Leopards defined this week on Londolozi, as they often do. The Camp Pan male in particular, who we don’t see as much these days, was found on a number of occasions. One of the best sightings I have had took place near Nyamakunze crest, where the male cheetah was robbed of his freshly caught impala kill by the Camp Pan male. As mentioned in the photo of the mother cheetah and cub in last weeks post, the Nyamakunze area is home to a higher large predator density than the cheetah’s favoured grasslands, and he learnt this to his cost.
Enjoy this week in pictures…
The beady eye of the Camp Pan male as he begins to feed on the impala kill he had just robbed from the male cheetah. f3.2, 1/800, ISO 1000
Not a brilliant photograph, but it’s still great to get two of the Big 5 in one frame. The Camp Pan male leopard approaches a grazing white rhino. f2.8, 1/500, ISO 3200
The mother cheetah and her cubs had left an impala kill to the vultures and we had to search hard to find them again in the afternoon. Crowned Lapwings sounding the alarm alerted Mike Sithole while he was tracking on foot, and he soon spied the three cats moving through the open grass. f3.2, 1/1250, IS0 640
The male cheetah as he begins accelerating after a fleeing impala herd. He swerved through some bushes and we lost him entirely, following the impalas but with no sign of the spotted cat. We looked around for a minute, very confused, until Daniel Buys radioed to say that the cheetah had changed direction and had brought down an impala a few hundred metres away. He was not to enjoy his meal however, as he was robbed by the Camp Pan male leopard less than 10 minutes after he had made the kill. f7.1, 1/2000, ISO 800
The mother cheetah and one of her cubs striking similar poses as they digest their impala meal from the morning. The cub is in the foreground, recognisable by its smaller frame and mane on the back of its neck. f3.2, 1/1000, ISO 1000
The Tamboti cubs had a long week; secluded in the Inyathini drainage line, their mother would leave them for long periods while she went on many unsuccesful hunts. Eventually she was able to bring down a young impala and the three leopards fed well for two days. Full bellies meant excess energy, and the cubs were in a playful mood on this morning. Here they see if a Jackalberry sapling can take both their weights. It didn’t! f4, 1/640, ISO 1600
It amazes me how the cubs of leopards and lions don’t do each other more damage in their play-fights. One only has to look at how sharp the extended claws of the cub on the left are to realise that they are already serious weapons! f4, 1/500, ISO 1600
A female giraffe enjoys the sunrise overlooking Winnis’ Clearing while a red-billed oxpecker alights for a morning feed. f2.8, 1/2500, ISO 1000
A pair of Steenbok. The smallest antelope on Londolozi, these territorial little animals are often to be seen feeding together, but are notoriously shy, dashing away when they realise they have been seen. f4.5, 1/4000, ISO 640
A young giraffe is nuzzled by its mother while a much darker female looks on. This calf still had its umbilical cord attached, telling us that it was still very young. Giraffes give birth standing up, and the calf can weigh 100kg and be 2m tall at birth! f2.8, 1/1000, ISO 640
A helmeted guineafowl. Ubiquitous around South Africa, the guineafowl is an often overlooked bird but is strikingly handsome. f5, 1/2000, ISO 640
A displaced hippo bull reclines in Lex’s Pan, no doubt grateful for the cloudy weather that helped keep his sensitive skin cool. f4, 1/500, ISO 1600
We were in the deep south looking for male lions when we rounded a corner and bumped into the Makhotini male leopard, out on patrol and scent-marking after the overnight rains. We were barely with him for 5 minutes before he melted into the grass. f2.8, 1/1600, ISO 160
A lioness from the Sparta tries an unorthodox tactic and approaches a wildebeest and some impala across the short grass of Carcass Clearing. Not expecting anything to happen, we were amazed when she burst into a full charge, kicking up incredible puffs of dust as the herbivores fled for their lives. She didn’t catch anything and soon returned to the pride to spend the day in the shade. f10, 1/500, IS0 320
The Camp Pan male again. We had been sitting with the Sparta pride while they slept when impalas alarming caught our attention. Far in the distance across Shingalana Clearing tracker Mike Sithole spotted the leopard moving through the grass. Despite being full from an unknown meal, the leopard had apparently not missed an opportunity to catch a scrub hare unawares. f3.2, 1/1000, ISO 320
Photographed by James Tyrrell
Stunning pics yet again Jamo, particularly liked the giraffe and hippo shots as well as the resplendant guinea fowl.
Hi James stunning pics as always, they make my Saterday mornings. Did you use continuous shots for the male cheetah.
Hi John,
Yes I did. Once we realised he was probably going to make a run, I switched to shutter speed priority (I usually shoot in aperture mode) to lock a high shutter speed to capture the movement.
James
Another fantastic set of photographs James, great to see images of Camp Pan.
Wow. Spectacular as always. The baby giraffe is such a sight!
Love the Guinea Fowl, James!
Fantastic! Thanks so much for sharing camera info, as I’m trying to learn how to use my new camera for my upcoming trip!
Once again stunning photos and very interesting stories to go with.Cannot wait for the next lot – the high light of my week !!!
Oh James, you make it so difficult to comment on one, when they are all so perfect! I also thought that the leopard cub on the right is saying “hey bro, easy with the claws, I’m family”! They are all so beautiful and you obviously love what you do, which I great, as I get to have my “Saturday fix”. Thanks a ton.
Camp Pan male & a rhino–thank you for a picture of my two favorite animals in Nature. The other pictures are pretty good too! No, really, they are spectacular. So good to see the baby cheetahs surviving. They sure have grown since March. Look forward to the week’s post. Hope to see all again very soon.
Shutter speed. Will have to experiment with that before joining you in November.
Hi James,
I have more than FOMO – I am actually missing out! Love catching up on the cubs we saw in May. Thanks to you there is less missing out. And, thanks too for including the helmeted guinea fowl. I always think that, like impalas, many people don’t stop to enjoy them.
Jo Lynne
Thank you James, sometimes takes me a while to get to your photos when I’m traveling, but I always enjoy them when I do.
Awesome Photos as always!! Thank You for sharing!!!