Two leopards that we haven’t seen much until the last few months have been the Senegal Bush Male and the Three Rivers female so to have had them together mating for the last few days has made for some spectacular viewing. They were found one afternoon right in the central parts of Londolozi which is quite far out of the normal range of the Three Rivers female’s territory which lies mostly to the east of our traversing area and with the disappearance of the Inyathini male the Senegal Bush male has settled in that same area as well. They have spent about four days together now from what we can tell between intermittent sightings of them as well as their tracks.
The Senegal Bush Male on a morning territorial patrol. He favours the roads when the grass is long because it is easier to cover more ground across his large territory.
The Three Rivers female perched on a granite boulder. She is just over four years old and a lot smaller than the Senegal Bush Male.
It is not unusual for a female leopard to temporarily move out of her usual territory in order to seek out a mate and they will do this as an insurance strategy to protect their future cubs. She may mate with a few different males that surround her territory because that way the males will all be invested in the cubs survival because they believe them to be their own. These mating bouts often last up to five days at a time with both the male and female moving around together and mating at regular intervals to ensure the best chance of success.
The two of them have spent a lot of their time in the dry Maxabene river bed.
It’s fascinating to watch this instinct kick in with this young female leopard who we spent a lot of time with when she was a cub. She was born to the Xidulu female back in May 2016 and as a cub, her and her brother were seen along the river downstream from the Londolozi camps. She was forced into an early independance when her mother was killed by the Avoca male lions a year after she was born. She is yet to have a litter of her own which make these sightings even more exciting because if the mating is successful in three months time we could be seeing her denning with cubs.
We were treated to a spectacular view of them one evening when they settled down on a large termite mound above us.
Watching mating leopards is quite the spectacle as it can be quite aggressive and loud. The female is often the one who initiates the mating bout by walking up to where the male is lying and then moving back and forth in front of him rubbing her tail in his face. He will often bite down on her neck and this can cause her to spin around and try and swat him with her paw. In addition to all of the physicality involved I love the stories behind the different individuals involved and with the the Three Rivers female it’s no different. She is part of one of the strongest and most well-documented lineage lines that we have been following here at Londolozi for the last four decades. Her grandmother is the Sunset Bend female and is related to the Mashaba, Ximungwe, Nkoveni, Nhlanguleni, Finfoot, Nkuwa and Island female who all occupy different territories around the reserve.
Initially seen as a young male in 2016, this leopard only properly established territory on Londolozi in mid-2019
Forced into early independence as her mother was killed by the Southern Avoca Males.
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James, her brother was never seen again? Did he move into Kruger?
Hi Marinda, that is correct we are not sure what happened to him after he dispersed.
Is the Inyathini male still around or is he gone ?
Hi Marc, we are not too sure as there have been no sightings of him recently. Considering his age and the fact that the Senegal Bush male is seen in his former territory we assume he has moved off our traversing area. Male leopards in their older years will slowly shrink their territories to avoid conflict.
Thanks for the info,James. I knew he lost huge parts of his territory and was just curious if he had been spotted recently.
Beautiful shot by Bruce of her on the boulder !
I watched the Three Rivers female with her mama and brother. Loved that sighting and she became my favorite living leopard. (Legadema in Botswana was my favorite for many years). LOVED this posting!
Great news! Looking forward to mini leopard paws later this year. Did her brother survive?
Hi Denise, her brother could definitely still be alive but because of the vast expanse of wilderness that he has at his disposal we do not see him on our traversing area which means he most likely dispersed out of the area in which he was born.
A fascinating story and beautiful pictures.
We so enjoyed watching the Three Rivers female (long before she was named) and her brother play fighting and tree climbing while Xidulu was off hunting. It was not long after that she was killed and they were on their own. It ‘s wonderful to see her grown and well.
What handsome couple. Three rivers female is such a pretty little lady….I hope to see the outcome in the future. 🙏🏻💕
What a cool development. Please keep us posted on their progress!
How wonderful! I am looking forward to visiting the area and leopards in Londolozi sooner than later. It is simply great to be able to track their genes in a pedigree! Very important for their conservation and the stories of the different characters are like a family saga.
Thanks James S. As usual a really lovely set of pics with the video. Excellent quality. And a good and interesting article to go with them. Really good. Christmas Cubs Pending? We will see. Wendy M
As the Senegal Bush Male (Kunyuma) is a son of Karula the most famous and successful leopardess of the Sabi Sands, any cubbies produced would have a fabulous genetic lineage on both sides of their parentage!
Thank you James, really interesting. I was lucky enough to see her when she was about 3 months old, along with her brother and Xidulu – a very special sighting. The Senengal Bush male is a very busy boy – having just finished mating with 3 Rivers he’s moved onto Mashaba!