Timing feels right to provide an update on the Three Rivers Female. After seeing her mating with the Maxims Male at the end of December 2025, it was a matter of time before we were full circle with this 10-year-old leopard being a mother again.
Incredible image Ranger Dean Jenkins managed to capture of the Maxims Male touching noses with the Tinxiya Female AND the Three Rivers Female camouflaged in the foreground. The Tinxiya Female is a newly independent female in the southeastern parts of Londolozi and the Three Rivers Female did an amazing job raising her to independence.
Dominant since 2019. Once skittish Kruger-born giant now rules vast territory, transforming from elusive presence to formidable force.
Forced into early independence at 11 months. Despite her small size, she's proven resilient, currently raising a cub in SE Londolozi.
A confident and curious young leopard, that is nearing independence after a remarkable start to life alongside her resilient mother.
And we’re excited to say with certainty that the Three Rivers Female leopard is a mother again to two very small cubs (we assume they are between 6-8 weeks old).
This is an image of the Three Rivers Female when she denned the Tinyixa Female almost two years ago to the day. We believe she is denning her new litter in a similar place. Hopefully not too long before we can capture images of her new cubs!
Unfortunately, we have not yet been able to have a clear sighting of the cubs just yet, as we believe her to be denning them at the top of a cluster of boulders near the Sand River, but we are hopeful that its only a matter of a few weeks before she might be ready to start moving them to kills.
This was a sighting we had about a month ago of the Three Rivers Female defending her territory and pushing the Tinxiya Female further away from this particular area. It’s not very clear but you can see the Three Rivers Female’s milk pouch in this image (leopard in the foreground).
Being a mother again, the Three Rivers Female has been spotted reaffirming her presence in her territory, taking every opportunity she gets to stalk and hunt and when she’s away from the den, and she has provided us with some amazing leopard viewing.
On a territorial patrol in golden hour.
Sightings of recent, away from the den, have often been of her walking on the roads, covering ground as she marks her territory. Opportunities to hunt may appear out the blue, and just like in this image, she pauses with intent as she looks ahead at a herd of impala.
Having watched her raise the Nsuku Male to independence, then the Tinxiya Female in my time here at Londolozi, fingers are crossed she’ll successfully raise another litter to independence! We’ll be sure to keep the blog updated when we start seeing her cubs.
Hello Kate, nice blog, thank you. I wS at Londolozi a few weeks ago and we were lucky enough to follow her all the way back to the den, where we heard her contact calling the cubs. Ni sighting though. In September 24, my first time at Londolozi, we had incredible sightings of her and the the miserable feeling young Tinxiya female, whom Three Rivers tried to entice across the boundary line to a kill. She even tried to pick her up by the scuff of the neck, even though she was way too big for that. Eventually she did get up and follow her. I have seen Three Rivers on numerous occasions first and she is definitely one of my favourites. I hope she will successfully raise these cubs and I hold fingers crossed I might be privileged to see them all together in October.
Hi Kate! She’s an exquisite female, her expression at times looks melancholic. The Tinxhyia female the opposite. Looking curious and full of zest. The Ngungwe young female is a masterpiece, one of the most special young female I’ve seen, and let’s see how these one will look and what will they become…. I’m trusty in their mother, very capable and brave (the fight against the Nkoveni Female, any leopard female is supposed to loose I think! She recovered so perfectly. I keep my fingers crossed, and thank you so much for such wondrous news!
Great news. The leopard community is thriving. Keep us updated with good news . I hope.
It was two years ago (September) when we spent time with the Three Rivers Female and the not yet named Tinxiya Female. My fingers are crossed that these cubs do well and that this September we have a sighting of them. This is wonderful news.
So exciting! We saw her several times during our visit, sharing those golden light views with Nic, and she’s beautiful. All the best hopes for those two little ones!
Wonderful news, Kate! I’ve been lucky enough to see 3 Rivers quite a few times, and saw Tinxiya 6 months ago. Fingers crossed for more viewings in November….
