The Butlers at Varty Camp heard the alarm calls on the clearing opposite the deck; next thing they saw impala running in all directions. Something was amiss. They got on the radio and put out a message on the airwaves about what they had seen and heard. Lady luck shone down on me as I was a mere 2 minutes away…
Steered in by the shouting of impala, bushbuck, nyala and vervet monkeys we zoned in on the spot. Moments later we had the culprit in our view!
Female Cheetah surveying the terrain by Adam Bannister
The realization of what we had just found took a few seconds to sink in… what we were looking at was a beautiful cheetah crouched over a young male impala. Teeth still buried into the unsuspecting prey. We must have missed the speedy chase by a mater of minutes, or even seconds, but I was delighted nonetheless in what we were looking at.
She rapidly tugged at the carcass trying to get it under cover… had she taken too long! Exhausted by the ordeal she could barely stand. She fed quickly trying to get in as much as she could before the swarming vultures caused a stir…
Nothing is as mystical as the eyes of a cheetah by Adam Bannister
Written, photographed and filmed by Adam Bannister
A rare occurrence, I think its quite hard for cheetahs to compete with the other predators of Londolozi, hence they have to feed quickly ASAP!
Wow. Powerful cat. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks for the experience Adam and Solly – it was awesome to be a passenger on your vehicle for this sighting. This one will be a memory that will stay with us forever!