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+----- Thread: Leopard Predation Thread (/topic-leopard-predation-thread)
RE: Leopard Predation Thread - Tshokwane - 10-19-2016
From Londolozi, Mother Leopard versus Mother Duiker: A Standoff: by Shaun D'Araujo. Photographs by Londolozi Guest, Wendy Whitmore.
Chris visited Londolozi 20 years ago and had always planned to come back. On arrival he had told me that he had seen the most incredible things the last time that he visited. Little did Chris and his fiancé Wendy know that 20 years later, the stakes were about to be raised even more.
While searching the southern parts of Londolozi for a leopard, we came across two tiny leopard cubs, still smoky grey with their spots still not clearly delineated, peering out at us through a rocky outcrop. While examining the ground for signs of the mother, Elmon found fresh tracks of her moving away from the den site. We followed.
Left alone by their mother who was out hunting, these two curious cubs watched cautiously as we approached from a distance.
*This image is copyright of its original author
On their way back to the safety of a nearby rocky outcrop, a twig sparks the attention of one of the cubs.
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The tracks continued up the road and then disappeared. When we paused to take a moment to re-establish the direction of the tracks, we heard the distress call of a young duiker. As we approached, Elmon spotted the Ndzandzeni female leopard sitting straight up with her paw on top of a duiker lamb. As the young duiker continued to distress call, the leopard peered attentively into the surrounding thickets. “She’s waiting for the mother duiker to come looking for the lamb”, said Elmon. It dawned on me that we were witnessing something incredible that very little is known about. Usually when leopards catch their prey, they block the windpipe, suffocating their prey, but also preventing distress calls which could attract the unwanted attention of hyena or lions. The Ndzandzeni female didn’t do this though. She allowed the duiker to call for a few minutes until inevitably, the mother duiker returned. When the mother duiker approached, the leopard waited and a standoff between two mothers, both desperate to ensure the survival of their young, took place. The duiker had no choice, she had to leave her lamb, which was then quickly suffocated by the leopard.
A young duiker lays helplesly after distress calling for its mother. The Ndzanzeni female waits eagerly in anticipation for the mother duiker’s return.
*This image is copyright of its original author
The young duiker lamb tries to escape, but the Ndzandzeni female was never far behind.
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She place the lamb back into position and continued to wait. At this point the mother duiker was approaching the leopard from behind.
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The Ndzandzeni female then took the young duiker up a fallen tree, where it continued to distress call. At this point the mother duiker had turned away, and the stand off had come to an end.
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Completely astonished by what I had just seen, I tried to consult the books to see if this phenomenon had ever been witnessed before. After paging relentlessly through the literature, including one of the most intensive studies ever carried out in this area by Ted Bailey, I simply could not find this having been documented. We were by no means the first to see this, but that’s beside the point. It has opened up another window into the world of leopards, both beautiful and cunning. The fear of being anthropomorphic makes me hesitant to be too quick to answer, but could leopards use the distress calls of young antelope to attract the mother so they they get the chance of catching a second meal? His experience following leopards over the last 45 years has led Elmon to witness this phenomenon several times before. He thinks they do. Sandros Sihlangu, a ranger who has been at Londolozi for nearly 25 years, has also witnessed a similar event before where a female leopard allowed a young impala to distress call repeatedly until the mother came back. The leopard caught the mother and lamb and subsequently hoisted both impalas into a nearby tree.
Part of the elation of working in the bush and seeing these animals on a daily basis is that this kind of rare behaviour is constantly being uncovered. These experiences have not been documented in the books, but those who write the books don’t profess to know everything. Our understanding of leopards and their secretive behaviour continues to grow, and it pleases me to know that although we know a lot more than we did, we will never understand it all, and the mystery of leopards will always remain.
RE: Leopard Predation Thread - Tshokwane - 10-19-2016
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!
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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.
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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!”
RE: Leopard Predation Thread - Ngala - 10-20-2016
Related to reply #91.
Leopard and Honey badger (Mellivora capensis), from Jock Safari Lodge.
RE: Leopard Predation Thread - Ngala - 10-21-2016
Mashaba young female with a baboon kill. Credits to Sean Cresswell from Londolozi Game Reserve.
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RE: Leopard Predation Thread - Tshokwane - 10-27-2016
Credits to Dulini Private Game Reserve.
What a way to end a game drive!
On the way home yesterday morning our guests experienced Xikavi in action! Out of nowhere Xikavi leapt off the termite mound she was perched on, ran across the clearing and grabbed an unsuspecting impala.
Facebook vid, click on it to play.
