WHITE CLOTH FEMALE

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DECEMBER 2001

WHITE CLOTH FEMALE * 8 YEARS 3 MONTHS
1 MALE CUB * 14 MONTHS & 2 WEEKS
1 FEMALE CUB * 14 MONTHS & 2 WEEKS

Location: CENTRAL-WESTERN MALA MALA/ NORTHERN & CENTRAL FLOCKFIELD

(14 sightings of the female, 10 of these together with both cubs & 1 with only the female cub; 3 of the cubs alone)

As to be anticipated, the White Cloth Female and her youngsters provided some fine viewing this month. At the beginning of this game-report period, they were found along the lower banks of the Matshapiri with the carcasses of both an adult female impala as well as a baby impala up an Acacia tree. This kept the trio busy for two or three days. At the very end of the month, the cubs had been taken on quite a walk from one place of safety to another, when the White Cloth Female found a male cheetah with an adult male impala carcass. At least 40% of the kill remained and the cheetah was dispossessed of his meal. When the White Cloth Female found this prize, she had most probably only very recently left her already well-fed youngsters at some often-used rocks. The youngsters were soon summonsed to the kill which was later dragged to the base of a large Ivory Tree. When a hyaena arrived at the scene later on, the White Cloth Female was quick to hoist the carcass into the lower limbs.

Several days prior to this, however, the leopards had not been so alert and a hyaena had taken the still reasonably substantial remains of an adult female impala from them. The White Cloth Female had killed this impala the night before, fetched her cubs, but had then neglected to fully secure the kill. At one time she certainly looked towards some trees and dragged the carcass towards them, but then simply did not complete the task. When the hyaena arrived, the leopards were caught unawares and lost the kill. One fine sighting of this trio of leopards involved a meeting with the leopard which is probably the father of the cubs, the Rock Drift Male. The White Cloth Female and her two cubs were found strolling down a road towards the Sand River when they bypassed a large Marula Tree in which the Rock Drift Male was lying. When the Rock Drift Male saw the three leopards pass him, he gave a short, soft cough or grunt in their direction. The leopards stopped and stared towards him and the youngsters immediately started making small soft noises in reply, very similar to the sound often made when a female leopard returns to young cubs which may have been hidden in a lair. These soft expulsions of air are usually quite rapid and generally seem to be made when there is no tension between the animals communicating. The young female leopard was perhaps a fraction hesitant and did not go closer, but the young male went towards the Rock Drift Male, climbed the tree and rubbed himself against the bigger animal. There was no aggression directed towards the young leopard as can sometimes be expected. When this greeting was over, the White Cloth Female and her cubs carried on walking towards the river and the male leopard later descended and followed. The young male cub is now almost as bulky and tall as his mother and he uses this ever-increasing advantage to even greater effect to bully his way into getting the best food

. On one occasion when the White Cloth Female was seen taking her cubs to a freshly killed baby impala, the young male was first on the scene and even slashed at his mother with his claws and snarled viciously when she approached too closely. He then started feeding and it is doubtful that either his mother or sister had anything to eat from this particular kill. But all three leopards are really getting plenty to eat and the youngsters could not have asked for a better start to life than the one they are now getting. What they really need now is the luxury of staying with their mother for at least another 6 months so that they can have more time to learn the art of survival for themselves before finally being cast out into the world to fend for themselves.

NOVEMBER 2001

WHITE CLOTH FEMALE * 8 YEARS 2 MONTHS
1 MALE CUB * 13MONTHS & 2 WEEKS
1 FEMALE CUB * 13MONTHS & 2 WEEKS

Location: MALA MALA/ NORTHERN & CENTRAL FLOCKFIELD

(20 sightings of the female, 12 of these together with both cubs, 3 of the cubs on their own, 1 of only one cub alone)
The White Cloth Female and her cubs produced the most consistent leopard viewing of the month. All appear to be in superb condition, with the cubs maturing fast and becoming more independent by the day. All three leopards were seen many times on kills of various descriptions, but, as has been the pattern over the last few months, these meals are devoured in progressively shorter times as the cubs grow and their food supply increases. In order to keep up with their requirements, the White Cloth Female will have to work harder than ever before and this would of course mean making more and more use of her territory.

