Leopards of Sabi Sands

[Tshokwane]

Very interesting article from the blog of Savanna Private Game Reserve:

In the central parts of our concession, Scotia has been providing equally great sightings! Although she does not have the attraction of the cubs, it seems that she is starting to think about it! She recently met up with Nyelethi and was very flirtatious with him, trying hard to get some attention from him. He seemed less amused and was not sure about her at all, snarling and backing off each time she approached him!

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Eventually she got tired of his disinterest, ran up behind him and lashed at his head with her paw, claws extended! Understandably, he did not take too kindly to this, and she had to take evasive action to avoid being injured by Nyelethi!

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

Things did calm down, and the two of them went east off our concession, where they reportedly mated for the next two days or so. Perhaps we may have some new cubs to look forward to in the forthcoming summer! In the picture below, it clearly shows the size difference between the male and female leopard!

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Dewane has been very dominant over the past few months and is walking tremendous distances to cover his entire territory. He makes regular forays down to the south, but is understandably concentrating around the river. This is where the most competition will be and he has had a number of altercations with the rarely-seen male in the north. Recently, he had a roaring match with the northern male across the river, but when they do meet up, it seems that Dewane has been dominating!

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

During one of his visits to the river, after extreme patience and a number of attempts at stalking impala, he finally had some success! In between the full moons of April and May, most of the mating happens in impala, and there is intense competition for dominance. During this period, the male impalas fight and rut, chasing each other incessantly and vocalising with distinctive guttural ‘roars’ often mistaken for those of a predator. During one of these ruts, Dewane became alerted to their presence and in a heartbeat slunk into position above the riverbank. It took us only a minute or two to get around to where he had gone, but by the time we got there, he already had a large male by the throat. As soon as it was dead, he dragged it down into the river next to a small pool where he would be able to have food and water for the next couple of days!

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The battle between Ravenscourt and Torchwood continues. It seems that Kashane had decided to vacate the area in the south-east of the concession near Savanna, as we have hardly seen him at all over the past two months. With Dewane concentrating around the river, it has opened up the south slightly and there is a definite increase in the altercations between the two youngsters. As has proved to be the case for almost all of these battles, Ravenscourt seems to dominate and Torchwood always has to flee. It seems likely that Ravenscourt might take over in the south, but as we know in nature, nothing is certain.

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

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