And the Killer is....

The next day we went and changed the SD card in the camera we had placed at the carcass to see if anything had been to check it out: only a warthog had been to visit!!

That evening we received a radio call from the game drive that a leopard was on the wildebeest carcass!! So we stopped cooking our dinner and raced to the sighting. It was around dusk so the light was really poor, but we managed to get some pictures of the cat so we could try and identify him. Unfortunately a combination of really low light and my currently average skill level with a camera mean this is the best picture I could get.

After performing the autopsy the previous day Tara had tied the carcass to a tree to try and guarantee whoever came to feed on it would do so right in front of the camera trap we had placed there. When we arrived the leopard was locked in a battle with this rope to try and free the carcass so it could take it to a more secluded location and feast on it in peace. However, about 15 minutes the rope was still holding strong. The leopard stopped for a breather and then tried again, but this time was successful; the wildebeest was literally ripped away, so that all that remained was the lower part of one of its legs that had been tied to the tree. Then with remarkable ease the leopard whisked the carcass away. We attempted to drive around and intercept him on the other side of the treeline, but alas were too late. The next day we looked at the pictures we had taken and the ones from the camera trap, and identified the cat as the larger of the two adolescent cubs.

Less than three full days on the reserve and already I’d had two leopard sightings (yes, the first one DOES count). This one was particularly special though because this could have been one of, if not the first ever, kill made by this cub, so this is one that will live long in my memory.

CSI: Bush Style

Game drives take place every day on the reserve, and the guides will often radio in any interesting sightings to us at the research camp. As we were finally returning from My First Walk, about 3 hours later than earlier anticipated, one of the guides radioed in to say he had found a wildebeest calf that had recently died. He was unsure of the cause of death because there were no obvious puncture wounds on the carcass. So we went to investigate what had happened and set a camera trap next to the carcass to see what would turn up to feast on it in the subsequent few days.

When we first saw the calf it did not look like it had been killed by an animal, be it leopard or any other carnivore.

However, when it was flipped over there were some small areas where flies had laid their eggs, suggesting there might be puncture wounds there after all.

So Tara began to closely examine the carcass, and a few more potential puncture wounds began to show. We had to keep taking regular measurements from the carcass to help with analysing what we had found later on. It was only when Tara began to skin the animal that several puncture/claw wounds, located all over the carcass, were found. They were given away by deep blood red patches on the flesh of the animal which had been covered up by its fur. 

Now it was clear that the wildebeest had been killed by a predator, so began a discussion about what had done it. Leopards normally kill by suffocating their prey around the throat, and although there were slight marks around throat of the calf, these were not the most pronounced we found. It also seemed less likely that the kill would have been abandoned had it been a leopard that had killed it since there are no other large predators on the reserve that could have scared it off. I guessed jackals; Tara thought Caracal. When we had finished examining the calf we tied it to a tree so it would be in the shade and in full view of the camera trap we left.

Tara later looked up the killing strategies of different animals and how to ID the culprit in cases like this. Looking at the pictures we had taken earlier, the puncture wounds on the wildebeest were 4.5-5cm apart, which is in fact consistent with the distance between the canines of a leopard, and far bigger than that of Caracal or Jackal. The kill was most likely made by one of the adolescent cubs currently residing in the area; they’re about one year old, and not very experienced hunters at this stage. This could explain why the kill appeared so “messy”. Now all we had to do was wait and see whether the camera trap we placed would show whether one, or both, of the cubs would return to the kill. 

My First Walk

Waking up at 03:30 in the bush is, although brutal, surprisingly easy, because as soon as your alarm wakes you up the noises from the bush just take over, and I’m finding it is pretty pointless to try and get back to sleep again. Luckily I was also still riding the high of seeing a leopard the night before. We set off around 04:00, still in the pitch dark, with Tara and Becky checking on a few of the camera traps set up on route to the starting point of our walk. There are two different 10km+ routes we have to walk around the reserve every few weeks: a mountain walk and a valley walk. This was the mountain walk, but starting at 05:30 meant we would be done before it got too hot (in theory).

The reason for these walks is to look for spoor (footprints) and scat (poo) of carnivores, and in particular leopards, along with checking on camera traps around the route. It’s fair to say I hadn’t really got my eye when it came to looking for the prints, but Tara and Becky are pretty damn good at spotting them, so we found quite a few.

