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Ngala · 07-05-2016, 10:53 PM

From Sabi Sabi Private Game Reserve:
"We found Lisbon's son resting up on a termite mound. We watched him attempt to hunt a steenbok but he missed, he then found the two buffalo carcasses which the lions killed a week ago."

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"We found Kigelia perched up in a Knobthorn tree this morning and were fortunate to be able to follow her for quite a distance as she went about her daily routines."

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Ngala · 07-06-2016, 09:46 PM

From Londolozi Game Reserve, Lions Kill Leopard: A Tribute To The Dudley Riverbank 5:5 Male by Amy Attenborough
There’s a leopard that lived on Londolozi that has the most bizarre and beautiful story. It begins with him being adopted by his grandmother as a cub, later caring for her in her old age and sadly ends with him being killed by the Tsalala Pride. The books teach us that leopards are strictly solitary, only meeting to mate, fight or when they have cubs. This particular story is the complete antithesis of this though. He was a leopard that taught us that the secret lives of these cats are far more complex and intriguing than we had imagined possible and so in memory of him, I’d like to recount the details of his astonishing story.

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The Dudley Riverbank 5:5 male is Londolozi royalty, a part of the Mother Leopard bloodline, the leopards that have made Londolozi what it is today. He was born in a litter of two to the Dudley Riverbank Female in 2006 and about three months later her mother, the 3:4 female had a litter of her own.
One day, these two females were on separate kills on a section of the Sand River, quite close to each other, when it seems they must have crossed paths, and something strange occurred…
Ranger Tom Imrie was returning back to camp one evening soon after and quite unexpectedly the form of a female leopard appeared in his spotlight. They identified her as the 3:4 female and as she crossed the road, they noticed her young cub tagging behind. Quite astonishingly, a few steps behind them trotted out another cub, only this one was three months older! The 3:4 female turned around and hissed at this young leopard but he continued to follow her and her biological cub, seemingly unperturbed. Two days later the trio was found together again, except this time the grandmother was grooming the new addition to her litter and from that day on these two leopards didn’t separate again for another three years.

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As a youngster the 5:5 male was known for his antics and Helen Young, a Londolozi ranger at the time, remembers how on one occasion he stole a picnic blanket from under the nose of a rather confused chef who was sent into the bush to set up an alfresco lunch. Helen laughs, saying that “the blanket was sighted again… but in five pieces and up three different trees”. She remembers another time a tracker rather foolishly took off his jacket while following the Dudley Riverbank male’s tracks, and after a long and unsuccessful morning, returned to the tree in which he had hung it. “He was met by the leopard, capering around in the top-most branches of the self-same tree, very pleased with his new coat… It took four days before we could retrieve it”, said Helen.
Melvin Sambo, one of Londolozi’s most experienced rangers, says that one of his favourite sighings ever involved this young cub. It was a sighting in which they saw six leopards all together on one kill! The group included the 3:4 female, her daughter the Dudley Riverbank female, their two litters of cubs as well as the cub’s father, known as the Tugwaan male. Melvin says the Dudley Riverbank male was incredibly relaxed around vehicles as a cub and he gave much joy to Londolozi’s guests and staff during these early years of his life.

The 5:5 male strolls past Ranger Talley Smith and a group of Londolozi guests. From years of being photographed, there must be thousands of photographs of this particular leopard scattered across the globe. Photograph by James Tyrrell

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The Dudley Riverbank 5:5 male patrolling through his territory. Although male leopards typically establish a territory far from where they were born, this male never strayed too far from his birth place. Photograph by James Tyrrell

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Upon independence he wandered only slightly north of his mother and grandmother’s territories, apparently not wanting to drift too far from home. This is rather strange behaviour for a young male leopard because it meant that he stayed right in the heart of his father’s territory and quite literally challenged this much older and stronger male to the right to the area. Despite his rather foolhardy attempts, he lost in an epic fight to the Tugwaan male and subsequently moved east over our boundary. In the space of one day, Londolozi rangers and guests went from spending countless hours with this particular male to not seeing him at all.