One sighting this month was of the White Cloth Female far up the Matshapiri River in an area thought to belong exclusively to the Hlabatini Female. There have been previous sightings of the White Cloth Female close to this area, but it is generally regarded as being way out of her usual haunts and a place she would visit only if really desperate for food. As it was, the trip probably proved unproductive (she encountered the large herd of buffalo and they chased her up a tree) and the following morning she was back with her cubs which had been left many kilometres further away. When found, all three leopards were sleeping whilst a hyaena was eating the remains of some or other kill. Judging by how thin the leopards were, it is quite likely that whatever had been killed had been taken by the hyaena before the leopards had managed to eat very much. The following day, however, the White Cloth Female was seen returning to this same area, calling her cubs as she approached. When the trio joined up, she took them to a young impala kill which had been hidden beneath a tree. Although still looking quite lean, the White Cloth Female had not yet fed upon the kill. The larger male cub (he's nearly as big as his mother now) promptly claimed first go at the carcass. Eight hours later the White Cloth Female was a kilometre or more away from this area and again on the hunt. Within minutes of encountering her, she killed yet another baby impala. This one she dragged to a grassy termite mound and ate it all by herself.

Over the course of the month the White Cloth Female was witnessed making several other kills, but perhaps the most fascinating of these was a series which showed just how versatile the leopard is, a feature of this predator which has made it such a success. All three leopards were found together with the young male eating a sub adult Vervet monkey whilst the White Cloth Female and her daughter lay close by, watching the other members of the troop above them and patiently waiting for the male to finish. Once he had completed the meal, the White Cloth Female started moving away, evidently on the hunt again. The message for the youngsters to remain behind had evidently been given and although they followed for a short distance, they soon settled down to patiently await their mothers' return. Not long after the White Cloth Female set out, she detected something of interest off the road and, following a scent, soon cautiously approached a termite mound. Again apparently using mostly her sense of smell, she moved closer and soon pounced. This time her victim was a baby jackal. After killing and eating the pup and finding none others available, the White Cloth Female continued on her way. Within a few minutes something else alerted her and again probably using smell, she tracked her next target, this time a male steenbok. With great skill and aided by the damp conditions and gusting wind, the White Cloth Female stalked, caught and killed the small antelope. The following morning she and the cubs were in the area feeding off the scraps.

OCTOBER 2001

WHITE CLOTH FEMALE * 8 YEARS 1 MONTH
1 MALE CUB * 12 MONTHS & 2 WEEKS
1 FEMALE CUB * 12 MONTHS & 2 WEEKS

Location: SOUTH-WESTERN MALA MALA/ NORTH-WESTERN FLOCKFIELD

(5 sightings of the female, 2 of these together with both cubs, 1 with only one cub, 3 of the two cubs on their own, 1 of only one cub alone)
Compared with previous months, there were relatively few sightings of this trio of leopards during October. In all likelihood, the White Cloth Female was hunting in one or more of the peripheral areas of her territory where chances of encountering her would be less. But the viewing was still good and all three leopards seem to have remained fit and healthy.

Perhaps one of the best sightings of these leopards took place when the White Cloth Female was seen catching an adult female impala. After finding a lean looking White Cloth Female sleeping in a tree close to the Sand River, she was followed as darkness fell and her hunting began. After half-an-hour of seemingly profitless trudging and just as it was turning really dark, she suddenly crouched down low and became alert - something had caught her attention. After doing a wide circle, she moved in and the prey was within forty or so meters - two impala. But things were not going to be easy. As she stalked around, the White Cloth Female came face to face with an elephant bull which was eating his way through some trees. The elephant sensed the leopard and for a brief moment looked set to chase her. For the White Cloth Female the choice was to run away and have the impala probably see her, or stand her ground and hope that the elephant would back off. She chose the latter option and the elephant soon moved off a few meters and continued breaking the trees and chewing away with loud crunching noises. These sounds must surely have helped the leopard and she slowly crept towards the two impalas. This continued for over an hour as the leopard tried to get close enough to her prey without being seen. Eventually conditions seemed good and she rushed in; the impala separated and ran, but not fast enough and the White Cloth Female caught one. After five or so minutes of clinical strangulation, the impala was dead and the leopard dragged it off towards a grassy termite mound and started to feed.

