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.