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He did eventually come back though and went on to fight with the Camp Pan, Marthly and Emsagwen males. For a while it looked as though he was set to oust the Camp Pan male from central Londolozi, and indeed during the early and middle parts of 2011 it certainly looked as though this was inevitable. Then the Camp Pan male got granted a lifeline with the disappearance of the Emsagwen male in the east, as the DRB 5:5 male moved east to claim this vacant area. We didn’t see him much after this, only occasionally bumping into him as he skirted round the fringes of Londolozi, but his rasping call would regularly be heard east of our boundary.

The 5:5 male’s eye after he lost sight in it. It must have affected his depth perception abilities and yet this leopard still managed to hunt for himself, proving the resilience of these creatures. Photograph by Amy Attenborough

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One of the most incredible things he did as an adult leopard though was to share some of his carcasses with his ageing grandmother, the 3:4 female, who by that stage was struggling to hunt for herself. This is unheard of behaviour in the usually secretive world of these solitary cats. Although male and female leopards are sometimes found on kills together, it is usually because the males have bullied their way into the situation, and once they have appropriated the carcass it is very unusual to see them share. Here though the female could never have forced herself on this stronger male and it seems that the bond which formed between them during the male’s infancy and adolescence, remained throughout his life.

The 5:5 male after catching a warthog piglet. This male is renowned for rather strangely having shared his kills with his now deceased grandmother when she was old and frail. Photograph by Trevor McCall- Peat

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Although we only ever saw this male sporadically once he’d reached maturity, he is one that we respect greatly. Despite losing sight in one eye he survived and continued to fend for himself regardless, and carved himself a territory despite being surrounded by numerous very strong male leopards. Sadly the final chapter of this male’s life is a tragic one and about two weeks ago, he was killed by the Tsalala pride of lions. Although we found him already injured, the tracks showed that he was ambushed and severely mauled by the two adult lionesses that have been secreting cubs in the rocky outcrops along the Manyelethi Riverbed. Judging by his wounds it must have been an intense and prolonged battle. He was outnumbered and outsized and eventually succumbed to his wounds later that same day.

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The Dudley Riverbank male’s story is one that epitomises the inherently tough, intriguing and complex life of these incredible cats. He gave countless people moments of great joy and most importantly proved that no matter how many hours you spend with leopards, you can never really be sure what these cats may do. For us, he showed that maybe the bonds between these solitary cats runs deeper than we previously imagined possible and we’re so fortunate to have caught glimpses of him at various stages of his journey. Although he spent much of his life away from Londolozi, his story began here and ended full circle here and he’ll go down in our books as a true Londolozi legend.

Tshokwane · 07-07-2016, 01:47 AM

Quote:Although we found him already injured, the tracks showed that he was ambushed and severely mauled by the two adult lionesses that have been secreting cubs in the rocky outcrops along the Manyelethi Riverbed. Judging by his wounds it must have been an intense and prolonged battle. He was outnumbered and outsized and eventually succumbed to his wounds later that same day.

65-70 Kg for him vs 250 Kg or more of two angry lionesses and yet, "it must have been an intense and prolonged battle".

I think you'll understand if I'm a bit biased here, but this is how a leopard dies. Just as he lived.

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Ngala · 07-08-2016, 03:10 PM