The following morning the White Cloth Female was there with her cubs. Although all leopards looked well fed and were chewing on scraps, much evidence pointed to hyaenas having stolen most of the kill. Some of the meat was still in the area and that afternoon a single hyaena arrived to appropriate even this. Although the leopards all took turns at intimidating the hyaena, it appeared almost to ignore them and ate most of the remains. Bits of bone and tiny pieces of meat were scattered all over the place and the three leopards spent quite some time sniffing around trying to find all they could. Eventually they gave up and wandered away from the scene, reasonably full but surely disappointed in having such a good meal taken from them. An impala of the size killed by the White Cloth Female should have lasted at least two days; instead it lasted one.

But the White Cloth Female has perhaps only herself to blame. Over the last few months she has consistently failed to tree kills of the size of the impala and has lost several of them to hyaenas. And its not as though she does not have the strength to carry the carcasses into trees - this she has done in the past. Rather, she seems to weigh things up and decide against it. But who knows what happened in the hours during which the scene was left. Perhaps the kill had been taken into a tree, but the cubs had knocked it out. Perhaps it was not a hyaena but a pack of Wild Dogs which had passed by the area and their sudden appearance was just too fast for the leopard to react. But since Wild Dogs are not really scavengers and the small pack size of the ones which did appear would have made them wary of the leopards, it is doubtful that they were responsible for the theft. All this aside though, the White Cloth Female could definitely be more energy efficient if she would only spend a fraction more effort in the securing of kills.

SEPTEMBER 2001

WHITE CLOTH FEMALE * 8 YEARS
1 MALE CUB * 11 MONTHS & 2 WEEKS
1 FEMALE CUB * 11 MONTHS & 2 WEEKS

Location: CENTRAL & SOUTH-WESTERN MALA MALA/ NORTH-WESTERN FLOCKFIELD

(18 sightings of the female, 4 of these together with her cubs, 1 of the cubs on their own, 1 of only one cub alone)
The White Cloth Female and her cubs provided superb viewing this month. As has been noticed as the two youngsters have grown in size, they spend less and less time with their mother, not because the mother cares any less for them, but because the demand for food has simply continued to grow. Not only will they eat more prey animals, but each item will be consumed that much faster, forcing the White Cloth Female to spend more time hunting and away from the youngsters. A good example of this happened at the beginning of September when the White Cloth Female was seen killing a Steenbok, a small antelope which would ordinarily last at least a full day for a leopard. In this instance, however, the kill was made in the evening and the White Cloth Female still had to go and fetch her youngsters to the carcass which had been secured in a tree. At daybreak, however, only scraps remained and the leopards headed off from the scene. Within an hour or two the cubs had already been left alone and the White Cloth Female was on the hunt once more - barely 16 hours after the Steenbok had been killed.

But the increasing hours of solitude can only benefit the youngsters. Not only will they become more and more comfortable with the absence of the their mother, but it will also give them more time to practice the art of hunting and survival - the honing of their instincts into skills.

Although at nearly a year of age, the two cubs are probably well on their way to survival. Nevertheless they are still vulnerable to certain things. This was seen most clearly during September when a young male leopard, the son of the Paradise Valley Female, chanced upon them when their mother was away hunting. The three-year-old male leopard pursued the youngsters with great determination and they were lucky to have escaped without injury. Quite what would have happened if this male had caught them cannot be known but he may well have killed them.

