DECEMBER 2000
NGOBOSWAN FEMALE
2 FEMALE CUBS * 15 months
Location: WESTERN MALA MALA/ NW FLOCKFIELD
(9 confirmed sightings of the Ngoboswan
Female, 6 of these together with both daughters, 1 sighting of the two
cubs together but without their mother, 6 sightings of only one of the
cubs alone.)
December differed little from the pattern over the past year or so as
the Ngoboswan Female and her two daughters continued to provide some
of the most entertaining leopard viewing. As the two youngsters get
bigger, so the mother will have to find more and more food to sustain
them. This month there were several sightings of her on what could be
considered as the extreme limits of her territory. Some of these encounters
with the Ngoboswan Female took her into areas regarded as being exclusive
to the Mlowathi Female. Perhaps the combination of a lack of regular
patrols from the Mlowathi Female - this due to her having den-bound
cubs - and the greater food requirement from the rapidly grown twin
daughters, would account for her presence in these areas. At the same
time the Ngoboswan Female has to continue to face competition for food
from the 26-month-old son of the Newington Female which has continued
to roam within the same area occupied by the Ngoboswan Female. This
could have a serious influence on the food supply. These two leopards
were seen encountering each other on one occasion and although the Ngoboswan
Female made it quite clear that she was most unhappy with the male leopard
being there, the latter appeared not in the least bit intimidated by
her snarling and spitting; in fact, the young male may have reciprocated
the growling more effectively. If the Ngoboswan Female wants to claim
sole use of the area, she will have to be more forceful. Nonetheless,
neither her nor her cubs appear to be suffering in any way and all could
really be described as being in a most desirable state of health. It
has been mentioned in the past how the characters of the twins differ,
the one far braver than the other. This pattern has continued, except
when they are together or this more nervous youngster is in the company
of her mother. At such times all signs of insecurity vanish.
NOVEMBER 2000
NGOBOSWAN FEMALE
2 FEMALE CUBS * 14 months
Location: WESTERN MALA MALA/ NW FLOCKFIELD
(8 confirmed sightings of the Ngoboswan
Female, 5 of these together with both cubs, 2 of her and only one of
her daughters, 3 sighting of both of the cubs without their mother,
1sighting of only one of the cubs alone.)
As has become expected of the Ngoboswan Female and her cubs, they again
provided superb viewing this month. The first sighting of this game-report
period saw her leading the cubs to, of all things, a cane rat which
she had killed. It could be thought that she would have been a really
devoted mother to not eat the small creature herself. Perhaps the cane
rat was an incidental kill, one she made whilst returning to fetch the
cubs to a more substantial kill at some other location. Certainly after
they had consumed the cane rat, the three leopards headed west again,
but, frustratingly for them, bumped into three of the lionesses of the
Eyrefield Pride which chased the mother and one of the cubs into the
upper branches of a large Jakkalberry tree and then kept them there
for at least six or seven hours. Other fine sightings have been had
of only the cubs, amusing themselves as they waited for the mother to
return from a hunt. These times have proved most rewarding in terms
of viewing as the two sisters either play alone or with each other.
On one occasion they were seen wrestling and running around chasing
each other for nearly an hour, displaying agility of breath-taking degrees.
One other instance almost saw the end of one of the cubs as it stalked
up to a large crocodile which was sunning itself on a sandbank. The
crocodile was at least three or four meters long. The young leopard
first approached it from the rear and sniffed and patted its large tail.
The reptile did nothing and the leopard circled and then came from the
side of the head, at one stage sniffing the crocodile from no less than
30 centimeters away. Such is the expected speed of a striking crocodile
that it was really thought that the young leopards last seconds alive
were at hand. But again the croc did not budge and much to everyones
relief, the leopard went off looking for some other form of amusement.
Such instances show that the future of any leopard is never sure, particularly
in the early days of exploration when they are at their most curious.
The following day at least one of the sisters was still in the area,
but was soon fetched by her mother which lead her to a freshly killed
baby impala.
OCTOBER 2000
NGOBOSWAN FEMALE
2 FEMALE CUBS * 13 months
Location: WESTERN MALA MALA/ NW FLOCKFIELD
(6 confirmed sightings of the Ngoboswan
Female, 4 of these with both cubs, 1sighting of both of the cubs without
their mother, 5 sightings of only one of the cubs by itself.)
The Ngoboswan trio continued to produce superb viewing this month. However,
it is slowly becoming apparent that the female is spending less and
less time with her daughters. This is only to be expected as they near
the stage of being abandoned and are forced to fend for themselves.