From Londolozi Game Reserve, Who is The Kunyuma Male? by James Tyrrell
A few mornings ago Amy Attenborough and I were driving away from Mahlahla Dam, having been to investigate the carcass of a young elephant calf that had died. We had been getting some footage of the Tsalala pride that had discovered the carcass overnight and had been feeding through the morning. The Anderson male leopard had also been seen in the area two days before but had moved on without touching the carcass, possibly having been reluctant to attempt to drag it from the mud.
Anyway, the fact that the Anderson male had been seen there got us talking about the new leopard dynamics that would develop as a result of the death of the Dudley Riverbank 5:5 male. With the space now available, would the Anderson male expand further east or would some other individual step in? The 4:4 male pops up all over the show, so we couldn’t rule him out. The discussion was made more interesting by the death of the Maliliwane female earlier this year, so in fact there is a vacancy for a territorial male and female leopard in Londolozi’s north-east corner.
Our discussion was prophetic, in that less than 30mins later, after having returned to camp, we were being summoned back out by Londolozi’s ex-Head Ranger Oliver Sinclair, who reported two leopards fighting barely 100m from where the Tsalala pride was lying next to the elephant carcass.
We grabbed out camera gear and raced back to the scene, and it wasn’t long before we had a slightly obscured view of the female, lying with her back towards us in a bushwillow thicket, keeping a close eye on the male who was in turn watching her from a nearby slope about 40m away. Our initial guess that it was the Nanga female turned out to be correct after she turned and looked at us and we were able to get a better look at her face, but of the male we were not so sure. The Anderson male was an unlikely candidate, as this male was smaller, and the Anderson male has been seen mating with the Nanga female a couple of times over the last month or two. Excess aggression of the kind Ollie had reported between the pair would be unlikely.

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Eventually getting a decent view of him, we felt that something in his spot pattern was familiar, even though neither Amy or I had ever seen him before. Remembering a photo of an unknown male that Ranger Andrea Campbell had shown the rest of the ranging team recently, we were able to conclude that he was the Kunyuma male, a young leopard that has occasionally been seen around our northern boundary, and clearly now making a move into the area, quite possibly owing to the death of the dominant male.

Although we weren’t able to get great close-up shots, his spot pattern was identifiable through binoculars.

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The Nanga female waited for about ten minutes before trying to slink away, but the Kunyuma male trotted after her, keeping her in sight. She rested in the shade of a nearby tree after moving about 60m, and the male seemed very hesitant to approach, but as soon as she tried to retreat once more, he went rushing in, and with a fierce warning growl, and before any contact could actually be made, the Nanga female was forced to leap into the branches of a Marula tree to keep out of his clutches.

“Kunyuma” is apparently a Tsonga word for “shy”, and although this male was relatively relaxed around the vehicles, there was nevertheless a furtive quality to his movements.

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What he was actually hoping to accomplish we are not sure. He is still relatively young (born December 2012 to the Kurula female in the North) and is too small to be properly dominant over an area yet. More than likely a combination of curiosity, the Nanga female’s uncertainty over this new male in the area, his instinct to chase anything that runs away and possibly the instinctive desire to initiate approaches to a female combined with hesitation brought on by inexperience, all combined to make the interaction a bit confusing for both parties.
After treeing the female for the second time (Ollie had seen him do it once already), he trotted away to the south. We could hear squirrels alarming in that direction, but after they quieted down we assumed he had moved off, as did the Nanga female from her Marula tree perch; after a brief grooming session she descended the tree and moved off quickly in the opposite direction.

The Nanga female waits for the Kunyuma male to move off before descending from the tree.

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Since the Anderson male was seen in the same spot only 48 hours before and is much bigger than the young Kunyuma male, it is unlikely that the Kunyuma male will be able to stick around and claim the area for himself. He has a significant amount of growing to do before he can do that.
Interestingly enough, his littermate also put in an appearance on Londolozi last year, in the form of the Quarantine male, but as far as I’m aware he has not been seen on Londolozi soil since then.
In a year’s time, either of these two young males may well be challenging for territory on Londolozi, but for now I’m pretty confident it’ll be the bigger males that will be holding sway.

Ngala · 07-08-2016, 10:50 PM

From Londolozi Game Reserve, The Week in Pictures #239 by James Tyrrell
"The Nhlanguleni female watches the approach of a mating pair of lions. The leopard had just hoisted her bushbuck kill (the clip above) into the boughs of this Sausage tree, and we waited with bated breath – as, I imagine, did she – as the lions approached. Unbelievably they walked straight past the tree and did not notice the leopard or her kill. Eventually though the lions returned and the lioness did climb the tree in an attempt to rob the kill, but thankfully the leopard just managed to hoist the bushbuck carcass out of reach in time."

