We haven’t done one of these in awhile, but I was in the archives recently and happened across a photo I hadn’t seen in a year or so, so thought we could reinstate this memory lane series.
See if you remember any of the leopards and lions from October 2015 below (some are still around).
Enjoy.
Chameleons are creatures of summer, and the trackers have got spotting them at night down to a fine art. Expect to see a few more pictures of these fascinating reptiles gracing our social media pages in the months to come.
One or two of the crocodiles around Londolozi we can identify based on their size or maybe a distinctive injury or mark, but the one in this picture I can’t say I can remember from its tail. Given that crocodiles can live to well over 60 years (some reports claim 100, although that might be fabrication), I’m fairly confident whichever this one is, it’s still roaming Londolozi’s waterways…
It’s tough to recognise a leopard from just its eye, so I’ll be impressed if anyone can recognise this individual. It’s the Piva male, viewed between the two trunks of a Tamboti tree. He had just descended from a neighbouring Weeping Boer Bean where he had a fresh impala kill stashed.
The cub sitting up should be a familiar face to many; the Ximungwe female as a young leopard, when her sibling was still alive. I can’t actually remember if it was a male or female (I think male), but I seem to remember this was the last time I saw it alive.
This was the ginger Matimba male, photographed one night near the Londolozi airstrip. These males were eventually forced out of Londolozi, but I believe one of them – maybe even both – is still alive in the western sector of the Sabi Sand Reserve.
When your grip just wasn’t strong enough… Although summer is well-known for its impala, wildebeest and warthog births, it’s also the time of the year in which the local monkey troops produce their infants, who will grow up to perform hilarious antics like this pair.
A young Nkoveni female launches up a Tamboti tree towards a kill she had stashed. The compression factor on the lens makes the guest in the foreground look a lot closer to her than he actually is.
One of Londolozi’s more prominent leopards for a significant portion of her life, the Tamboti female eventually died of wounds we suspect were inflicted by lions. In this sighting we found her under a bush thanks to Kudus that had been barking at her, and she simply got up and walked up this fallen marula tree to rest. Magic.
Another gone-but-not-forgotten leopard, the Dudley Riverbank female shortly before she disappeared for the last time. One can see just how tatty her ears are; a sure sign of an aged leopard.
I included this photo mainly as a lesson to myself to check my settings. I didn’t do so before lifting my camera, and was underexposed to the point that these elephants were indistinct silhouettes against the sand. To get detail back into the calf and the mother’s trunk I had to lift the exposure by 3 stops. Check you settings before you take the photo!!!
Great memories. I remember the Matimbas. I saw a photo of the “hairy belly” Matimba on social media last week. Old but still doing fine. Lovely pic of the Piva male.
Thank you James these pictures are moving. Leopards that are no more but are remembered; cubs that were killed and others that lived up to the accolades; an elephant mum and her son touching each other’s trunk; a special surprise with reptiles and funny monkey. I always asked to.myself how researchers recognize crocodiles. Maybe because of differences in size…
Only one Matimba male is still alive, the hairy bellied one, the other died of mange in August 2019. But now he is being pushed by three young males called the Tumbela males
Thanks Gabriele
You are correct James, the Hairy Belly Matimba Male is still alive in the western sector of the Reseve. The Ginger Male died last year.
Thanks Michael!
Great to see so many familiar faces – leopards and remembering the encounters we had with them… The Piva male racing towards our vehicles saliva pouring from his mouth.. the Tamboti female and the Nkoveni female having a big fight on a branch and eventually falling out as a ball of leopard locked together in battle. The Ximungwe female and of course the ginger Matimba male.. one of the Matimba brothers. Really interesting to look back on the characters!
I loved the throw back! Excellent shots all around!
So interesting to look back! And, yes, check your settings! How many times have I started shooting a great sighting and after 3 or 4 shots, realized that my settings showed an overexposure!!! Wasted shots! 😡 been there, done that, and will probably do it again! 😂
My first visit to Londolozi was 2015. Highlights included leopards, rhinos, lions, of course, but also the antics of the then lone ostrich female, (an exotic sighting at that time), a cheetah hunt, and painted wolves aka wild dogs then. Kept me coming back, and keeps me hoping to get there soon again, as soon as possible.
James, I saved Dudley Riverbank Female, I also saved Timboti Female, I saved timboti Female Rising the tree, male titimba Male yawning, cubs🤗
Great photography and tales about each animal …. I am also getting tatty ears just like the Dudley Riverbank female Leopard lol !
You certainly have a gem of a collection in the archives James ! The Piva male and the ginger Matimba male are exquisite 👌🏻💕. Strange that you should put up the chameleon ..I saw my first one here in quite awhile, yesterday. Just love them ! It reminds me of a memorable 2 weeks we spent in Madagascar 13 years ago.
It’s always a treat when you pull out images from the archives. I especially liked your final image of what not to do – check settings before pushing the shutter! I fully admit I’m guilty when excitement overtakes checking my settings! Only a few can be rescued in PP…… thanx.
Yes, old Matimba “Hairy Belly” still alives in Inyati Game Lodge.
Thank you for the memories, James.
What stunning pics! Sad to hear that some of those beautiful animals have gone. 😢
Ginger Matimba passed away in August of 2019. His brother Hairy Belly Matimba is still kicking around, he is with the Othawa pride and is still looking good at 15 years old. He must be the oldest male in Sabi Sands.
Thanks for the update
Whoa!! What a great set of pics! Several were added to my gallery.
James, Thanks for the memories! We were at Londolozi in August that year and your post encouraged us to look back at the 1000’s of images we took on game drives on that visit. There were quite a few of Piva male and then of course the Majingilane coalition were in full force then!
The only one of the cats I wasn’t able to see was the Piva male. Great to see the shots of them all – I’d love to know if DRB’s daughter Ndzanzeni has been seen at all?
Thank you so much for sharing all of this.
It’s a great reminder of the fantastic vacation, but also takess your mind off some of the horrible things were all going through today
what wonderful. sadly too many leopards gone but not forgotten! Victoria