Young and nomadic recently-independent leopards pose a different sort of threat to territorial animals and their still-dependent youngsters - they compete for the same food. Not only would they kill prey animals inside the territories of the resident leopards - these technically not 'their animals' - but, particularly the bigger and more confidant young male leopards, would steal kills made by the territorial females. Such stealing erodes into food potentially available for the resident females and their cubs and although it will always occur, if there are too many of these nomadic young leopards passing through on their way to eventual maturity, the competition could become a critical factor in the survival of others. In fact, with the White Cloth Female and her sister the Kapen Female, it was thought that they outcompeted their mother, the Trollips Crossing Female and contributed to her loss of condition and eventual death. So as effective a killer as the White Cloth Female is, some things can be difficult to combat and her youngsters are still not totally secure.

AUGUST 2001

WHITE CLOTH FEMALE * 7 years 11 months
1 MALE CUB *10 months & 2 weeks
1 FEMALE CUB *10 months & 2 weeks

Location: CENTRAL & SOUTH-WESTERN MALA MALA/ NORTH-WESTERN FLOCKFIELD

(16 sightings of the female, 5 of these together with her cubs, 5 of the cubs on their own, 1 of only one cub alone)
The White Cloth Female appeared to work exceptionally hard to feed her cubs this month. Not only did she seem to struggle to catch prey, but also of that she managed to get hold of, her competitors often stole. Early on in the month the White Cloth Female was seen killing a sub adult male bushbuck, a kill worthy of several days of eating. Once the antelope had been subdued, the White Cloth Female wisely dragged it away and positioned it below a tree in which she could hide it if a hyaena of lions came along. Then she started to feed. However, after half-an-hour or so, when she had eaten a good quantity of the meat, she heard a hyaena approaching, following the trail left when she dragged the carcass along. But, in spite of the forewarning and the care she had taken to position the kill at the base of the tree, the White Cloth Female failed to get it up even though she had time for two attempts. Perhaps she panicked; who knows. She certainly has taken kills bigger than a sub adult male bushbuck up a tree. Anyway, the hyaena ate the vast majority of the carcass and the cubs went hungry.

The following evening the White Cloth Female was again found out on the hunt. Conditions were good. The night was dark and a slight wind acted to disguise much of the noise she may have made when creeping through the tall dry grass. Anyway, after failing to catch an alert bushbuck along the banks of the Matshapiri, the White Cloth Female continued on her way and soon detected a herd of impala grazing 50 meters or so off the road. With great stealth she crept up to them and then applied typical frustrating leopard patience to edge closer and closer. Unfortunately things dragged on too long and this is how the situation was left - the White Cloth Female within good striking distance of a herd of male impalas. The following morning, however, tracks of two lionesses headed off the road directly towards this area and not far away the two were found, fast asleep and looking well-fed. All indications were that they had stolen an impala killed by the White Cloth Female. In spite of all this, her cubs appear to be coping and using the time alone to hone their own skills. At one sighting when the cubs had been left alone for several days, the young male was seen with a dwarf mongoose which he must have killed. In typical mercenary fashion he ate the morsel himself and growled whenever he thought his sister was edging too close. As has been seen over the past few months, the two young leopards are becoming more and more independent of one another.

But the White Cloth Female has not had only failure. Towards the end of the game-report period she was found with her cubs on a young male impala kill which she had again failed to secure in a tree before going off to fetch her cubs. Fortunately no other predator discovered it before the trio returned. When most of the kill had been eaten, only then did the White Cloth Female take it into the leafy branches of a small Jackalberry Tree, only to discover that her own kind could be as bad as the others when it came to stealing.

The nearly three-year-old son of the Paradise Valley Female arrived unexpectedly, chased the White Cloth Female and her cubs off and ate the remainder of the kill. When the young leopards saw the male approaching they bolted. Although the White Cloth Female did not try to chase the larger young male off, she stayed around, perhaps to make sure that he did not go chasing after her cubs. Certainly a frustrating few weeks for the White Cloth Female. The son of the Paradise Valley Female was not seen with the White Cloth Female again during August, but he certainly remained in the area and this appeared to really influence her actions. On one occasion when the young male had been in the area, the White Cloth Female was seen moving most cautiously - sniffing every bush and treading as silently as possible, no doubt trying to make sure that she could avoid him. Ultimately the son of the Paradise Valley Female was behaving as any hyaena would and this must have been most annoying for the White Cloth Female.

