The Vutomi male leopard has been a part of the Western Sector for just under two years. His mother (Basile) has done a good job at raising him up to this point, but as of a couple of months ago, she’s decided that it’s time for her only son to begin his journey of independence. Even though she is still tolerating him, it is no longer cosy between the two.

Leopards are solitary animals, which means that their sole focus is on spreading their own genetics and replacing “themselves” in the ecosystem. Therefore, once cubs reach a certain age, their parents don’t really want them in their territory anymore as they can become competition. This applies especially to male offspring.

Vutomi’s father (Euphorbia) has a very large territory, but is also slowly but surely growing tired of his son and will start pushing him out.

Vutomi’s future is not clear as of yet, but for now he is hanging around the north western part of the reserve in his father’s territory. Time will tell where he ends up, but personally I believe his future looks bright! I’m very excited to see how he tackles this next chapter of life in the Sabi Sand.

Here is a picture of him at a recent sighting.

It is early morning and we are driving down to the Sand River looking for leopard sign when all of a sudden, the unmistakable sound of a Vervet monkey’s alarm call echoes down the river.

Pro tip: When tracking or looking for predators, listening to the alarm calls of other animals can steer you in the right direction.

We immediately headed toward where the calls were coming from, because Vervet monkeys have brilliant eyesight and are always on the lookout for danger. In this case: A leopard!

After a short while, we found the monkey sounding the alarm, and started looking in the direction he was staring in. Sitting in a tree, this fellow had a better view of the leopard disappearing into the reeds before we could properly see it.

But, the unmistakable spotted tail with a white tip assured us that this was no foolish “monkey business,” but rather, a helping hand.

We’ve been incredibly fortunate this past month to witness numerous sightings of our favorite cheetah mother and her three sub-adult cubs. Two of these encounters truly highlighted the immense challenges of being a mother cheetah in the Sabi Sand.

During our first sighting, this lovely female and her youngsters faced a serious threat from a pack of hyenas. They had to scramble to escape, and in the chaos, one of the cubs was separated. Thankfully, after a tense period of calling, the family was reunited once the dust settled.

The very next morning, we were lucky enough to find her just as she made a kill on an adult female impala. As her youngsters began to drag the kill to a more secluded spot, one of our trackers spotted a large male leopard, Euphorbia, observing the situation from a nearby termite mound, out of sight of the cheetahs. He then slowly and methodically approached the kill and proceeded to chase the cheetah family off their hard-earned breakfast.

In that moment, the mother had to make a crucial choice: A meal or the safety and survival of her young. With a swift call, the youngsters scrambled to safety while the mother bravely attempted to lure the leopard away, hoping to reclaim the kill. Unfortunately, this almost put her in considerable danger, and she ultimately chose to abandon the kill to Euphorbia.

It’s clear that being a mother cheetah in this environment is incredibly demanding, but we are relieved that they all survived these challenging encounters.

While growing up, some of my fondest memories of the Kruger and surrounds was sitting in a large herd of buffalo. I always remember following a huge dust cloud and, as you got closer, you would hear the distant calls and sounds of the buffalo.

We have been blessed with a large herd of about 500 buffalo in the area for over a month now and it has supplied us with many spectacular sightings.

As you can imagine, a herd of this size attracts lots of attention from predators.

While sitting amongst the herd a few days ago, it felt as if the earth was shaking when a sudden mass of buffalo started running. Bushes and shrubs got trampled as we realised that something must be in the area.

Investigation revealed a familiar silhouette standing, watching the buffalo: The one and only Ravenscourt! He must have heard the buffalo and come to see if there were any stragglers at the back of the herd.

The Mhangene Pride also spend a lot of time tormenting the herd, trailing at the back – searching for their next target. This supplies numerous exciting sightings for our guests, watching the pride trail, stalk and chase the large herd.

“Lions can sleep an average of 16 to 20 hours a day,” is one of the more commonly used bits of trivia guides call upon during a lion sighting.

However, it looks like the 2 Plains Camp Males don’t have much time for rest, as their time spent in any one part of their territory seems to be very limited these days. Their territory has expanded to the point that they are patrolling further than ever and this means that they need to work even harder to keep other males out.

When these two massive males are on a straight trajectory back into the Western Sector, you can almost feel the buzz of excitement as all the guides start getting ready to show their guests “The Kings of the West.” Then, after putting on a showcase of regality and power for a few days, they will leave to patrol other areas that are out of our reach. If we get lucky, they find the Ximungwe or Othawa pride and make a kill, extending our time in the Kings’ presence.

With their packed patrolling schedule, we need to be more appreciative of the moments we get to spend watching these powerful males. We are incredibly lucky to witness the impact they are having on the lineage of lions in the Sabi Sand Nature Reserve. (For generations to come!)

What a month it has been for us at Leopard Hills. The African wild dogs are still denning in the area and we are excited to tell you that there are 10 puppies creating some once-in-a-lifetime sightings for our guests.

If you’re interested in experiencing an awe-inspiring South African safari, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with our reservations desk at book@leopardhills.com.

Alternatively, click here and make use of the quick and seamless online booking process and start planning your ideal vacation today.

We look forward to welcoming you to Leopard Hills Private Game Reserve.