Leopard
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A young adult female leopard we found resting in the grass in the woodlands one night. The picture was taken with flash. [Sabi Sabi, South Afrrica.]
Leopard-Adult (M) on Limb: This beautiful fully adult male comfortably resting on a limb, watched every move we made below. [Hwange NP, Zimbabwe]
This leopard cub, less than a year old, was left in the fork of a tree by its mother, and told 'to stay 'put' while she goes hunting for their dinner. We know that she was hiding nearby, because we heard barking from a small group of zebra grazing in the area who were concerned of her presence. Perhaps they had a young colt with them. The cub would wait there patiently, no matter how long, until its mother returned. The cub obliged me by putting out the tip of its tongue. [Seronara, Tanzania].
Young Leopard cub in a forkof a tree. We estimated that this leopard youngster to be about 2-1/2 months old, awaiting it's mother's return from her hunt. Leopard mothers, like cheetah, must raise and defend their cubs by themselves. The father will not be back until the female is ready to mate again--and that won't happen so long as she is nursing this cub. Note the big paws. [South Luangwa NP, Zambia]
Leopard mother and cub walk off from the tree where she had stashed her 2-1/2-month cub while she hunted for their dinner. (flash). [South Luangwa NP, Zambia].
A young leopard male on a limb, digesting the contents of its full belly. I have always been impressed by how comfortable a leopard is while lying in what appears to me to be a very awkward position on a bough of a tree. I have also been impressed by how nimbly this species can navigate in a tree [S. Luangwa NP, Zambia]
A Leopard male standing in a woodlands at night: We think that this beautiful fellow, who is in his prime, was out hunting. Earlier, we saw him roll in some buffalo dung to reduce his leopard-scent. I put this and the next image in sequence so that the viewer could see the substantial difference in the body-build between the two sexes. Both images taken at night using flash. [Kulefu, South Luangwa NP, Zambia]
A Leopard female standing. It's nighttime and this lady's favorite time to hunt, because it's easier. All the carnivores have superb night vision. By comparison, their prey (impala, and other small herbivore) night vision is poor. Compare this female with the male (previous image). A flash picture. [Kulefu, South Luangwa NP, Zambia].
Leopard with baboon in his jaws: The young male took a big risk snatching a juvenile baboon out of its troop. If he had been seen by the others, the big male baboons would have fearlessly pursued and attacked him. Being young and not fully grown, he would be no match for even one of those big fellows, much less the 2 or 3 that would have descended on him. Therefore, he had to exercise great patience and caution in selecting one that had strayed some distance from the pack. It looks like he ate a lot of the baboon on the ground, thus lightening the carcass. I got only 3 shots with flash, before he vanished with his prey into the vault of the tree! [Okavanga River Delta area, Botswana].
An adult male leopard on a limb is frightened by our approach, and is about to flee. [Seronara,Tanzania].
Leopard with Stored Kill in Tree
An adult female leopard is lying in the grass (lower R), having eaten much of its kill on the ground, and so she wedged the remains into a fork of the tree (upper L corner). She then lay down to digest her meal. But the next day, the putrefaction within the kill unbalanced it, and the carcass fell to the ground. Spotted Hyenas, with their superb sense of smell, detected the odor, came, chased her away, and devoured the remains. [South Luangwa NP,Zambia].
Leopard male at night: an image of:a mature young male showing his beautiful coat and facial markings. Flash. [Sabi Sabi, South Africa]
This old male giraffe died a natural death. The young male leopard was first to find it, but its jaws were not strong enough to 'open' the abdomen (nor would an adult leopard's). The giraffe's abdominal muscle and fascia would have been at least 2 inches thick). Only a lion, hyena, or man (using a cutting instrument) could accomplish that feat. Thus, this young adult leopard could avail himself of only the genitals and the tongue (because the mouth was open). Next day, we found that the park guards had opened the body with machetes making this 3000 lb. carcass a feast for all the carnivores. [Hwange NP, Zimbabwe]
A triptich: To witness and photograph 3 Leopards (from L>R: male, female, cub) together in the same place for 5 days is most unusual. But there is an interesting probable explanation for this very rare occurrence. In the small area, each leopard knew and tolerated the other's presence. A big, mature male lying (L) in grass, an adult female (Ctr), and a juvenile male of approx.14 mos. (R), lies complacently by the waterhole. One would expect the big male to have driven off the youngster, or the latter, fearing for his safety, would have fled. The most likely explanation is that the big male had returned to mate again with the female. The youngster, being of an age when he would normally still be with his mother, and being a product of their previous mating, was tolerated by both adults. For 5 days we visited this 'family'. (There really is no such thing as a leopard 'family'. The male usually stays around for no more than a day or two. The mothers must raise the cubs entirely on their own). This was an event that even the owner of the lodge, and the guides had never before witnessed. [Deception Valley, Botswana].
Leopard-big male-1st image: This and the next 2 images are the same as in the preceding triptich. I include them for increased clarity and larger size. Please see caption of the preceding image (triptich). [Deception Valley,Botswana].
Leopard-adult female-2nd Image: Same individual as in triptich. Please refer to the previous 2 images.[Deception Valley, Botswana].
Leopard on Haunches: This is the same female--but appearing more benign--as in the previous image, and in the triptich. Please see captions for the 3 preceding images. [Deception Valley, Botswana].
Leopard Cub-young male-3rd image
Leopard Cub-young male-3rd image: The 14 mos. cub was the same as in the triptich. Please see captions in preceding 4 images.[Deception Valley, Botswana].
This big male leopard has had a huge meal and most of his stomach is temporarily hanging through the crotch of a limb. It demonstrates how comfortable a leopard feels in a tree. How he could be comfortable lying on his left front and hind legs wedged between his belly and hard wood, I wouldn't know. [Masai Mara, Kenya]
Leopard (male) beneath bough: I saw this fellow in a field before he ran to hide among vines & leaves under a bough in a nearby woodlands. He was a very large, beautiful specimen. [Masai Mara, Kenya]
This female stands in the crotch of a big tree to avail herself of a good vantage point from which to spot game.[Chitabe, Botswana].
A double image of a young adult male Leopard lying in the grass. His mouth is open, providing a good view of his large lower incisors.[Khwai, Botswana].
A double image of a young male Leopard who had been lying in the tall grass when we disturbed him. The red tongue curled up over his black nose and the beauty of his coat were too much for me to resist. [Xakanaxa, Botswana].