My adventure into the bush this week started with a simple plan: to try to get across to a pack of wild dogs that had been seen moving through the south-western grasslands. As so often happens, however, the bush had other ideas.
On the way, we briefly bumped into a portion of the Msuthlu Pride, but with the wild dogs still our focus, we pushed on. It was only later that we realised we had driven straight past something remarkable, a cheetah perched high on a fallen marula tree. Thankfully, Nick and Joy were following behind and picking up the pieces, and we were treated to a superb sighting.
Before long, the cheetah slipped down from his lookout and began moving purposefully toward a large dazzle of zebra, clearly eyeing a small foal. The tension built quickly, but the zebra spotted him first and bolted across the open ground. With the opportunity gone, he eventually settled along a historical feature of the reserve, the old, long-discontinued Selati railway line.
Later, we spent time with the Nkoveni Female leopard resting on a fallen knob thorn tree in beautiful golden light. As the sun sank lower, the distant gurgling calls of male impalas caught her attention, and within moments she was up and moving, melting into the grass in full hunting mode.
In the fading light, I focused my attention and camera on the impala herd, hoping to capture the moment she burst towards them, only to realise later that the real story was unfolding just outside my field of view. Reviewing the footage back at camp revealed that I had unknowingly filmed the Nkoveni Female slipping into a perfect ambush position, far closer to the impala than I had realised at the time. And only in hindsight now do I kick myself, I should have stayed!
A classic case of the bush teaching another lesson.
Enjoy This Virtual Safari…
The Video will be up shortly…
Don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube Channel, if you haven’t already.
0 Comments
on Cheetah Hunt, Leopard Stalk & One Big Mistake | Virtual Safari #314