Speechless. That was the word that leaped to mind.
When Managing Director Chris Kane-Berman reported a leopard with a 3-4 month old cub on a kill a couple of kilometres west of camp, it made no sense.
No female currently with a cub should be found in that part of the reserve. The Nhlanguleni female – who is territorial there – we saw was pregnant towards the start of Lockdown (5 months ago), then future sightings of her (which admittedly have been few and far between) seemed to indicate she had lost the litter. She had no visible signs of suckle marks, so we presumed that like many leopard cubs here, her latest had been killed by a rival predator.
How wrong we realised we were when we saw the photos:
Having essentially never seen a vehicle before (it has actually probably glimpsed a couple driving by although no people had previously laid eyes on this cub) it was understandably nervous.
Initially skittish she spent a lot of time in the Sand River, now relaxed she makes up the majority of leopard viewing west of camp.
Suckle marks on the Nhlanguleni female’s belly indicate that the cub is not yet fully weaned, a further clue to its age, as leopard cubs here are generally weaned by the time they hit 5 months or even a bit before.
It’s crazy to think think that this little cub has been wandering around on Londolozi for months and we’ve been none the wiser. Granted, we’ve seen its mother probably fewer than seven times in the last six months and she inhabits one of the trickiest areas of Londolozi to follow a leopard in, but even so we would like to think we had some kind of idea that it existed.
Early May 2020. A pregnant-looking Nhlanguleni female pauses on the bank of the Sand River. If she was 2 months pregnant here, the cub would have been born in June, making it about 3-4 months now, which is exactly what it looks in the photos.
We have been seeing an inordinate number of female leopard tracks going up and down in one specific section of the Sand River out to the west, which when we think about it now was probably highly indicative of a den. The possibility was certainly discussed that just maybe the Nhlanguleni female had a litter we didn’t know of, but it wasn’t taken too seriously, especially with the discovery of the Piccadilly cub, then the Makomsava litter, and so much else going on across Londolozi. Maybe we should have invested a bit more time into the search.
In an reserve in which we like to think we know what the various leopards are up to, I love the fact that we can still get an absolute bombshell dropped on us like this.
From these photos alone, it looks to me like the cub is a male, but I stand to be corrected. Its size given its apparent age, and its head size to body size ratio just strike me as being slightly greater than a female’s would be.
Maybe there are two cubs, and the other is just shy. Maybe even three! It’s happened before with the Nhlanguleni female.
This is 2020 after all. Anything’s possible!
Fantastic news! Good luck to the little one
🤗 Yea well it’s Natur vs. People.
They’re both so cute, and the mother looks so proud and cunning at the same time. 🍾🍼
Wow! Fantastic news. Amazing how well the leopard mom’s can hide their cubs.
An unusual year which included several surprises!
What exciting and special news … well done trackers and rangers. And what a beautiful cub – such dense and dark markings. Look forward to further news.
James, I loved the photos🤗
Will you keep sending the Video
Absolutely thrilling and so very beautiful ….took my breath away and I was looking at your photo…I can only imagine your reactions ….your photography is so wonderful and I enjoy your blog every day. Thank you so much for bringing such joy into my life!!!!
Unbelievable, but such great news! If she did have a second cub, wouldn’t it have been next to Nhlanguleni like the one seen? When was the last time a leopard raised two cubs to adulthood? Lately, it seems only one survives to independence.
A case of phantom pregnancy. Beautiful pictures.
How very exciting! The cub us certainly a cutie, looking healthy and curious! Welcome little one!
Oh my word, how fantastic – you will all be on the lookout for this one now! Do you ever see this cub’s elder half-sisters Nkuwa and Finfoot? – I’d love to know if they’re ok and whether they finally went their own ways.
Hi Suzanne, yes we still see them both regularly; the Finfoot female close to camp (and often IN it!) and the Nkuwa female further west…
That cub is such a beauty! Those ears!
How great that the bush still has its secrets!
What a fabulous surprise! Too beautiful… reading this blog made my day!
Wonderful leopard cub time! What a view!
Don’t we all ❤️ Surprises!
Wonderful story and pictures
Wow that is fantastic!!!! What wonderful news that there is another baby leopard cub! Oh man, and those pics are just the CUTEST!!!!!
Wow, awesome news!!
I love that the animals can still surprise you!! What a blessing.
What magnificent photos capturing the absolutely gorgeous mother and baby! Another Londolozi highlight of my day. Thank you, James, as always for your lovely narrative.
Such a lovely cub. The photos of mother and baby are great.
Simply stunning what a joy to see
Best surprise. Hopefully other predators will have a hard time spotting too!
A serendipitous sighting and very good news. Wishing them all the best!
Go Stof!! Seasoned tracker!
Amazing news! the photographs are really great too.
Fabulous find Chris! Just goes to show how much even you professionals can miss. Reminds me of your blog regarding the collared leopard who zigzagged all over your area and was never spotted. But with so much going on I’m not surprised..you can’t be everywhere all the time. Think of it as a ‘covid’ gift from the leopard’s to all you rangers for safe guarding their lives through this difficult time. Bravo 🙏❤️
James, Great news! We love surprises like this!
Fantastic!!!!
This is so interesting, James! The quiet little Mom and baby living their lives on Londolozi for some months without people even noticing them! So happy they have been discovered now. Wendy M
James, any idea which male (or males) would be a potential for father? The cub’s face (or perhaps it’s the spots on the face) give it a very distinct look. Also, do you happen to have a litter history for the Nhlanguleni Female by chance? Here’s to hoping to more sightings of the cub soon!
Hi Michael,
Almost certainly the Flat Rock male; they were seen mating earlier this year.
I’l try draw up a timeline of her litters; we do have one saved somewhere but I’ll have to scratch around for it.
Off the top of my head I think this would be her 5th litter. The Flat Rock male killed her first when he arrived in the area. She lost her second quite quickly (we only saw a single cub once) and then the Nkuwa and Finfoot females weer her third.
She lost a litter that we never saw at the start of this year and then had this one… I stand to be corrected on those numbers though.
Fabulous news..Well done Chris for spotting them! You have so much going on at Londo that I’m not surprised you miss the odd thing, it reminds me of the collared leopard that zigzagged its way all over Londolozi and was never spotted. Consider it a gift from the leopards to all the rangers for watching out for them and keeping them safe from poachers, during the lockdown. 🙏🏻💕
What a fantastic discovery!! This has made my day in a day of COVID rises and still in lockdown. what an adorable cub! thank you for sharing. Victoria
It`s so wonderful, special, nobody knows it
She is a smart lady and very inventive. Guess it’s Flat Rock’s progeny. Hats off to the beautiful Nhulanguleni.
Wow — stunning photography and absolutely heart warming to see the cub and Mom — I hope they stay healthy and look forward to seeing them. Gorgeous.