Posts in Category: leopard
Leopard in a cactus tree (Candelabra)
Not the shot I wanted of a Leopard in the Candelabra Tree, but the only one I could get. There was simply no angle from where we stopped where the cat’s eye was visible. Maybe if I had been alone I could have gotten out and walked up the road a bit and crouched lower…or at least had the driver/guide shuffle the van forward…but both the cat and my fellow travelers were suffering from the extreme heat of the Equinorial afternoon…only a few miles from the equator. The Leopard was panting as though he or she had just completed a marathon, but as you see from the very relaxed pose, it was just the heat. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Photo and Apple Photos. ISO 250 @ f4 @ 1/500th.
Feline edition: Leopard!
Leopard: Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda, August 2022 — I posted one shot from this sequence a while ago, but now, working through the Uganda photos in order, I come back to it. 🙂 I also told the story of the traffic jam of safari vehicles that had blocked the road and overflowed into the savannah on either side trying to see this Leopard hiding in tall grass, waiting for a safe opportunity to cross the road to get to its kill, which was hanging in a tree on the other side. There were well over a dozen vehicles, jammed in every which-way, bumper to bumper, back to front, like a crazy puzzle. Our guide walked the length of the jam talking to the other drivers and convinced them that no one was going to see the cat while all those land cruisers and vans were blocking its path, and we slowly untangled the mass of vehicles and moved off. We just happened be coming back to get to another road when the cat finally decided to get up and move. It was still trying go get around us to it’s prey, so, though we only stopped for a moment to see it, we got to watch as it stalked through the tall grasses parallel to the road. Wonderful indeed. Sony Rx10iv at 580mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Photo and Apple Photos. ISO 100 @ f4 @ 1/1000th.
Leopard Again…
Two more shots of the radio collared Leopard at Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda. I told the story of finding her yesterday. The director of the Carnivore Project threw her two pieces of medicated meat. After the first she returned to the shade. After the second she decided to “stalk” the truck were the meat was coming from. The top panel is her in her pounce mode, and the second is a close-up of her hunting face. When she showed no signs of backing off, the Carnivore man put his truck in gear and drove off rather quickly. She paid absolutely no attention the other vehicles in the convoy, before or after he left, even though she was less than 10 feet from us. She knew exactly where the meat was coming from. Once the meat wagon was gone, she settled back into the shade. What a beautiful animal! Sony Rx10iv at around 300mm and 1200mm equivalents. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos. Assembled in Framemagic.
Leopard!
After spending time with the lions on our Experiential Safari Experience at Queen Elizabeth National Park (see yesterday’s post), the tracking vehicle went off looking for a radio collared Leopard who just gave birth to a kitten. The director of the Carnivore Project at QENP was driving one of the other vehicles in our convoy. The kitten is still well hidden but they are supplementing the mother’s diet while she is nursing with some medicated meat, and this was the day for her visit. The tracking vehicle called our ranger when they had located the cat, and since she was resting quietly in the shade under another stand of brush, we were able to approach. This shot was taken from maybe 30 feet, at about 480mm equivalent, as she got up to retrieve her medicine. I like lions, and prize every encounter, but this experience with the Leopard at close range was something really special. Sony Rx10iv. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos. #Epic_Uganda_Vacations.