"Spotting" a Leopard at Work

Spotting a leopard in the wild in Africa can be a rare occurrence, but when you do come across one of them it often makes for an extraordinary experience you'll remember forever. This particular leopard was eluding our group for a few days, but we eventually found it up a tree, where they are typically found.

We watched the leopard use its vantage point up in the tree to determine where its potential prey was. It was truly amazing to watch it strategize and process its situation as it looked around. It spotted warthogs in one direction, but they were moving swiftly away (with their tails straight up in the air in typical hilarious fashion). There were wildebeests in another direction, but they were quite a distance from the leopard. There were impalas in the third direction, but they too were moving further away.

The leopard seemed content. It didn't want to exert any energy it didn't need to, particularly if it wasn't likely to reach its prey. Unlike a cheetah, a leopard must sneak up on its prey and try to stay undetected until the last second when it can attack. And we were watching the leopard determine its chances of doing so in real time.

The leopard came down off the tree, perched itself on this termite mound, and then proceeded to walk a good distance. We followed it and watched it, and it watched us. It seemed to disappear as soon as it hit the tall grasses, its spots perfectly camouflaging it in the terrain. And then we decided to let it continue its journey without us -- thankful that it gave us such an interesting look into its daily routine and posed for some truly remarkable photographs.

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