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"The Tutlwa female rests in an open Marula after hoisting her impala kill. In six years of living in the bush, this was the single best spot of an animal I have ever witnessed, as tracker Jerry Hambana saw the leopard from 820 metres away (we measured the distance on Google Earth), and without the aid of binoculars! Superhuman eyesight!"

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From Singita:
"Hlaba'Nkunzi and her son. The size difference between the two leopards is noticeable now, as the male continues to grow. Wesley Cragg"

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From Leopard Hills Private Game Reserve, by Hugo Breed Wildtography:
"Xikavi on a hunting mission..."

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"Xikavi taking a breather..."

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"The Dam 3 female has had an Impala kill up a tree for the last couple of days. She also has suckle marks, so hopefully we will be fortunate enough to see her cubs this time around."

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Rhulani male, credits to Darren Donovan.

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Ngala · 07-09-2016, 02:32 PM

From Sabi Sabi Private Game Reserve:
"Hlarulini was found close to our private airstrip, up a tree, feasting on an impala!"

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From Cheetah Plains Private Game Reserve:
"After watching a young male leopard pulling down a warthog piglet, we located the male that sired him just up the road . Image by Andrew Khosa" Mvula male.

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"We are very excited, as there might be some new leopard cubs on the way! Our guides say that Female Leopard, Thandi, is looking very very close to dropping and has been seen scounting previous densites close to Cheetah Plains camp. Images by Andrew Khosa"

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"An incredible morning safari was had this morning. We located two male cheetah moving north on our eastern boundary. Out of nowhere, Inkanyeni charged the Cheetahs. On closer inspection, we spotted a hoisted kill with her cubs in attendance. It was amazing to see her taking on two male cheetahs. Stunning images by Andrew Khosa"

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"We have been able to spend a great deal of Safari time with female leopard, Karula, lately. Although she is getting on in years, she is still a phenomenal hunter and has been doing really well providing for her cubs. Image by Andrew Khosa"

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"Updated: Xivambalana and Quarantine had a bit of a standoff recently. In this awesome frame captured by Josh Gilbert, Quarantine can be seen keeping a very fixed gaze in Xivambalana who was just out of frame!"

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"Female Leopard, Thandi crosses a fallen tree while she was on a territorial patrol. Image by Josh Gilbert"

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Ngala · 07-09-2016, 06:22 PM

From Umkumbe Safari Lodge, Umkumbe Leopard Catch Up With Ranger Marius
Deep in thickets walks a majestic and proud cat with acute senses, deadly prowess and lethal killing tactics. A loner, a survivor and graceful demeanour like that of royalty; this is the much revered Panthera pardus species. This super-predator possesses so much skill that it creates quite a deadly combination.
The abundance of drainage lines, high concentration of game and potential den sites in the Sabi Sand Wildtuin provide the ideal conditions and habitat for leopards. Umkumbe spots leopards on a regular basis and is certainly no stranger to unique leopard interactions. The masterful stalking and the ambushing of prey is often seen while out on game drive. Just the other day the slender leopardess, Tatowa, was seen with a kill. These types of sightings are not uncommon!

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There are a few leopards and leopardesses seen on a regular basis. When territories shift, males wander, new cubs are born and seasons change; we often see an influx of unknown leopards. But, in the meantime, we can safely say we haven’t had any recorded sightings of new leopards in the past few weeks. However, the old favourites have been back.

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Marius Zeilinga says, “Mxabane was on a waterbuck kill on the river in front of the lodge. He was actually relaxing and sleeping because his stomach was so full! Then, White Dam was being her normal self hiding out in the bush. She eventually jumped onto a fallen jackalberry tree to have a bit of a stretch. Little Bush appeared to be on the prowl, moving between drainage lines and stalking whatever she could find. She was keeping away from the open areas.”