JULY 2001

WHITE CLOTH FEMALE * 7 years 10 months
1 MALE CUB *9 months & 2 weeks
1 FEMALE CUB *9 months & 2 weeks

Location: CENTRAL & SOUTH-WESTERN MALA MALA/ NORTH-WESTERN FLOCKFIELD

(9 sightings of the female, 4 of these together with her cubs, 3 of the cubs on their own, 3 of only one cub alone)
This trio of leopards continued to provide fine viewing this month. As the cubs get older, so the White Cloth Female spends less and less time with them, probably because they need more and more food. Each kill is eaten up faster than the one before and so every new hunt starts earlier, increasing the time the young leopards spend alone. But in these times alone the cubs learn about life. Their natural instincts are called into play and as they get more adventurous, so they use these basic reactions and hone them into skills. As always, the longer they can still depend upon their mother to return and lead them to food, the more skilled they will become, this in preparation for the inevitable day of abandonment when they are finally on their own. But that day is still far away and much can happen. There were several sightings this month of one or other of the youngsters on their own. This too indicates a growing sense of independence and a solitary life so typical of the leopard. There were at least three sightings of the White Cloth Female killing an antelope or leading her cubs towards a kill. One of these kills turned out to be on the very northern fringe of the White Cloth Females' territory and, after a long walk, half the small antelope - a duiker - had already been consumed by the White Cloth Female. One wonders whether the effort of fetching the cubs and then leading them to the kill and away again is really worth the energy gained from such a small meal - obviously the female thinks so. And to add drama to things, the White Cloth Female had not secured the carcass in a tree, increasing the risk of losing it to hyaenas. But so far so good; food seems to be there to meet the needs and the probable father of the cubs, the Rock Drift Male, is strong and active in the area. One sighting of the White Cloth Female during July had her walking down the road literally minutes after the Rock Drift Male had passed by on the same route. The female simply must have known that the male had just been there, but certainly gave no hint that this influenced her plans. While the Rock Drift Male had moved with speed through this area and was last lost chasing impala through thick bush, the White Cloth Female proceeded with more caution, dedicatedly stalking bushbuck which he had just bypassed. In the end she caught one of these secretive antelope and took it into a tree before fetching her cubs to the scene.

JUNE 2001

WHITE CLOTH FEMALE * 7 years 9 months
1 MALE CUB *8 months & 2 weeks
1 FEMALE CUB *8 months & 2 weeks