Also, the cubs are growing fast, and this requires more and more food,
forcing the female to probably spend more time out hunting. The extended
time away from the cubs will also benefit them since they can then practice
the art of hunting in the hours of boredom. During such times it can
be expected that the youngsters will get up to all sorts of things such
as chasing butterflies and birds and other small creatures, honing their
instincts into an art. This last month one of the cubs was seen stalking
after two large Nyala bulls, antelope which even a mature male leopard
would probably not even consider taking. The cub followed the Nyala
for quite some time through thick bush before they saw her, barked a
warning and ran off. With the hunt over, the leopard promptly returned
to a tree in which she had been waiting before the antelope chanced
upon the scene. Another development seen over the last few months has
been a distinction of character between the two sisters. Some months
ago the two appeared inseparable, doing everything together. Now, however,
they are being dubbed the more nervous of the two and the more relaxed
of the two as they react to the presence of vehicles. As far as other
young leopards go, this is what is typically expected, each one developing
independently.
SEPTEMBER 2000
NGOBOSWAN FEMALE
2 FEMALE CUBS * 12 months
1 DAUGHTER * 33 months
Location: SOUTH-WESTERN EYREFIELD/ WESTERN
MALA MALA/ NW FLOCKFIELD
(9 confirmed sightings of the Ngoboswan
Female, 6 of these with both cubs, 1 of her and only one of the cubs,
3 of both of the cubs without their mother, 5 of only one of the cubs
by itself. No confirmed sightings of the older daughter)
The Ngoboswan trio continued to provide fine entertainment this month.
As the two cubs get older and more confident, so they appear to be spending
more and more time on their own. Whether this is a deliberate move from
the side of the Ngoboswan Female to get them to become more independent,
or whether she has to spend more and more time hunting in order to satisfy
the rapidly growing cubs with a surely increasing food demand, is not
sure. Certainly this month there was one sighting of the Ngoboswan Female
hunting in an area further north of where she is typically found and
in an area dominated by the Mlowathi Female. The following day the Ngoboswan
Female was at the other end of her territory, several kilometres south,
still hunting. By all accounts, however, the two daughters are still
in fine form. On another occasion, the Ngoboswan Female was seen leading
one of the cubs to what was probably a kill, whilst on the other side
of the river the second cub was left sleeping in a tree. Whilst the
female and the one cub were away, the other spent several days on its
own, but came out of the experience apparently quite unscathed. At this
stage of their life the two young leopards are probably finding a fair
amount of food for themselves whilst waiting for their mother to return
from her hunts.
AUGUST 2000
NGOBOSWAN FEMALE
2 FEMALE CUBS * 11 months
1 DAUGHTER * 32 months
Location: WESTERN MALA MALA/ NW FLOCKFIELD
(12 confirmed sightings of the Ngoboswan
Female, 11 of these with both cubs, one of the cubs by themselves. No
confirmed sightings of the older daughter)
The Ngoboswan Female and her cubs were perhaps the star performers this
month. At the beginning of the game-report period whilst she was leading
her cubs towards a reedbed where she was to leave them for several days,
the youngsters spotted a troop of monkeys which were chattering at the
leopards. Whilst the monkeys were ignored by the Ngoboswan Female, her
daughters set off after them, providing a most entertaining hour or
so of viewing as they scrambled up the tall acacia trees in which the
furious monkeys were continuing their chattering. So determined were
the two leopards in their efforts to catch these primates that there
were probably some moments when the monkeys felt distinctly uneasy.
Eventually the cubs tired of their endeavours and returned to their
mother which was patiently waiting for them, perhaps quite content at
this little lesson in their passage to adulthood. Unlike situations
when twins have quite different dispositions, usually one being bold
and the other apprehensive, these sisters appear to get along well together
and do not show the typical solitary behaviour of leopards. Perhaps
this will change, but their togetherness is quite noticeable. This was
again evident later in the month when their mother had taken them to
the fresh carcass of an adult male bushbuck. The kill had been stashed
beneath a bush and, luckily for the leopards, not detected by any hyaenas.