Hi LGR. That was such a great and very interesting blog to read all about the ever resilient 10yr old Three Rivers female leopard becoming a mother for the third time in her 6 years as an adult. She hasn’t given birth to as many cubs and raised as many to independence and adulthood as some of the other older and more experienced female leopards have done in the past, but she still is and has been a very good and devotedly protective mother to the cubs she’s given birth to and raised successfully there so far. I know she and her late litter mate brother were sadly orphaned at just 13 months old 9 years ago tomorrow, when their aging mother, the Kikilezi female was sadly killed by the then 2 Southern Avoca male lions there at the time. Sadly, her brother vanished, but she maraculously survived very well indeed by teaching herself how to survive & thrive. This is her third litter that I know of.
She did incredibly well to get her elusive now adult five year old son, the large Nduku male and her two year old smaller and younger daughter, the Tixayia female all the way to independence separatly and successfully, so let’s all hope that she’ll be just as successful with raising her current two tiny cubs all the way to independence as well. We can only hope that luck just holds up for her.
The massive Nsuku male the first flesh and blood of the Three Rivers female, has got very elusive ever since he became independent of and from his mum about three years or so ago, when he was about eighteen months to two years old. I’m sure he’s doing absolutely fine for himself wherever he is right now, but at least his mum can focus her attention to her new playful tiny twins currently.
As cute, boystrous and playful as they are, she’s not going to get any peace and quiet from them unfortunately. The only peace and quiet she will get from them, is when she is out either hunting for food or scent marking her territory. I don’t know what gender they are yet, but as they get a bit bigger and a lot more confident together, then I’m sure it’ll be easier for you all to see eventually. They will be either 2 boys, 2 girls or one of each as far as I know. Time will tell us what they are exactly. You’ll possibly know better than me, but I think she’s produced 5 cubs in 3 litters altogether in total so far. Hasn’t she? I know her pretty young 2 year old daughter, the Tinxyia female, has only been independent from her mother for a couple of months or so right now, but on the whole, she’s got at least another 2 years to go before she can be considered an adult at the age of 4. When the time comes for her to breed and have cubs if her own, let’s hope that she will have learned well from the experience of her very good mother. I would like to wish her, the Three Rivers female, the very best of hopeful luck in raising her new brood of 2 cubs there, and I hope she won’t suffer any casualties there this time around either at all. If luck holds up and goes get way, this will be the very first litter of 2 she would have raised very successfully. It will be a absolute miracle if she raises them both to hard independence ever so well.
I bet you just simply can’t wait to see and get some clearer views, looks and images of the 2 very cute & tiny cubs when she feels they’re ready to come out of hiding.
Hope to hear from you shortly.
Robert 21.5.26
Love that first b/w pic so much!
Thanks , Kate, for the lovely photos and the news of the Three Rivers Female.
I saw her for the first time shortly after she had the bad quarrel with the Nkoveni Female. Then we saw her with a kill on a tree, already fine again. And her son, the Nsuku male, who shared her prey on a tree. A year later I was so happy to see her together with her daughter, the Tinxiya Female, another child she raised successfully . So great that she has another litter now. In April I saw her trying to hunt, but we left after a very short while, as we didn’t want to interfere with her hunt because she needed food urgently being a mother of a new litter.
Lovely that she has these new little ones. Looking forward to hearing more of them.
Hi Kate, oh this is such good news of the Three Rivers female having 2 cubs. Can’t wait to see the little fur balls. She is such a beautiful leopardess and the photo’s you posted of her in golden hour is just stunning. Thanks for the update and hopefully soon we will be able to view the cubs.
It’s good to learn that Three Rivers’s cubs are are securely denned and that she’s doing everything she can to hunt and defend her territory. Just about a month ago, we saw her resting in deep grass whilst watching her daughter who had an Impala kill. We knew she had given birth recently, thus an easy meal would mean less work for her. Tinxiya was not interested in sharing at that time evidenced by the growls – typical behavior I suppose from her independent daughter.
Let’s hope she will be as successful with this litter as she has been in the past. Beautiful photos of Tinxiya, especially Nic’s taken in that golden light.