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Ngala · 07-09-2016, 06:29 PM

From Sun Destinations Blog, Week in Pictures: A Calendar of Kruger Leopards
A super predator, a master stalker with acute senses and finely tuned ambushing skills. Welcome to the world of leopards, an aloof and mysterious place where only the strongest of cats survive. Leopards can be found hiding out in drainage lines, watching the world from the safety of termite mounds and trees, or patrolling their newly acquire territories. These slender cats aren’t quite as sedentary as lions, which makes them very tricky to spot. This week, it’s time to celebrate their presence. Considering we’ve had an abundance of sightings during the week across all the reserves, they deserve a bit of air-time.

Each reserve has their dominant cats with unique markings and personalities. Here is our ode to the leopards of Kruger.

Umkumbe Safari Lodge
On Wednesday there was a brief but breathtaking sighting of a leopard leaping into the darkness. Recently, the leopard sightings have been plentiful in the Sabi Sand and this week was no different. Stoic male Mxabene was seen on waterbuck kill close to the lodge, Little Bush and White Dam were seen patrolling areas, fine tuning their kill tactics and darting between drainage lines. Tatowa, the young leopardess, planned and executed a kill right in front of guests!

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Tshokwane · 07-10-2016, 10:10 PM

Mvula, credits to Jors Dannhauser.

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Tshokwane · 07-10-2016, 10:46 PM

From Londolozi, Male Dynamics: By Sean Cresswell.
The stubbornly dynamic presence and movements of leopards in the wild makes for a fascinating study. In an area as well-suited and sought-after by leopards as the Sabi Sands, the continued fight for territory, above that for survival, causes territorial shifts and transfers as individuals react to changing circumstances.

One thing that remained constant over a period of about 6 years recently was the presence of at least one feared and powerfully dominant male, the Camp Pan male.

The Camp Pan male in 2015 on one of the last occasions he was seen, next to the Sand River which he used to frequent. Photograph by James Tyrrell

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The late Marthly male during March 2015, coming to the end of his reign with the infamous ear notch and noticeably sagging left eye. Photograph by Sean Cresswell.

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The late Gowrie male in July 2015 only just before he died. Still in immaculate condition, his disappearance is presumed to be at the hands of the Tsalala Pride who notoriously wipe out leopards. Photograph by Sean Cresswell.

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But with the eventual demise of the so-called King of Londolozi more than a year ago, the absence of the Camp Pan male left prime territory in the heart of the property vacant. What soon followed was the death of his longest serving rival, the Marthly male, followed by the untimely disappearance of the younger Gowrie male who was just beginning to extend his territory into the vacancy. As these three males perished within a few months of each other, there were questions to be asked of healthy leopard succession in the central Sabi Sands.

The Piva male in early 2015, before his territory stretched all the way north to the Sand River. Photograph by James Tyrrell

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The Piva male in March 2016, currently maintaining a very strong hold on the central property as a potentially long standing dominant male. Photograph by Sean Cresswell.

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The Inyathini male in February 2015 as he started revealing himself in clear view more frequently. His territorial expansion continues. Photograph by Sean Cresswell.

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The 4:4 male in May 2016. With one of the largest ranges to traverse, he still has managed to keep other males away from his sired cub with the Mashaba female for over a year. Photograph by Sean Cresswell.

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The late Dudley Riverbank 5:5 male in September 2015 with his already-signature blind eye, was quite the sight. Photograph by Sean Cresswell.

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The Dudley Riverbank 5:5 male in late 2015 with one of three warthog piglets he had just killed. Photograph by Trevor McCall-Peat.

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Several younger males were testing the waters throughout that stage, although most either came up against unimpressed dominant females or each other while lacking any real challenging confidence. Most impressive during this period was the young yet bold Piva male who initially took charge. Inexperienced, nomadic males came and went but only a few had the resilience to entice highly competitive females as well maintain their territorial boundaries alongside that of the Piva male.

More recently it seems only the tentative Inyathini male and the enigmatic 4:4 male have what it takes to secure tenure adjacent to the marauding Piva male. All the while, a further upset came to the Sabi Sands in the form of the death of the Dudley Riverbank male only two weeks ago; the fourth loss of a dominant male leopard from the potential gene pool… Leopard instability guaranteed.

