When I arrived at Londolozi, the Ntomi Male was one of the first young leopards I got to see. And so witnessing the timeline of his development thus far has been somewhat extra special.
One of my older photos of a then newly independent Ntomi Male. I distinctly remember loving that I captured this moment of him staring down the road, representing all his potential as he stood there upright with innocence and inexperience as he entered his newly nomadic life.
Born 2021, son of Ximungwe Female. Distinguished by eye freckle, grown into formidable male dominant in the west.
As a follow-up to Ross Cheshire‘s previous blog more than a year ago, I thought it was time for another update on the Ntomi Male!
For most of 2024, we had very limited sightings of him as he established himself on our neighbour’s property to the west of Londolozi. This meant that for most of last year, he was not seen and became somewhat of an enigma to the Londolozi family.
Fast forward to 2025 and he seems to be thriving, scent-marking and establishing a solid territory for himself.
However, as Ross alluded to in his blog at the beginning of last year, our team of Rangers and Trackers remained hopeful that maybe one day the Ntomi Male’s territory would end up back on Londolozi… and as of April 2025, there are definitely murmurs amongst the team about whether our wishes could be coming true?
Incredible image from ranger Dean Jenkins from the beginning of 2025 capturing the Ntomi Male having successfully killed a buffalo calf.
Leopards in the South-West
If we take a look at the current male leopard dynamics on Londolozi, since the loss of the Senegal Bush Male, there hasn’t really been another dominant male in the south-western parts of Londolozi. Further south from where Senegal Bush Male’s territory used to be, the Mawelawela Male is still the dominant male, sometimes seen pushing further north although sightings of him are few and far between.
![Mawelawela Male Lying In Marula Tree [rcb] (2)](https://media.londolozi.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/14141432/Mawelawela-Male-Lying-in-Marula-Tree-RCB-2-1598x1065.jpg)
The Mawelawela Male.
Born 2013, initially a fairly aggressive elusive male that has somewhat relaxed. Found in unconventional leopard territory of the grasslands
The Maxims Male continues to push from the east, however, as he continues to dominate his ridiculously large eastern territory, I wonder if he’ll look to expand further west.
Dominant since 2019. Once skittish Kruger-born giant now rules vast territory, transforming from elusive presence to formidable force.
Since the southwestern part of Londolozi is predominantly open grassland with fewer road networks, simply tracking or spotting a leopard in these areas can be somewhat trickier than other parts of Londolozi. But this makes a sighting of a predator in the south-west even more special when we do find them (which seems to be often of late!).
Born 2021, son of Three Rivers Female. Once playful cub turned skittish post independence. Striking golden coat.
The elusive Nsuku Male has also been spotted in the south-western parts of Londolozi on multiple occasions over the last year, however, given the infrequency of spotting him (and when we do he’s been seen across all corners of Londolozi), it is unconfirmed as to where he seems to be establishing his territory. That being said, the Nsuku Male could be another male that ends up fighting for this vacant land in the south-west.
Ranger Keagan managed to capture a somewhat rare moment of the Nsuku Male posing for the camera (even though from a fair distance).
Over the last two years, we have also had the occasional sighting of the Nkuwa Female’s two sons who are now independent (born February 2023). Although we would consider them somewhat still nomadic, these newly independent male leopards may venture back into the open grasslands if the Nkuwa Female continues to move her territory further west.
One of the Nkuwa Young Males pausing on Londolozi’s southwestern boundary road.
So, What’s Next for the Ntomi Male
We have had multiple sightings of the Ntomi Male in the first quarter of 2025. And these exciting sightings of him have led to the following questions…
With a large portion of land back up for grabs amongst the male leopards, will the Ntomi Male continue to venture back east and extend his existing territory back onto Londolozi taking over parts of his father’s previous territory? And what may be causing him to suddenly spend more time on Londolozi?
An older photo I captured of the then-nomadic Ntomi Male back in April 2023, scanning the open grasslands above the elephants. Two years later he’s back in the same area ready to assert dominance.
Given the current dynamics of leopards in the south-west of Londolozi and Sabi Sands, only time will tell if we continue to see the Ntomi Male. We understand that the Ntomi Male may also face pressure from the Tamba Male pushing him back onto Londolozi, or potentially the Hlambela Male from the north.
Let’s hope the remaining three quarters of 2025 bring more and more sightings of this remarkable male leopard!
Kate, Thanks for the great update on Ntomi! We saw him with Nick on our last visit and have some beautiful close-up images showing the freckle in his eye. We are hoping to see Ntomi again when we return in June! Fingers crossed!
Dear Kate, thanks for that update. It will be phenomenal if Ntomi will be more and more back at Londolozi. Saw him as a cub with his special spotted eye.
Hi Kate, I usually get crazy for females with cubs, but the Ntomi male is someone I think many have at heart like me …. also given his parents. He has something from his father, definitely. I hope yo see him more in your reports. All good omens be with him…
Fingers crossed!!!
Hi Kate, thanks for the update on the Ntomi male leopard. Since he was born he has been my favorite leopard with the spec in his eye. I am thrilled to hear that he is back on Londolozi ground, let’s hope and pray thatbhe establishes territory for himself on Londolozi. That would so exciting to see his photo’s or video’s more often.
It would be fantastic to see Ntomi spending more time in his natal reserve, as long as he finds an area that isn’t occupied by an older, more established male. He is a favorite for many of us and given his personality and confidence around vehicles, could provide some amazing viewing as well as mating opportunities for the females in his newly established territory. Thanks for this update Kate!
I do hope this freckle-eyed guy manages to establish a territory on Londolozi. Bob and I have had some memorable sightings of him, with his mom and later since independence. I sure would like to see him next April too!
I love these reports giving updates on the leopards territories. In the past maps would be posted of the male and female’s territories. Is it possible that this could be done at this time? Thank you.
Thanks for the update on the Ntomi male, Kate. He is such a great cat. It’ would be fantastic if he could be seen more often at Londolozi again.
It would be so wonderful for him to return to establish himself on Londolozi. I’ve followed several female cubs well into adulthood and watched them raise their own cubs, but with the typical dispersal of the young males, I’ve yet to see one grow into a territorial adult who sires his own cubs. Of course they do, they are just doing it elsewhere and don’t continue to appear on the blog. What a treat it would be for him to be the first!