Of all the animals we saw on safari, the leopard was the most beautiful and my favorite to watch prowl. They are graceful creatures, with stunningly intense gazes. Their eyes are amazing to watch as they stare at either food or foe.
Leopards prefer hiding in the bush and are so stealth, we considered ourselves very lucky to have experienced seven different leopard sightings during our nine-day stay in the Timbavati. On our first early morning drive, Cabinet, the Umlani tracker, pointed to a female leopard hiding in a bushy area staring intently in one direction:
She still had blood on her long beautiful whiskers which indicated a fresh kill. As we drove around the corner to see if we could get a better view of her, we saw what held her impenetrable gaze:
A one-eye blind hyena was munching away on her recently killed impala. She was waiting to see if she could steal it back. Michael, our Wildeye Photographic guide, explained that hyenas are much stronger than the leopard, higher on the food chain and frequently steal their kills. Leopards attempt to get their meals into a tree and out of the reach of hyenas but this hyena was too quick for her.
As we watched the Hyena and Leopard, our Umlani guide said “Look, Ellies” ~ we turned around to see a large herd of elephants moving up to the waterhole. I was astounded that this was what we were witnessing on our first morning out. Absolutely amazing!!
All creatures in the bush give a respectful wide berth to the elephants. No one wants to be on the receiving end of a elephant tusk or foot. As the herd came in, the leopard watched closely to see if the hyena would scurry away but unfortunately for her, he confronted her. She’s a little hard to see in the following video but look to the left ~ she’s snarling in the bush. Her growl was enough to get the hyena to leave her alone
Any leopard sighting is thrilling because they are so secretive and prefer to stay undercover.
Our last morning drive we saw the same beautiful female leopard with a recently-killed grey duiker. We came full circle with her and I was pleased she finally got to eat the meal she caught.
Female leopard with bloodied nose from eating a grey duiker
Displaced Beachbums 