The Anderson male in May 2016. A beastly figure with a no-nonsense demeanour. Photograph by Sean Cresswell.

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With gaping holes in previously occupied territory and the remaining younger males beginning to iron out prospective boundaries between themselves, and larger already dominant males to the north, such as the Anderson male, there is one individual failing to crumble into the quiet; the son of the late king.

The Makothini male in 2014. He was following a herd of buffalo when this was photo was taken, and shortly afterwardshe snatched a calf from the back of the herd. Photograph by James Tyrrell.

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[Note: Makothini is the name Londolozi calls the Maxabeni male]
Surviving his brother, Tu Tones, the Makothini male persists. Nearing 8 years of age, this large male boasts genes from the late and great Camp Pan male and gained independence at a young age. By the age of 5 he was territorial in the south-western parts of Londolozi and became a prolific warthog and buffalo calf hunter… One of the few to do so! Often trailing large herds of buffalo, he would ambush young calves with a fast kill bite before retreating out of the subsequent chaos within the herd to avoid the adults. Eventually the herd would move on, leaving behind the killed calf for the patient hunter who would then drag it to the nearest tree for feeding. These reoccurring hunts proved the Makothini male’s potential as a successful leopard.

The Tu-Tones male in the winter of 2015, when he and his father the Camp Pan male were sharing mating rights to the Tamboti female. Photograph by James Tyrrell.

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During 2015 his territory shifted further south due to surrounding male pressures but this year he has begun smartly expanding and has been viewed on Londolozi a great deal more than before. His experience is evident now more than ever as he moves through changing terrain in search for one of the many females within his reach. He stalks from termite mound to termite mound on the trail of warthogs returning to their burrows, and he traverses the south-western grasslands with a sense of swagger as he bellows out a territorial call.

The Makhotini male in June 2016, investigating a series of burrows for any sign of warthog. Photograph by Sean Cresswell.

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During the past two years’ disarray in the leopard front, the Makothini male has pressed on to become a reigning king in his own right. With the south-western regions of Londolozi in his firm control, may we start seeing greater expansion into the central property which currently supports several younger males?

The Makhotini male currently. Expanding back northward, in the direction of where he grew up, this regal leopard sweeps through the dry open areas of Londolozi. Photograph by Sean Cresswell.

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His pressure could set the wheel in motion for more solidified territorial boundaries amongst the Piva, Inyathini and 4:4 males as the Anderson male expands from the north. The late king’s legacy may indirectly stabilise a currently questionable network of challenging males.

Tshokwane · 07-11-2016, 01:11 AM

Nyeleti male, credits to Hugo Breed Wildtography.

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Ngala · 07-11-2016, 03:07 AM

Fantastic updates, thanks Majingilane.

From Kirkman's Kamp Private Game Reserve:
"The West Street male leopard providing an amazing sighting for our guests as he walks across a rocky outcrop on the Sand river!"

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From Idube Game Reserve:
Basile female

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Nyeleti

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Ravenscourt male

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Dewane male

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Ngala · 07-11-2016, 03:18 AM

From Leopard Hills Private Game Reserve, credits to Hugo Breed Wildtography:
"A family photo of Nyeleti, Hukumuri and their son."

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"Hukumuri and her cub are rarely seen in the West as her territory stretches further to the East. It was amazing spending time with the two of them as well as Nyeleti this morning."

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Tshokwane · 07-12-2016, 03:42 AM

Credits to Mala Mala ranger Pieter van Wyk.

The one and only, Bicycle Crossing male.

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Ngala · 07-12-2016, 08:55 PM

From Sabi Sabi Private Game Reserve:
"Hlarulini has been seen more and more in the south of our reserve. She was seen chasing a few duiker last night, well before the sun had set, but she was not successful."

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"Little Bush and her cub were on a fairly fresh bushbuck kill close to a riverbed. They were very content with their lot and later both lay down to sleep."

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