Location: CENTRAL & SOUTH-WESTERN MALA MALA/ CENTRAL & NORTHERN-WESTERN FLOCKFIELD

(17 sightings of the female, 11 of these together with her cubs, 4 of the cubs on their own)
The White Cloth Female and her cubs provided most entertaining viewing this month, with the female finding the task of feeding two rapidly growing youngsters all the more difficult. Throughout the course of this game-report period, they were seen on several kills, although upon occasion all leopards seemed to go for great lengths of time between meals, the cubs patiently waiting for their mother to return to lead them to another meal. And upon occasion they would be moved from one area of security to another without being taken to a kill. Perhaps one of their most frustrating moments occurred when the White Cloth Female was found with a freshly killed sub adult male impala which she fed upon, but left lying at the base of a tree before setting off to fetch her cubs. At the beginning of the month she was seen doing a similar thing and getting away with it - she killed an adult female impala, dragged it into a thicket, fed upon it and then fetched her cubs for a two-day feed. On this second occasion, she joined with the cubs after only an hour or so's walk from the kill. She and the cubs immediately set off back towards the area, the cubs openly ecstatic at the prospect of food. En route, however, they were temporarily delayed when the youngsters, whilst cavorting around ahead of their mother, flushed a young scrub hare, which they chased. The nimble little hare outmanoeuvred the cubs which had taken up the chase, doubled back, but ran straight into the White Cloth Female. She easily caught the hare and gave it to the cubs. The larger male cub immediately took over and after dispatching of the prey, set about playing with it and then eating it. The young female cub tried briefly to join her brother at the kill, but was warned off when she approached too closely. Mother and daughter then waited patiently as the male cub tucked into the meal. Suddenly a hyaena arrived on the scene, evidently having been following the scent of the leopards, no doubt anticipating a carcass at the end of their journey. All three leopards saw the hyaena at the same time and as he rushed in, they all leapt for the same tall straight Tamboti Tree, the young male clutching the remains of the hare in his mouth. It was at this moment that the White Cloth Female did an extraordinarily brave thing. Realising that the tree was not wide enough to allow all three leopards to scamper up it (it was certainly strong enough but she would probably have dislodged at least one of the cubs), she turned on her back legs and catapulted herself from the tree and over the leaping hyaenas' jaws, landing safely some meters behind it. The cubs rocketed to the top of the tree and the hyaena turned to chase the White Cloth Female which easily outpaced it. Once these initial unpleasantries were out of the way, the hyaena skulked around at the base of the tree and the young female descended and joined her mother to patiently wait for the male to finish the hare. Some scraps did fall to the hyaena and by the time the hare had been completed, the White Cloth Female and her daughter could barely conceal their frustration at having to wait. But worse was to come. In the three or so hours away from the kill, another hyaena had chanced upon it and the leopards were treated with the sight of their food being wolfed down by their bigger and stronger adversary. They could just wait and hope that it would leave some scraps and perhaps next time the female would secure the kill. The White Cloth Female seems to have a real aversion to taking kills bigger than steenboks and duikers into trees; these small animals she hoists almost immediately, sometimes whilst the antelope is still dying in her jaws. Anyway, several days after this event, whilst her youngsters were waiting for her in the Matshapiri River, the White Cloth Female caught an adult female duiker and this she took into a Saffron Tree, the branches of which are not too friendly for manoeuvring anything around in. Nonetheless, the prey seemed secure and the leopards looked set to get a good meal. The following morning, however, there was not a scrap of the kill left and tracks indicated that mother and cubs were some kilometres away. What had happened? Had they lost the kill to hyaenas when one of the cubs tried to reposition the kill or had they indeed been a great deal hungrier than originally thought and had in fact consumed all of the kill in record time and left the scene. The following morning the leopards emerged, looking well fed, either still from the duiker kill or from another which their mother had made. But this seems to have been the pattern - feast or famine and the latter at times the result of negligence. Nonetheless, the leopards seem to be in good health and as long as this is maintained, the future looks good.

MAY 2001

WHITE CLOTH FEMALE * 7 years 8 months
1 MALE CUB *7 months & 2 weeks
1 FEMALE CUB *7 months & 2 weeks

Location: CENTRAL & SOUTH-WESTERN MALA MALA/ CENTRAL & NORTHERN-WESTERN FLOCKFIELD

(17 Sightings of the female, 8 of these together with her cubs, 4 of the cubs on their own)
This trio of leopards put on some fine performances during May. Both cubs appear to be in good condition, although the difference in size between male and female appears more noticeable every day. Surprisingly, the young female continues to show the least apprehension to vehicles and is by far the more adventurous of the two. Although the cubs are now drinking practically no milk and meat is by far the most important component of their food, the White Cloth Female seemed to struggle this month in providing them with a regular supply. There were extended periods when the young leopards would wait for their mother to return and then when she did, they would simply be escorted to another hiding place without going to a kill.

Just how long young leopards can survive without food is not known, but these two certainly went some days with nothing substantial to eat and appeared none the worse for the experience. But things have also been challenging and to give an example, here are some events of a day in the life of the White Cloth Female as witnessed this month. Towards the beginning of May, a lean looking White Cloth Female was found heading towards the reeds of the Sand River and for a while pursued cane rats, small creatures which no doubt provide a useful meal, but which are generally only actively hunted by young leopards or when nothing more substantial is on the cards. The White Cloth Female never managed to catch one and then went on to stalk a female bushbuck, taking more than an hour to approach within yards of the antelope before rushing in but failing to catch it. Fourteen hours later she was still on the prowl and again was seen to have luck pass her by as she stalked two male impala as they were fighting each other over territory. The impala rutting season is a time of easy kills for predators and fighting males are often so preoccupied with what they are doing that they pay scant attention to any approaching danger. When the White Cloth Female was again only yards off, something warned the impala and they noticed her. Again she had to pass by and continue on the hunt. In all fairness though, of the kills seen with the White Cloth Female and her cubs, there were certainly several which were not seen and given the fact that the White Cloth Female almost specialises in catching small antelope such as steenbok and duiker, such carcasses will be finished in but a day or so. On one occasion, when the White Cloth Female had taken the cubs to a new hiding place, some lions with cubs (the Eyrefield Pride) killed a zebra close to the area. This must have concerned the White Cloth Female and she reappeared and hastily lead the cubs back towards the area where they had been only a few days before, showing noticeable apprehension as they hustled past the area where the lions were sleeping.