For the next two or three days this trio fed upon the kill. On the last
day, two male elephants arrived on the scene and, although they detected
the presence of the leopards and smelled the rotting meat, stayed on
to eat the seeds of a nearby Camel's Foot tree. As curious young leopards
will, the two young sisters were soon stalking the elephants, this causing
the large pachyderms to chase them. At one time both youngsters were
up a dead tree staring into the eyes of one of the elephants. As with
the monkeys, they soon tired of this and went to join their mother in
the reeds of the nearby Sand River. Earlier in the month the Ngoboswan
Female was not so lucky with the carcass of another adult male bushbuck
which she had killed. Soon after she and the cubs had started to feed
upon the kill, two hyaenas appeared. Although the leopard saw them approaching
and had dragged the heavy carcass to the base of a large Jackalberry
Tree, she left action too late and bungled the attempt to secure the
kill. The hyaenas soon tucked in, devouring the carcass rapidly as the
leopards looked on. Eventually even the hyaenas had eaten what they
could and one of them picked up the remains and ran off with them, followed
by the Ngoboswan Female which then somehow managed to retrieve some
of these scraps. But the majority of the kill had been lost due to her
lack of decisive action. At another encounter with this trio, the Ngoboswan
Female was found with the remains of a duiker kill in a tree. The cubs
had moved off when they had eaten and a hyaena appeared on the scene
to harass them. Whilst the Ngoboswan Female was calling for them in
the reeds of the Sand River, she chanced upon a cane rat which she promptly
caught and, before the hyaena could snatch it, had added it to the tree
together with the remains of the duiker carcass. So far the Ngoboswan
Female has done well, proving a devoted mother and an effective hunter
and if all remains on course, her two daughters have an excellent chance
of reaching independence.
JULY 2000
NGOBOSWAN FEMALE
2 CUBS * 10 months
1 DAUGHTER * 31 months
Location: WESTERN MALA MALA
(8 confirmed sightings of the Ngoboswan
Female, 5 of these with both cubs, 1 with only one cub and one of the
cubs by themselves. No confirmed sightings of the older daughter)
As the cubs of the Ngoboswan Female grow and demand more food as well
as become more adventurous, so the sightings and the quality of these
sightings increases. During July the female appeared to be doing most
of her hunting close to the Sand River and several bushbuck fell victim
to her efforts. One of these kills, an adult male bushbuck, attracted
the attention of a young male lion but he was not able to claim any
of the meat. The leopards sought the safety of trees when he appeared.
The cubs' acceptance of the game-drive vehicles has meant much to their
mother which now also appears to be a great deal more placid when viewed.
Hopefully this will continue and the end result will be a Ngoboswan
Female completely oblivious of the presence of landrovers.
JUNE 2000
NGOBOSWAN FEMALE
2 CUBS * 9 months
1 DAUGHTER * 30 months
Location: WESTERN MALA MALA
(6 confirmed sightings of the Ngoboswan
Female,3 of these with both cubs. No confirmed sighting of the older
daughter)
There was good viewing of the Ngoboswan Female during June. Indications
are that both her and the cubs are spending more time on the eastern
bank of the Sand River, this since February or March when the flood
waters were at a consistently high level, so preventing regular access
from the western bank where they had been when flood waters had initially
risen. Although the Ngoboswan Female herself seems to prefer using the
large bridge to cross over the Sand River, it is not known if this is
also the route taken by her cubs. At one of the kills where both she
and the cubs were present on the eastern bank of the river, indications
were that the cubs might well have swum the river. The ongoing feud
between the Ngoboswan Female and the White Cloth Female was seen to
continue this month when both leopards were found within a hundred meters
of each other, both pacing and marking territory, but not seeing coming
to physical blows.
MAY 2000
NGOBOSWAN FEMALE
2 CUBS * 8 months
1 DAUGHTER * 29 months
Location: WESTERN MALA MALA
(8 confirmed sightings of the Ngoboswan
Female, 4 of these with both cubs, 1 sighting of her and only one cub
and 1 sighting of the two cubs by themselves. 1 confirmed sighting of
the older daughter)
During May there were some fine sightings of the Ngoboswan Female and
her two remaining cubs. The third cub which was abandoned probably died
in April. Careful viewing has certainly contributed to the two youngsters
behaving in a most relaxed manner around game-drive vehicles and it
can be hoped that this will help their mother which still shows a fair
amount of suspicion when viewed. Now that the cubs are growing rapidly
and will be requiring a more regular supply of food, it is quite likely
that they will be taken back onto the eastern bank of the Sand River.