RE: Leopard Predation Thread - Ngala - 10-29-2016
Photo and information credits: JRD Photography
"We found this female leopard just as she caught a scrub hare. Eventually she took the meat to her den where the cubs was waiting for he- Sabi sand"
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RE: Leopard Predation Thread - Ngala - 10-31-2016
From Mala Mala Game Reserve, 14 October 2015: Kikilezi Female vs Bateleur. Text and images: James Moodie
"On the afternoon of the 14 August 2015, rangers and guests alike all stood by Main Camp reception to head out for the afternoon game drive. Temperatures were soaring in the mid 30’s and for a short period of the drive it seemed that the animals had all decided to seek shelter from the sweltering sun. Only the elephants seemed to brave the heat and head to the river to have a much needed wallow and drink."
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"Whilst watching the elephant, one of the rangers then called in a female leopard who had just killed a small scrub hare, and those in the area responded immediately. It was a leopardess known as the Kikilezi Female who has a large territory adjacent to the camp. She too was lying in the shade of a large Apple leaf tree, feeding comfortably in the middle of an area known as Picadilly Triangle. She had recently just watched her two daughters become independant, both of whom seem to be trying to establish themselves in the same area as their mom. After she had eaten half of the scrub hare, she stopped and started walking through the open area towards the bushline, carrying the front half of the hare. Whilst walking she was also constantly contact calling, desperately trying to find her daughters, presumably in an attempt to offer them what little remained of her small kill, although both daughters at this stage had been found quite a long way north of her in the Mlowathi River."
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"The rangers followed her and just before the thicker bush she stopped and stashed her kill in a Spikethorn thicket, all the while contact calling. Suddenly she stopped, pricked up her ears and started staring into the thicket. We all looped around to the other side of the thicket to see what had grabbed her attention and noticed a juvenile Bateleur in the grass. Without hesitation she ran at the eagle and pounced on top of it, with the eagle trying to escape for its life. For several minutes the two had a tussle in the bushes, obviously the much larger and powerful leopardess coming out on top."
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*This image is copyright of its original author
*This image is copyright of its original author
"Eventually she seemed to lose interest in the helpless bird and went in for the throat shot, grabbing the eagle at the base of its neck, ready for the killing blow. Strangely enough the leopardess immediately let it go without the fatal bite, lifting her head and grimacing at something she tasted. As quickly as she had started, she had also finished, letting go of the bird, return to retrieve the kill, and continued walking into the bushes.
She never did find her daughters, and after a short time she took to finishing the kill herself. The bateleur stayed in the same thicket, still alive but in a very poor condition, eventually taking its last breath."
RE: Leopard Predation Thread - Ngala - 11-01-2016
From Mala Mala Game Reserve, 06 March 2015: Easy come, easy go – a blog from ranger James Moodie. Text and pictures: James Moodie
Early one morning, the Airstrip Male leopard was found doing his territorial rounds near MalaMala main camp. What began as a familiar sighting of this dominant male moving around his territory, quickly turned rather exciting. The Airstrip male, who was busy patrolling, all of a sudden came to an abrupt halt. His ears pricked and he started staring intently into a nearby thicket – this leopard was on full alert. Something in the magic guarri thicket had his attention and he was going to investigate. The Airstrip male began moving towards the bushes, initially as a fast walk which quickly turned into a jog – it was at this moment when some movement was seen coming from inside the vegetation. It was Kikilezi and her two cubs. This male shares his territory with a number of females, the Kikilezi female in particular, has been a celebrity with her two beautiful cubs for the last year now.
The newly found leopardess and her two cubs were not alone in the bushes, as it was discovered that they had been feeding on a recently captured and treed impala ram not more than a few hours old. The quarry was abandoned by the Kikilezi female almost immediately when she spotted the approaching Airstrip male. She hastily descended the tree and joined her cubs who were already evacuating the area. Although the Airstrip Male is the father of the two young females, and they were in no immediate danger, he could possibly become aggressive towards them had any of them attempted to prevent him gaining access to the carcass.
Cub of the Kikilezi female pawing the mongoose
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The cubs continued to move further away from their father, one of which headed for the shady reprieve offered on a sand bank in a nearby dry riverbed. Shortly after this cub ventured out of sight, an unmistakable shriek was heard from where she was walking towards. Immediately the rangers recognised the bloodcurdling squeals as a small mongoose of sorts. Upon further investigation, this young leopard cub was seen in close proximity to a banded mongoose – who was trying to fend off the young, curious leopard cub. For several minutes the cub circled the distressed mongoose, every so often giving a slight swat with her large powerful paws. Leopard cubs will begin their hunting career with smaller animals, all the while forming the foundations for later on in life – it is all part of the learning process.
