A leopard; draped within a Mahogany tree along the bank of the Sand River, in golden afternoon light. There’s not much more a photographer or guest could ask for, nor more I need to say. Simply breathtaking.

The Three Rivers Female and her almost-year-old female cub patrol the Maxebene Riverbed within the heart of her territory. As this female cub approaches independence, the skill of stalking and pouncing will become increasingly important, and here her mother obliges in a lesson.

Cuteness overload for these underappreciated, perhaps misunderstood predators. Having a hyena den is always a privilege and a highlight to visit on game drive. Emerging from within the termite mound, this youngster studies her surroundings, taking in the scary outside world.

A large elephant bull crosses the runway at sunset. Impressive to say the least, and most certainly my favourite animal to be around, their immense presence commanding respect.

In the late afternoon light, the pack of African painted dogs drove the adrenaline levels up as they started off on a hunt. Keeping chase with them through the dense bush rewarded us so many ways!

Gular fluttering – a term taught to all guides but not are we able to see it in action often. With temperatures in the high 30 degrees Celsius this male ostrich made use of this technique to cool down late in the afternoon.

A stretch and a yawn as one of the impressive Nsevu breakaway males starts to get active for the evening. Seen on our southern boundary one morning, all the way to the northern the next afternoon – theses males are still patrolling an expansive area as they look to settle down, and take over a pride.

An incredibly special sighting, made more so by the display of motherhood this cheetah has put on in raising these three cubs. While certainly not out of danger yet, as these cubs gain experience, their fate rests more and more within their own hands. Climbing fallen over marula trees for an elevated view is a good start. For them and us!

Two females of the Kambula pride groom each other after a night spent hunting. Strengthening their social bond and keeping clean, with perhaps a small amount of fun thrown in there too. I am always amazed at the power held within those shoulders and paws.

Sub-adult elephant are often prone to displays of bravado while within the safety of the herd. Trumpeting and flaring of their ears makes them seem bigger and more imposing. But as he will soon learn, there’s not much need for that at 6 tons!

While the benefits of cooling down and protecting their skin and removing parasites are well known – mud wallowing just looks like fun! This very impressive bull certainly showed us that and kept us entertained for close to an hour. My favourite sighting of the week!

Textures in mud – smooth ivory tusks, wrinkled skin, thin ears, toenails. Even the long hairs around his mouth didn’t escape the mud!

A large crocodile moves between bodies of water in the early morning – a sight we don’t often see, yet impressive in the way they can haul their bodies over the sand. Don’t be fooled – they are no slouches!

A female black-backed jackal approached the vehicle and softly called out for her pups which were hiding under a nearby log! A first for me, and an incredible sighting to watch these hearty and brave little predators.

A brown snake eagle took to the skies as we drove past. Often seen perched upright at the tops of trees, the way in which the sun caught along the flight feathers of the wing was beautiful. Their yellow eyes miss nothing!

Chameleons have completely independent eye movement – allowing for a near 360 degree view of the world around them. Imagine processing two separate views of the world at once! When those two eyes converge however, then they have perfect binocular vision locked onto a target.

A Dark blue pansy (Junonia Oenone Oenone), a female to be precise. I snapped a shot at this one to ID it, and learnt that females have red circles on their hind wings (as seen above).