APRIL 2001

WHITE CLOTH FEMALE * 7 years 7 months
1 MALE CUB *6 months & 2 weeks
1 FEMALE CUB *6 months & 2 weeks

Location: CENTRAL & SOUTHERN MALA MALA/ CENTRAL & NORTHERN FLOCKFIELD

(14 sightings of the female, 11 of these together with her cubs, 3 of the cubs on their own)
The fantastic viewing supplied by this trio of leopards during this game report period started with something of a scare when the White Cloth Female and one cub, the young female, were found in the Kapen River close to where two lions were sleeping. Tracks indicated that the lions had walked right past the leopards and the fact that the cub was high up in the top branches of a tree suggested that she had clambered up there to escape. Most concerning was the fact that there was no sight of the young male cub and, later that evening, when the White Cloth Female led her daughter to a pile of rocks further away from the area of the lions, there was still no sign of the missing cub. The female then returned to the area, calling, first softly and then with real volume and it became evident that she too was quite desperate. She even climbed the tree in which the young female had been sheltering to investigate whether her son had perhaps also used it as a hiding place. Then, when it appeared as if her efforts were exhausted, she heard a sound, jumped out of the tree and ran back the way she had come. Initially it was thought that she had heard the female cub which had perhaps followed her from the pile of rocks, but then it turned out that it was the young male which had been hiding in some other area. The relief on both leopards was quite evident. Then, as if nothing had happened, the White Cloth Female proceeded to take her son towards the rocks, this time using another route. After travelling some few hundred meters, the White Cloth Female saw some or other animal of prey, immediately abandoned the young male which then sought shelter on top of a grassy termite mound, and she proceeded to hunt. In the end she failed to catch whatever had attracted her attention, but what the entire performance had indicated was the incredible sense of survival so ingrained in the young leopards. As vulnerable as they appear, their instincts are so close to the surface that they will carry them through most critical situations.
Soon after this, the White Cloth Female proceeded to march her cubs from the centre of her territory to the north and then back through the centre and to the very south, all within 36 hours and seemingly without purpose. When found initially, she and the cubs were in the Matshapiri River. All leopards were walking upstream with real purpose and indications were that the White Cloth Female was leading them to some or other kill. However, from here they continued north and beyond what has been considered the northern boundary of the White Cloth Female. They were finally lost in the twisted trails of the Hlabatini Donga, the gully after which the Hlabatini Female was named. The next morning, however, their tracks emerged and went south, into the Matshapiri again and then further south, over the hills and towards the Kapen River. The thought at the time was that the White Cloth Female had taken them to a concealed kill, found it gone when they arrived, and then decided to get out and back into safer territory. But then, the following day, the three leopards were found south of the Kapen and moving south, finally coming to rest in thick bush in an area suspected as belonging to her sister, the Kapen Female. Again there was no obvious signs of any kill. Just why these route marches occurred is not known, perhaps they were of some educational purpose, but who knows. From then on life proceeded as could be expected with the mother leaving the cubs at some or other place of refuge whilst she went hunting, returning later to fetch them to whatever kill she had made and concealed. Towards the end of the month several fine days were spent with these leopards along the banks of the Matshapiri River whilst they fed upon a bushbuck kill. At this stage of their lives the youngsters are starting to suckle less and less and when they do try, there is often active discouragement from their mother. Good news for all three leopards is the fact that the Rock Drift Male, their father and mate respectively, is pushing even further north and east, exploring areas so that he now appears set on controlling the entire area also covered by the White Cloth Female. This will surely increase the degree of protection afforded to the cubs.

