This Week in Pictures highlights an incredibly diverse photographic week. From another glimpse at the Nhlanguleni Female’s cub from the initial sighting we had of them as it hides in the new den, to the playful and entertaining Nkoveni Young Females. Leopards feature strongly this week with some other amazing sightings of the Ximungwe Female and her Young Male, to the Nweti Male resting after a long morning’s territorial patrol and a stunning up-close view of the Three Rivers Young Male’s eyes. Tempting fate, the Misava Male an unfamiliar leopard to Londolozi, is found deep within the Flat Rock Male’s territory. As a young nomadic male, he was seen on Londolozi in April 2019 and October 2020. As it stands now he seems to still be in search of his own territory pushing him into and through other dominant males’ territories until he is able to secure one of his own.
A proud large male kudu stands tall showing off his enormous majestic horns. A lone wild dog, probably from a larger pack was seen briefly just north of our camps. There has been a pack of wild dogs in the north that we believe to be denning very close to our boundary, he is most likely from this pack. Elephants have always provided some great viewing and this week is no different.
Dotted in amongst all the other large animals we enjoy a number of different shots of birds, zebra and even a Ndzhenga Male.
Let us know your favourite image in the comments section below.
Enjoy this Week in Pictures…
One of the Nhlanguleni Cubs hiding in amongst the rock crevices of the new den.
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.
A large kudu bull stands proud, showing off his enormously impressive spiralled horns.
The Ximungwe Young Male watches a small group of giraffes wander past him in the golden morning light. The distinctive ‘freckle’ on his right eye can clearly be seen here – one of his defining features.
A single cub of the Ximungwe Female's second litter. Initially rather skittish but is very relaxed now. Birth mark in his left eye.
A lone wild dog was recently found just north of granite camp, on the banks of the river. Judging by his behaviour, he seems to have been separated from his pack for the last little while.
One can never take for granted time up close with elephants. An intimate moment where the biggest of giants out here is often the most gentle.
The Nkoveni Young Females playfully greet one another during a misty morning. At just over a year old now, they are both starting to spend more time apart from their mother but are however still very dependent on her for meals and protection.
A stunning young female with a very similar spot pattern to her mother, the Nkoveni Female. Litter still completely intact March 2022.
Also young and playful but rather with a spot pattern of 3:2. She is slightly bigger than her sister.
As we were passing by a dazzle of zebra, this one paid a little closer attention than the rest and allowed for a great portrait shot.
As the family of Southern Ground Hornbills moved through the open ccrest in the search of any prey, this one hopped up on to a termite mound to get a better vantage point of any other prey in the area. Termite mounds are often home to many small creatures such as dwarf mongooses, plated lizards, rodents and snakes, all of which are food for the hornbills.
After a long territorial patrol, the Nweti Male eventually rests on a bare patch of the ground allowing an ideal opportunity for a portrait shot of him.
He is a large, tall, and long male that has an incredible coat and a tuft of hair on his neck
Not a common bird to see at Londolozi, this Long-crested Eagle has been seen for a few days in a row in the same area. This could be some quite exciting news if it hangs around for a little while longer.
The young Misava Male Leopard gazes down at a hyaena passing by the base of the marula tree in which he had a hoisted impala kill.
A small leopard that was forced into early independence and struggled to establish territory. Moved around eating anything it could.
As a herd of elephants slowly moved through the open crests a Fork-tailed Drongo followed this cow, feeding on any insects that were flushed by the large feet moving through the grass. All with a stunning view of the rolling hills and koppies in the background.
A Lilac-breasted Roller hunt. We came around a corner to see this Roller pecking at the ground it was only upon closer inspection did we notice the puffed-up Bushveld Rainfrog.
After a few minutes of watching this Lilac-breasted Roller peck at the Bushveld Rainfrog, it finally speared the frog with its beak and shortly after this it was all over.
Although the tail of the Ximungwe Female is not in the frame, I enjoy the action shot of her young male cub about to pounce on her. These two stalked and pounced on one another within this fallen marula tree.
Having been viewed by vehicles from an early age, this leopard is supremely relaxed around Land Rovers.
The Ximungwe Female is not my focus here so I don’t feel too bad that she is not in the frame. It was the intensity of her young male cub that I wanted to focus on.
One of the Ndzhenga Males rest in the open until hearing his brother call in the distance which caused him to lift his head.
Forced into early independence as her mother was killed by the Southern Avoca Males.
The Three Rivers Young Male is beginning to provide some great viewing of late. He is now at the age where everything is a game and is constantly stalking his mother looking to play and practice the necessary skills for him to one day be able to become independent from his mother.
My favourite is “One of the Nhlanguleni Cubs hiding in amongst the rock crevices of the new den.”
Thank you so much, Ian. It was such a special sighting of the small cub and then to see it peering out of the little hole was so cute.
Another week of a difficult choice to make out of the best of the team’s images, but I leaned towards the Nkoveni females playing together. The tiny cub peaking out from the rock is really special as is the wrinkled elephant. The task in choosing one is so subjective as each photo can evoke a certain memory from the past. I loved the selection and wish all the staff and guests fortunate enough to be there for Easter to enjoy the day ( and party!)
Thank you so much, Denise. I hope you have a very enjoyable Easter too.
Sean, another set of amazing shots. My favourites are the young leopard cubs. Plus the Zebra, elephant, roller bird etc etc.
What is the success rate of a female leopard tearing her cubs to maturity? How do they survive when mum goes hunting!
Happy Easter Susan
Thank you so much, Susan. The success rate of a mother leopard is sadly very low. Cub mortality is at least 50% and at least 30% for sub-adult leopards. So the chances of a leopard cub surviving to adulthood are rather slim, just proving how incredible leopard mothers can be. Often when their mother is off hunting they will be kept in a den where they are safe and should remain until the mother returns.