Genet track

Leopard track

Towards the end of the walk the location of our camp was casually pointed out to me from afar; my jaw just dropped. It’s hard to get a sense of where you are when you’re down there, but it’s a pretty nice location…

We finally finished around 09:00, which was a relief for us all because it was already starting to really heat up. But we weren’t done for the day then: we proceeded to go on a long drive around the higher regions of the reserve checking on yet more camera traps. One of the cameras was located next to a small pool, so we stopped off to have a quick dip since by this point it was around midday and getting extremely hot!! The pool was located at the bottom of a very steep road, but it wasn't until half way up and our vehicle got well-and-truly stuck that I realised just how steep it was!! The roads in the reserve, aside from often being very steep, aren't exactly flat either, with huge rocks/divots making the escape all the trickier. At this point I should point out I’d forgotten to bring any sun cream out with me (one of many “idiot” moments I’ve had here so far). Upon meeting one of the owners of the reserve the previous day it had been pointed out to me that I was pretty pale and so should make sure I used plenty of sun cream; I laughed it off at the time, but after spending just half an hour in the blistering mid-day sun trying to free our vehicle from her predicament, I discovered there was much wisdom in what he had said!! Eventually we got back to camp about 3 hours later than planned, but we still weren’t done for the day at this point, having got word over the radio of a mysterious death…

Welcome to Thabo Tholo!!

So…it’s fair to say I had a whirlwind first few days out here. After a long, sleepless flight thanks in no small part to three crying babies, I was met in Johannesburg by Becky, a guide and member of the research team also from the UK, just after 8 in the morning. After we had picked up her safari guests we then made the 4 hour journey to the reserve. On arrival we dropped off her safari guests at the local pub, rather conveniently placed right on the edge of the reserve, and then headed on into the reserve itself.

The first thing you notice about Thabo Tholo and the surrounding area is the absolutely stunning landscape; there are mountains as far as the eye can see, all brilliantly green thanks to the mix of daily temperatures in the high 30’s and fairly regular rain that make the bush comes alive at this time of year.

As we were driving down the first road in to the reserve a radio call came in that there was a leopard sighting down in a valley near to our camp; I’d not even touched base yet and already was potentially going to see a Leopard!! Having never done so in my previous two visits to Africa I was incredibly excited!! So we rushed to camp and I had a very quick introduction to Tara, the head-researcher here and my very patient teacher, and Tucker, her little Jack Russell, before we went to see if we could spot the cat. When we arrived at the sighting the leopard was sitting less than 10m from the car, but we still couldn't see him; they are frustratingly good at hiding!! Eventually we managed to spot him (seeing the tip of his tail and a few rosettes counts as far as I’m concerned), but not long after we arrived he somehow managed to give us the slip without any of us noticing, so we left and headed back to camp. On the way back they showed me an old Kudu carcass which one of the leopards had taken down late in December. 

When we got back to camp I was exhausted but absolutely buzzing from the sighting, which didn't really help me when it came to falling asleep, especially since I had to be up at 03:30 the next morning to go for a walk!! 

Goodbye

Hello!! And Goodbye!! A few months ago I was offered the chance to go to South Africa to work on a leopard research project, and already the time has come for me to leave. So, on the first day of 2014, I am setting out to try and turn my dream of living and working in the African bush into a long-term reality. Whether I’m successful or not, it promises to be an amazing six months, and I will try to keep you updated as often as possible with everything I’ll be doing out there.

I’m mainly going to be working in the Thabo Tholo Wilderness Reserve, which is near Lydenburg in Northeast South Africa. I’ll be able to write a bit more about where I’ll be staying and what I’ll be doing once I've been there for a little while, so for now I’ll point you in the direction of the websites/blog of the research team I will be working with.

http://ingweleopard.com/index.html - This is the website for the Ingwe Leopard Research Project, which I will be working for. 

http://www.pawct.org/index.html - The research project comes under the auspices of the PAW Conservation Trust. 

http://www.researchcam.co.uk/index.html - Gives you a bit more information about the project.

http://predatorresearchnews.blogspot.co.uk/ - The blog from the research team.

If you're interested in this kind of thing please read their blogs and click on the adverts on them because each time you do that they will receive some money from google, which is then put straight towards expanding the research they do; you don’t have to do/buy anything after you have clicked on the advert.

You can also have a look at the Facebook pages from the research team and Black Leopard Safari Camp which are also based on Thabo Tholo.

https://www.facebook.com/ResearchCam?fref=ts

https://www.facebook.com/blackleopardcampus

https://www.facebook.com/BlackLeopardCamp

The last shameless plug I will make is to this website:

http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/live-camera-traps-to-help-save-the-leopard-from-extinction

There you can find out all the different ways you can donate to the project. If you know of anyone who has a bit of spare cash and/or is interested in contributing to the research from the safety of their homes, please do share this with them.

If you have any questions or are interested in anything specific related to what I’m doing leave comments and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible. If you add your email to the mailing list you should get notified whenever I post a new blog.

Keep in touch and I hope you all have a fantastic 2014.