Cub of the Kikilezi female striking the mongoose
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Eventually this playful cub grew tired of the ‘game’ and went in for the killing bite. Within seconds the mongoose was securely in her jaw, still fighting and waiting for an opportunity to maneuver a bit and maul the young leopard’s face with its large claws and sharp teeth. The opportunity never came though, and after a secure grip had already been established around the mongooses neck, the animals strength slowly began to slip away. Eventually the mongooses body was limp, and this freshly made kill was taken to a thicket of young jackalberries to ‘mock kill’ the mongoose over and over again as all young cats do before feeding on their triumphant hunt
Cub of the Kikilezi female and mongoose carcass
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This, what originally started as fairly normal sighting did not stop there, as no sooner had the mongoose kill been made, a large troop of baboons arrived on the scene. The alpha male of the troop saw the Airstrip male feeding in the less-than-conspicuous acacia tree and started barking furiously, attracting the attention of the rest of the troop. The Kikilezi female knew the strength and canines of the larger baboons, as well as their numbers would mean potential danger to her cubs, so she quietly disappeared into the thickets, the cub abandoning the kill immediately and followed its mother to safety.
The Kikilezi female and cubs were not the only ones to seek refuge, after the arrival of these vociferous primates. The Airstrip male also took his leave, however he was not about to lose his easily gained meal. He was watched as he rapidly descended the tree with his stolen kill and dragged the carcass to safety several hundred meters away and stashed it away deep within a thick spikethorn thicket. Quite an amazing morning, it just goes to show, however regular a sighting may appear, one never knows what is going to happen next. This is the joy of the bushveld.
RE: Leopard Predation Thread - Ngala - 11-02-2016
From Mala Mala Game Reserve, 20 November 2013: The Mongoose Killer, by ranger Matt Nolden
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This old female leopard has often been found on the western bank of the Sand River in the latter part of 2013. She is undoubtedly the oldest leopard seen this year, and her appearance and hunting tactics prove it. Her scarred face, tattered ears and worn down teeth are a sure sign of old age.
Several months ago, ranger Nic Moxham witnessed her kill a white-tailed mongoose in broad daylight. The elderly leopard spent hours trying to lick all of the meat from the small carcass.
More recently, rangers watched her kill four banded mongoose within a minute. Just after her series of kills, she lay down to rest before finding the energy to pluck one of the carcasses. She had ambushed them escaping from a burrow beneath the road. They initially took turns trying to escape one by one, but fell victim to the old but experienced leopard.
*This image is copyright of its original author
*This image is copyright of its original author
It is common for older leopards to begin hunting small rodents, mongoose, birds and other dangerous reptiles – often to their detriment. As a leopard ages, it lacks the strength and speed to stalk and kill larger mammals like impala and bushbuck. Thus they attempt to capture more vulnerable, but often dangerous, animals. Porcupines and black mambas are but two good examples of animals which older leopards are regularly injured by.
RE: Leopard Predation Thread - Ngala - 11-04-2016
Photo and information credits: Saravanan Sundaram
Leopard with Wildebeest kill
Masai Mara / Aug 2015
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RE: Leopard Predation Thread - P.T.Sondaica - 11-08-2016
Sorry i have one question and this is not troll
why leopard scared baboon?
RE: Leopard Predation Thread - Pckts - 11-08-2016
(11-08-2016, 06:19 PM)P.T.Sondaica Wrote: Sorry i have one question and this is not troll
why leopard scared baboon?
Leopards prey on baboon but a large male baboon is very dangerous, sometimes avoiding conflict and injury is a wise decision.
RE: Leopard Predation Thread - Polar - 11-08-2016
(11-08-2016, 06:19 PM)P.T.Sondaica Wrote: Sorry i have one question and this is not troll
why leopard scared baboon?
Leopards tend to avoid a lot of confrontation most of the time. Therefore, if there is a single baboon, there will likely be more hiding behind the tree-shade. However, if the leopard notices that the baboon (whether large or small: alpha or beta) is somehow isolated from its tribe, it will most likely easily prey on it. Look at Peter's peer-reviewed documents of leopards hunting large, lone chimpanzees and baboons on "On the Edge of Extinction: D - Leopard" thread.
RE: Leopard Predation Thread - sanjay - 11-08-2016
Baboon is dangerous prey. A big male baboon with his big fang can seriously injure leopard or even sub adult lions.
See this video, antelope is saved by baboon, See after 1:50
Here leopard is chased by baboon groups
There are several videos which shows baboon is not an easy prey
RE: Leopard Predation Thread - Ngala - 11-09-2016
Photo and information credits: Liam Rainier - Bush Exposure
"This heavily pregnant leopard chased this little Nyala over a hundred metres before catching it, a swift bite to the back of the neck severing the spinal cord - the Nyala had no chance!"
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