Happy Easter to you too, Susan.
I will never get enough of leopards, they are so plastic and gorgeous and expressive! Cubs are fantastic. They are a symbol of life and hope for the species. The kudu and the zebra pictures are top as well, the Ndzenga lion looks more worn out than Birmingham but is an imposing male. The lilac brested roller is one of the prettiest bird I’ve seen- poor frog! Elephants Always welcome too.
Thank you so much, Francesca. Leopards are always amazing to look at. Along with all the rest of course.
Sean, all of the leopard pictures are wonderful but my favorite is the black and white of the old wrinkled elephant. Their is just something about elephants and their size that is captivating. I really liked the birds as well, they are so hard to capture in great pictures.
The image of the elephant is a spectacular shot, I agree there is something about the size and presence of elephants.
Cracking photos – happy Easter to all staff , guests and visitors to this blog
Thank you so much, Ian. A Happy Easter to you too. I hope you have an amazing Easter Weekend.
Lots of gorgeous and varied pics again. Sean, I love your one of the tiny Nhlanguleni cub peeping out, but my favourite this week is Chris’ one of the 2 Nkoveni daughters playing. While they’re having the time of their lives their poor mother must be hunting all day every day to keep them all fed.
Thank you so much, Suzanne. I also love the image of the Nkoveni Young Females. They are so exciting to watch as I know you are well aware.
Another amazing week of photography!
Baby cub peeking out from the den is priceless… how lucky to have been there to see that first hand!
Thank you so much, Barbi. It was such an amazing sighting to see the shy but inquisitive little cub peeking out.
Cub in the den for me!
I must have missed last week…Anyway, the fab Fish Eagle my choice there.
🙏🏻
Thank you so much, Marcia. The little cub was so cute to watch as it crawled around the den and then eventually peeked out there to have a look at us.
Some great photos this week! It was hard to pick a favorite but I would have to say the Ximungwe Young Male in the tree with the beautiful golden light is my favorite. Love it! Thanks to all for the terrific shots!
Thank you so much, Darlene. That is a stunning shot of the Ximungwe Young Male.
Sean and team, Every week we look forward to seeing your best of the best and this week did not disappoint! our favorites were the Nkoveni Young Females playing! So great to see Mashaba’s lineage continuing!
Thank you so much, Michael and Terri. I also love the shot of the Nkoveni Young Females playing, and yes it is great that the Mashaba (Sunsetbend) Lineage is going from strength to strength.
My favorite is the image of the Wild Dog. It evokes a feeling of it being sad – perhaps because it is separated from its pack.
Lovely group of photos! Good spotting on the leopard cub in the rocks! I’m going to pick the zebra this week! It’s a stunning shot and it looks like he or she just came from the manedresser, the mane is looking so coifed!
Totally agree with Debra. Loved the opening image of the “spotlighted” Nhlanguleni Cub. Scrolling down from the “hairdo” of the zebra to the beautiful portrait barely surpassed the leopard cub as my favotite.
Thank you so much, Vin. It was such a great sighting of the little cub.
My favorite this week is the first of the Ximungwe male about to pounce on his mother. Although I do also love the simplicity of the eagle, elephant and zebra images. I wouldn’t have noticed the puffed up frog with the lilac breasted roller had you not called it out, so effective was it’s camouflage. I had a similar experience upon returning home from our visit. I zoomed in on a shot of birds at a waterhole only to see a dozen birds I’d not realized were in the image all along. Love those little surprises.
There can be just one favorite and mine is that tiny baby leopard cub in the crevices of the Nhlanguleni female. But all the other pics are absolutely stunning and lots of leopards, my favorite animal.
Thank you for that Valmai. The tiny little cub is so cute.
Happy Easter to you all at Londolozi🙏🏻❤️. Fabulous photos Sean and team but think the Three Rivers young male is definitely my favorite this week. The subtle lighting just brings his markings out so well. What a handsome leopard 💕
Happy Easter to you too, Cally. Thank you, The sparkle in the Three RIvers Young Male’s eye is stunning.
Great photos. Thank you all for sharing them
Thank you so much, Christa.
Fantastic TWIP Sean. Nice to see some birds. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you so much, Leonie.
Sean, I see that you do not have complete info about Misava. He is the son of Hlaba’Nkunzi (and Nyeleti) who was killed when he was about 8-10 months old. He survived, as you say, by eating anything that he could find, and thus did not get a good amount of nutrition early on in order to grow well. He is small for his age, and might never be territorial, and has been living for 6 years under his father’s protection. We all root for him to survive and somehow find his own space somewhere. Nevertheless, he is a gorgeous male and really very fascinating that he is being seen on Londolozi.
Thank you so much for the information Lisa. Will update his profile shortly.
Lovely pics again, I was a bit busy over the weekend, so only saw them now. My favorite is the Ximungwe young male. I study iriscopy and the speck in his left (!) eye is quite spectacular! Actually, I love al the pictures……….
Great selection of photo guys! Sean, what number litter is this for the Nhlanguleni Female and what litters has she had since the Nkuwa and Finfoot Females? The Nkuwa Female has two cubs on Singita now too!
Hi Michael, thank you so much. I believe that this is at least her 7th litter. Well, at least the ones that we know of, she has gone through periods where she probably could have had cubs but we never saw any signs of them. This litter is the fourth litter that we know of as well since the Nkuwa Female and Finfoot Female litter in 2018.
I believe so, let’s hope that the Nkuwa Female is successful in raising those cubs.