For the Ngoboswan Female herself, this need to spend time on the eastern
bank is perhaps becoming more and more important as the White Cloth
Female, her old adversary, continues to blatantly use the area in her
absence. The single confirmed sighting of the nearly adult daughter
of the Ngoboswan Female was of this leopard in an area close to where
the female and her two cubs were lying up. No interaction was seen between
any of these leopards. It is known that the Ngoboswan Female's daughter
is trying to establish a territory north and west of that controlled
by her mother and indications are that she is trying to wrest at least
some of her mothers' domain for herself.
FEBRUARY/ MARCH/ APRIL 2000
NGOBOSWAN FEMALE
" 3 CUBS * 7 months
1 DAUGHTER * 28 months
Location: WESTERN MALA MALA
(11 confirmed sightings of the Ngoboswan
Female, 4 of these during early February with 3 of her cubs, 6 with
only two of these youngsters, one of one of the cubs alone and one of
her independent daughter)
For the Ngoboswan Female to have held onto all three cubs until maturity
would almost certainly have been a mission impossible. This was suspected
from the outset. What has been startling is the length of time she did
manage to look after them. When Mala Mala closed operations due to the
flooding in early February, there were regular sightings of all four
leopards and it was certainly evident that the female was having trouble
controlling all three. When the camp re-opened two months later, it
soon became evident that the Ngoboswan Female had only two cubs with
her. Tragically the missing cub was on the opposite bank of the Sand
River and, due to the strength of flow of the water, practically out
of reach. Towards the middle of April this youngster disappeared. However,
the remaining youngsters appear fit and well and their future looks
good. Perhaps the biggest challenge now facing the Ngoboswan Female
is keeping her neighbours out of her territory. To her west her daughter
is constantly nibbling, whilst to the south the Newington Female has
been more active than usual and on the eastern bank of the Sand River
the White Cloth Female has also been taking advantage of the Ngoboswan
Females absence. This month the White Cloth Female actually crossed
to the western bank of the Sand River, almost certainly via the bridge,
until she was deep within the territory of the Ngoboswan Female. The
latter responded immediately and the next day both leopards were seen
growling at each other. It could be expected that old boundaries should
be reaffirmed as the cubs of the Ngoboswan Female mature and start moving
with greater freedom and the level of the Sand River drops, allowing
for more than just one crossing point.
JANUARY 2000
NGOBOSWAN FEMALE
3 CUBS * 4 months
1 DAUGHTER * 25 months
Location: WESTERN MALA MALA
(9 confirmed sightings of the Ngoboswan
Female, 6 with her cubs, 1 of her independent daughter, this an aggressive
interaction with the Ngoboswan Female)
Some of the finest leopard news this month was that all three cubs of
the most recent litter born to the Ngoboswan Female is still alive and
well. These cubs were first seen when they were but a day old and not
again until the beginning of January when they were three months old.
Leopard cubs are usually kept well hidden until they start eating meat,
which is typically from about three months of age. This of course means
that there are potentially many deaths of cubs in these early months
that are never known about. For the Ngoboswan female to have raised
these cubs to the stage they are now is certainly a sign of her being
an extraordinary mother. Still, these are still early days and the Ngoboswan
Female is going to have a battle on her hands. Not only will the high
food demand from these three keep her busy, but she is also facing a
hostile territory challenge from her 2-year-old daughter. This young
female seems keen on gaining a foothold to the north and west of her
mothers' area of occupation and at the beginning of this game report
period the two were seen having an interaction. There was not physical
conflict seen and the bigger Ngoboswan Female chased her daughter into
the upper branches of a tall tree. When the younger leopard descended,
she sped off, only to encounter a young duiker which she promptly caught
and killed. The distress calls of the antelope brought the Ngoboswan
Female running after her daughter again, but when she was within a fifty
yards or so from her, she suddenly turned around and retreated, obviously
satisfied that the kill had occurred outside the limits of her territory
and that her area was once again - at lease temporarily - secure. Another
danger faced by the Ngoboswan Female would of course also come from
other predators. Shortly before she was found with her cubs, the Ngoboswan
Female was seen sporting a nasty looking gash on her shoulder. At the
same time, the 2-and-a-half year old son of the White Cloth Female was
also seen within the territory of the Ngoboswan Female, also with a
large cut on his lower back. These two leopards have been seen interacting
in the past and it may have been that both were wounded as a consequence
of yet another conflict. While the young male leopard would probably
be in the area with almost no territorial designs, he may well do harm
to the cubs if he chanced upon them. This would apply to any other large
carnivore, hyaenas and lions especially. So, although the cubs have
managed to survive so far, the worst is perhaps to be expected and one
or two could well die in the coming months - nonetheless?