortable at the presence of the massive tiger and decided to launch an offensive attack . Running scared : As soon as the four Indian bison charged at their would-be killer , the tiger decided he was n't going to hang around . Filled with fear : The four bison chased the tiger , who seemed more interested in saving his own life than making a kill . Mr Siddannavar said the the entire herd of gaurs stormed towards the tiger , after first snorting aggressively . As soon as the animals charged , the photographer said , their would-be killer decided to run away . ' The photographer admitted he was stunned to see the tiger backing away from its prey and said the gaurs proved to be a formidable force . 'What an unbelievable sight this was - I have never seen such action-packed drama before , ' Mr Siddannavar said . 'Tigers are apex predators - meaning they are at the top of the food chain in the forest ecosystem , ' he added . Great defence : Praveen Siddannavar said the the entire herd of gaurs stormed towards the tiger , after first snorting aggressively . Safe : After being chased away from the scene , the tiger went back to sheltering under the safety of dry bamboo trees . All in a day 's work : After seeing off the tiger , the gaurs wandered off into the Nagarahole Tiger Reserve , in India 's Karnataka State . Mr Siddannavar said gaurs are not normally scared of other animals , but taking on a tiger showed particular unity , strength and bravery . 'Tigers hunt gaurs regularly but it was amazing to see them working together - their strength lies in numbers and unity plays a key role in fending a tiger away , ' he said . 'It really surprised me to see the tiger running away as tigers rarely back off as they are the kings of the jungles , ' he added . 'But because it was a group of four gaurs and they attacked from all ends , the tiger had no option but to run away to save his life . ' Photographer : Praveen Siddannavar , 47 , says he looked on with amazement as the animals clashed near a water puddle - with the gaurs standing their ground before the tiger made a run for it .
Four Indian bison were relaxing near a puddle of water in India's Karnataka State when a large tiger approached . Instead of running off , the bison - also known as gaurs - teamed up to chase away their would-be killer . Terrified by the aggressive and charging bison , the tiger ran away from the scene as fast as it possibly could .