There had been a few very brief sightings of the Piccadilly Female and her cub. She has been denning in the rocky outcrops in the north-eastern part of Londolozi.
I have always dreamed of seeing a female leopard and her cub in a setting like this. If you have been to Londolozi you will know what rocky outcrops I am talking about. If you don’t, the photographs to follow will give you a very clear understanding as to why I have been longing to see a leopard there.
Rsnger Greg Pingo had found her with her cub a few mornings ago and my eyes lit up with excitement. Myself and James Tyrrell went to go have a look later that morning to see if they were both still there.
When we arrived at the outcrop where she had been seen earlier that morning, we initially had no sign of her until we drove around onto the southern side and she suddenly appeared from behind a beautiful rock fig tree. She stopped and was scanning the surroundings.
At first there was no sign of her cub, but there were so many crevices for it to hide in. After sitting quietly and waiting for a few minutes, we saw what we had come there for. The cub crept out of a crevice from behind the female and lay down in between the safety of its mother’s legs, staring down at our vehicle.
It was not long before the adult female left of the rocky ledge with the cub following not far behind. After manoeuvring herself around the rocky area she lay resting up in some long grass at the base, where we could hardly see her.
We went back that afternoon to go to try our luck and see if she was still there. We had been informed by David Dampier (Londolozi Head of Finance, who had arrived at the outcrops just ahead of us) that she WAS there and we arrived to this incredible scene of her on top of a boulder.
This female is most often encountered near the Sand River to the east of the Londolozi camps.
Just like earlier that day, there was no initial sign of the cub with the mother but it had been seen moving around the base of the boulder. We waited for roughly 15 minutes until the cub nervously climbed up the side of the boulder with its eye locked in our direction.
We had a few brief glimpses of the young leopard moving around the boulder. It finally got the confidence to nestle up to the comfort and safety of its mother atop the boulder. We realised the cub was not used to the clicking of the shutters on our cameras.
It took a good 30 minutes of sitting in silence with very little movement from a distance until the cub started relaxing. We had now sat in silence without taking any photographs to avoid the sounds of the clicking of the camera shutters scaring it. The cub gained more confidence and became very relaxed with our presence.
The ears of the mother perked up with a jolt and she began staring off to the west. Something had caught her attention in the nearby thicket. Moments after this was taken she had slunk down off the boulder and out of sight in the attempt to catch and impala which hadn’t seen her.
This was the first time I had seen the Piccadilly female and her cub. Waiting patiently in the wild is something I could not put more emphasis on. This sighting is a perfect example of what having some patience can do. Sitting quietly and waiting allowed us to have a phenomenal sighting of the cub. Watching it gain confidence in our presence was a small way of us starting the habituation process. Good things come to those who wait.
Thank you for this lovely setting view with t
It is so true Guy. You’ve got to be patient sometimes to get the best sightings. I saw the video of the Piccadily female and cub on the Instsgram stories. Beautiful.
Thank you! It reminds a documentary series by B.Bestenlink a main character was a female leopard, Shaba, who hid her cubs like this Piccadilly mum. She successfully raised her male fun hopefully this will be the case keep fingers crossed
Lets hope it will be a repeat and she will be able to raise her cub to independence.
Guy, loved all the photos🤗
Great sighting!!! I applaud your patience, absolutely necessary for this cub! Thanks to all involved!
Wonderful pictures of this lovely cub and its mum.
Oh bless, sometimes sitting, waiting is the best policy .
Had some of my best ever moments , kingfishers fishing, sleepy wild dog waking up and chasing elephants …
It’s easy to be blasé but when you have travelled thousands of miles and only can afford a few days …
So true Ian, if you have the patience to wait it out there is a good chance it will pay off like it has for yourself on a few occasions.
That was fun! Thank you
Great sighting & follow up Guy. We love that location on the property and had an adventurous “near encounter” there with a leopard while I was looking for a convenient tree after a sundowner.
You never know what might be behind any tree out in the wild. Thats the beauty of it all. Very glad it was at a safe distance. Im sure it added a lot more excitement to your evening sundowner.
Beautiful ….. very special sighting
What a fantastic sighting, Guy, your patience was certainly rewarded. A question for you – presumably she is the half-sister of the 3 Rivers female, who I guess would be about 4 years old now? Do you ever see her now or hear about her?
Hi Suzanne, that is correct, she is from the next litter. She is seen on the odd occasion in the eastern parts of the reserve.
BEAUTIFUL PHOTOS! All good things are worth waiting for ♥️… ABSOLUTELY PRICELESS
Such a thrilling sighting and truly, patience is the most essential thing to pack for a safari. I loved watching James’s video on Instagram following these two, and the fact you all stopped clicking to allow the cub to relax. Is Londolozi open to guests yet?
Hi Denise, It was truly a magnificent sighting and so glad you loved the video from James. We are unfortunately still closed to guests until we hear further from the government.
How special… loved the way cub snuggled up perfectly with Mother who was definitely keeping an eye on you for a while, until the impala became important. Hope she eventually found some supper. Magic moments which we could otherwise wait a lifetime to see.
Well done! Patience is THE key to great wildlife photography!
This is wonderful, and I was able to catch James’ and team’s video, which was even more remarkable!! Bravo!!!
Lovely post and sighting! Patience is the key always – though its a fading trait in our world of instant gratification.
Loved reliving this after the instagram video, what a special treat indeed..I always enjoy being able to take time to go back to these incredible moments 🙏🏻💕
Dreamy sighting and awesome photos!
Are we going to hear again soon about the Wild Dogs pups? Just heard there are actually 9 still alive??? Please share soon!
Well done, excellent pictures, it truly is worth the wait!
Thank you for sharing you pictures and comments it is truely appreciated.
What a fantastic sighting! Guy, two questions for you regarding the cub.
1. How long do you think the habituation process with this particular cub will take, given the terrain in the areas the Piccadilly Female has been stashing it?
2. Who do you all think the father of the cub could/which males are possibilities?
There’s nothing like seeing a female “feline” in the bush, especially when a special sighting is seen for which a cub is nestled with its mama.
What a great venture in capture! Thank you Guy for sharing this with us all! It completed the day in a heart warming way.
Hope more Leopards cub will come, and stay safe!
Lovely blog, Guy! Thanks so much. Wendy M
Would you please explain the 3:3, 2:2, etc pattern that is posted with each leopard. If you would also draw it, that would help.
Guy, Thanks for the great story and incredible images – especially the one with the relaxed cub and mom! Added that one to our favorites! Is that spot near Ximpalapala?
Some beautiful pictures, thank you. In all my years of bush visits and seeing plenty of leopards I have never been fortunate enough to see a cub. But as you said, good things come to those who wait 🙂
Nice footage! Love you guys for sharing! 🙌
Vanessa
Patience richly rewarded as depicted in the very beautiful pictures of mother & cub.Nature at its best.
The image of mother & cub on the boulder is my favourite as it is all round beautiful in every way.
Leopard stories best told only at londolozi.This greatly builds excitement onto learning more