After hearing a report of the Nkoveni Female and her two cubs crossing into Londolozi from our neighbouring reserve Mala Mala, we wasted no time and made our way into the area to see if we could find them. I had left Tracker Terrence to follow their tracks on foot while I looped up ahead on the surrounding road with the vehicle. With a little bit of luck and timing, I managed to spot the young female peering out from the top of a large termite mound. That initial moment of spotting a leopard after searching for it is such a rewarding feeling!

We followed the Nkoveni Female and her two youngsters through some very dense bushwillow thickets until they reached a small natural drainage line that I couldn’t cross with the vehicle. We lost sight of them as I drove around to an easier crossing point. I decided that we should drive to the top of the crest that they were heading towards so that we’d have a good vantage point and be able to spot them from a distance if they continued this way.

It gave me a little bit of an uneasy feeling when I had just been told over the radio that the Kambula Pride were at the top of the same crest. They were right in the path of the leopards’ general trajectory.

A storm was brewing on the eastern horizon, and a strong wind was starting to blow. Suddenly, I noticed that one of the lionesses lifted her head and stared persistently in the direction of the dense bushwillow thickets in the distance. I could see in her eyes that she had detected the leopards through their scent but could not yet see them.

The three leopards emerged from the bottom of the valley and continued to walk slowly up the crest towards the lions. The wind was blowing strongly from behind the Nkoveni Female and her youngsters, and they were walking straight into the setting sun with squinted eyes. I knew this was a recipe for disaster. One by one, the pride of lions hunkered down in the grass and lay perfectly hidden, waiting in ambush. The leopards were now only about 20 metres away.

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12

Nkoveni 2:2 Female

2012 - present

A gorgeous female who is found to the east of camp. Easily recognised by her 2:2 spot pattern she is often to be found in Marula trees.

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Nkoveni 2:2 Female

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Seconds later, the young male cub spotted one of the lionesses. The three adult lionesses rocketed out of the long grass towards them! My heart was in my throat at this stage and all I could do was sit and watch nature run its course.

The young male cub bravely raced straight towards the lionesses to get to the nearest tree, leaping up onto its trunk and clawing himself up as fast as he could. He narrowly escaped.

The moment that the Nkoveni Female realized what was happening, one of the lionesses was already in full stride coming straight towards her. She spun around and ran away as fast as she could, but the lioness gained on her and within seconds it jumped on top of her and tackled her to the ground. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the young female bounding off down towards the bottom of the valley, making her way towards a large Jackalberry tree, and then we lost sight of her.

The Nkoveni Female was not going to go down without a fight. With lightning-fast reflexes, she swivelled onto her back and all I remember seeing were flashes of claws, teeth and rosettes from beneath the body of the large Kambula Lioness. She managed to land a few blows to the lioness, which gave her the tiny fraction of a second she needed to leap out of its grasp. She raced into the bushwillow thickets and right up to the top of a dead Knob-thorn tree where the lions couldn’t get her.

With the young male up at the top of the marula tree and the Nkoveni Female high up in a Knob-thorn in the distance, it was a sigh of relief for us all.

Glancing towards the bottom of the valley, we caught sight of a bit of commotion where most of the lions had now gathered. We drove down to get a closer view. In between the mass of lions, was the young female cub fighting for her life.

Her time had come and gone.

It was an incredibly sad day for the Nkoveni Female, and for the Londolozi Ranger and Tracker team. Both the young male cub and the Nkoveni Female are lucky to be alive. Such an encounter could have taken the lives of all three of them.

Sometimes Mother Nature can be cruel. The little female cub had won the hearts of many Londolozi guests who had the privilege of seeing her. Her extremely relaxed nature and playful confidence won’t be forgotten.

The male cub is perfectly healthy and doing well since their run-in with the lions. As the sole survivor of this litter of three, he’s lost both his sisters to the Kambula Pride. For him, experiences such as these will bring to light the dangers that exist out in the wild, and will positively shape his decision-making and awareness going forward.

The Nkoveni Female has a few gashes, but all are superficial and she will heal back to 100% within a couple of weeks. Female leopards are known to go through a grieving process as she has, where they will continue to return to the area where their cub was last seen, and constantly contact call in the hopes that it will return. One can only feel their pain when witnessing it first-hand. When you look at her, you may not see any tears, but I know they’re there.

We will be sure to put out any further updates on the Nkoveni Female and her cub as and when they unfold. For now, we are just very grateful that they are still around to continue their journey through the Londolozi wilderness.