For most people, it’s a once in a lifetime experience (if that) to witness a leopard land its prey in a successful hunt. These solitary, independent, territorial cats are elusive and careful, and primarily hunt at night, so the chances of catching them making a kill are low. At Umkumbe Safari Lodge, however, one’s chances are somewhat higher, considering the location in the famous Sabi Sand Wildtuin where leopard sightings are on another level. Umkumbe guides, Mauritz and Johan, were out on game drive recently when they saw ‘the best sight of my life’, according to an ecstatic Mauritz. Tatowa, a young leopardess, planned and executed the perfect kill right in front of their eyes, and luckily for us, Mauritz captured it all excellently on camera…
It was after dark and towards the end of the game drive when Mauritz stopped to watch two impalas chasing each other, and suddenly he saw Tatowa was on the scene too. Secretively, she positioned herself on an animal footpath in the darkness, and waited for her chance. It was as if she had anticipated the impala’s next move, and sure enough, the female impala got tired of being chased around and headed along the footpath to escape.
It wasn’t until she found herself only a foot from the crouching leopard that she noticed her presence, and in typical fashion she leapt into the air to avoid her. Unfortunately for the impala, leopards leap just as well, and Tatowa had planned this so perfectly that she couldn’t miss. As the impala was air-born directly above the leopard, Tatowa made her move and clamped her jaws down on the impala’s throat, flung through the air in a complete back-flip and landed faultlessly on top of her prey. The impala fought back and jumped up immediately; however Tatowa had her grip secured, and the two stood in absolute silence until the impala finally collapsed.
Once Tatowa ensured that her prey was dead, she proceeded to take it up into a tree, which is text book leopard behaviour, and it is truly incredible to witness. The strength required to pull a fully grown impala up into a tree is astounding, and Tatowa did it with ease. Leopards feast in trees and store their carcasses in trees to keep their food safe from scavengers, such as hyenas. It was the perfect ending to an act of nature Umkumbe guests could not have expected to see unfold. As Mauritz said, “No alarm calls and no sound besides their bodies hitting the ground. The perfect kill”.
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