Leopards of Sabi Sands

[Ngala]

All photo and information credits: Londolozi Game Reserve

Tu-Tones male

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4:4 male

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The Piva male rests briefly on a termite mound before sauntering off into the thickets.

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The Tutlwa female in the Sand River. We had anticipated her jumping across this bit of water and waited tensely with fingers on shutter buttons, but she turned around and walked back up the hill…

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A photograph should tell a story. This image speaks volumes; the Tamboti young female dragging her kill away – a young kudu calf. The mother kudu looking forlornly on from the background. The trackers with their cameras, watching as the leopard walks past their vehicle. A sad, yet transient moment in the African bush. Photograph by James Tyrrell

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A final look before moving away for good. The female kudu watches forlornly as the leopard places the carcass of the calf in a thicket, and the harsh reality of life in the bush sinks in.

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The local kudu population has been taking a hammering of late. Very young calves are usually concealed in long grass and thickets by their mothers, but the dry conditions mean that very little ground cover is available for concealment. The Mashaba female has been taking full advantage of this, as evidenced by this kill, her second kudu calf kill in five days. This photo shows her cub looking longingly in the Mashaba female’s direction, as it was struggling to open the kill itself. Eventually it dropped the carcass from the tree – whether by accident or design we will never know – which forced the Mashaba female to approach and feed a bit, allowing the cub to feed more easily thereafter.

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