Leopard Predation Thread

[Tshokwane]

From Africa Geographic, An epic tussle between leopard and waterbuck: by Nanzhila Plains Safari Camp.

On a recent visit to Nanzhila Plains Safari Camp, the only lodge in Southern Kafue, guests were treated to the incredibly rare  sighting of a tussle between a leopard and a waterbuck. The encounter just goes to show why you should never miss a game drive, as you never know what could happen when out on safari!

*This image is copyright of its original author

Phillipe Kress, a guest who captured these stunning images, says, “All our cameras were packed away and ‘dust-proof’ as another long and warm day in Nanzhila was coming to an end with the sun about to set. Suddenly, someone shouted, “leopard!”


I was only just quick enough to unpack the camera before the male leopard launched an attack on this rather large waterbuck. This attack was so fascinating because leopards will usually target quite small prey, and almost always during the night. This sturdy looking waterbuck certainly isn’t a leopard’s typical victim and witnessing a day-time hunt is always a sight to behold.

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

It is impossible to describe the speed of the attack but to try and put it into perspective, I shot the first 10 pictures – five of which feature in this blog – in six seconds. And with that, both the leopard and the waterbuck tumbled into a ditch out of view.


Leopards are ambush predators; they crouch low to sneak up to their prey and pounce before it has a chance to react. A leopard will generally kill its prey with one swift bite to the neck, breaking it.

However, the leopard wasn’t so lucky this time. We drove around for 10 minutes before incredibly, we found the waterbuck again – bleeding heavily and wounded, but alive. We don’t know whether it survived the night, but it should certainly be commended for putting up such a big fight against one of the most efficient killers in Africa.

*This image is copyright of its original author

What was interesting was that there was a second and smaller leopard hiding in the bushes a distance from the scene of the attack. As it was too dark to photograph, we can only surmise that this was perhaps a female who was either courting the male or trying to avoid him!


Needless to say, we had a wonderful stay at Nanzhila where I managed to get a number of photographs of many other great sightings which alone would have justified our stay and we look forward to returning one day!” Reply