MARCH 2001

WHITE CLOTH FEMALE * 7 years 6 months
2 CUBS *5 months & 2 weeks

Location: CENTRAL & NORTHERN FLOCKFIELD

(10 sightings of the female, 2 of these together with her cubs, 2 of the cubs on their own)
Most of the sightings of the White Cloth Female were of her alone and on the hunt whilst her cubs were in some or other area of safety. All indications are that the two youngsters are fit and well and getting plenty to eat. There was one sighting of them on a carcass, this a young duiker which the White Cloth Female had killed close to the Matshapiri River.

FEBRUARY 2001

WHITE CLOTH FEMALE * 7 years 5 months
2 CUBS *4 months & 2 weeks

Location: CENTRAL & NORTHERN FLOCKFIELD

(6 sightings of the female, 5 together with her cubs, 2 of the cubs on their own)
The great news involving leopards this month was the 're-introduction' to the White Cloth Females' two cubs. These were seen at what might have been their first meat-eating experience when their mother took them to a duiker which she had killed. The fact that the cubs - suspected as being a male and female pair - paid hardly any attention to vehicles viewing them means that they have probably been concealed in areas regularly patrolled by game-drive landrovers and, although they have not been seen, the youngsters have come to accept these 'objects' as a benign part of their environment. Once the kill had been finished, the White Cloth Female lead them back towards an area of large granite rocks and steep-sided gullies - perfect refuge for them whilst she goes out hunting. Whilst taking them to this area, the leopards all walked right past the Rock Drift Male, the apparently proud father. At another sighting further north along the banks of the Matshapiri River when the White Cloth Female took her youngsters to the carcass of an adult female impala, she had her hands full as the young male cub constantly tried to reposition the kill, knocking it down several times, each time causing the female to haul it back up the tree. Fortunately for these leopards, the only hyaena in the area appeared to be a youngster and did not have the courage to make a good charge to steal the kill when it fell. Finally, when the scraps had been knocked out of the tree for the umpteenth time, the White Cloth Female did not even bother with securing it again. Of the two cubs, the already noticeably larger male cub is at present and perhaps expectedly the most precocious. However, if the smaller female is to hold her own, she will definitely have to adopt a more dominant position and the roles may well be reversed later. Towards the end of the month there was one final fine sighting of the White Cloth Female leading her cubs back to an area of refuge (the same used a month earlier) and to where the Rock Drift Male was waiting. His interaction with the cubs was remarkable in terms of leopard behaviour observed on Mala Mala, but perhaps expected of the Rock Drift Male which has regularly displayed great paternal care. With a dedicated mother like the White Cloth Female and a father of the calibre of the Rock Drift Male, the two cubs face a bright future and, aside from the unforeseen, many months of fine leopard viewing can be expected from this family.

JANUARY 2001

WHITE CLOTH FEMALE * 7 years 4 months
2 CUBS * 3 months & 2 weeks

Location: WESTERN MALA MALA/ CENTRAL FLOCKFIELD

(1 sighting of the female, none of her cubs)
The single sighting of the White Cloth Female saw her on a dedicated territorial patrol. When first found she was on central Flockfield and when left to herself, she was several kilometres further north. The following morning tracks indicated that she had continued even further north. The lack of sightings of this leopard has almost certainly been a result of her cubs which should only now be starting to eat meat. Once this happens, then she will be forced to take them with her and movement of the youngsters from one place to another should firstly be easier, and secondly, as they require greater quantities of food, become more necessary. All this of course assumes that the youngsters are still alive. Footprints of what were probably the White Cloth Female and at least one cub were seen this month.

MalaMala Game Reserve, PO Box 55514, Northlands, 2116, South Africa.
Telephone: + 27 11 442 2267 or 0861 SAFARI.
Facsimile: + 27 11 442 2318
e-Mail: reservations@malamala.com

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