Last Cub...

I returned from leave to find out that all the cubs have now been killed by the Mapogo male lion who has come back to the West after an abscence of a few years. He has rejoined the coalition of 5 males and knowing that he is not the father of any of these cubs, he has snuck around knocking the poor youngsters off 1 by 1.

This was one of the final images I took of the last surviving youngster a few weeks ago... a tired face that captures the story. He was briefly resting on a termite mound as his mother frantically traversed her whole territory trying to avoid the rampant male who would not rest until all the cubs were out of the way. A valiant effort by the lioness but he got his wish and all the females are now back in oestrus or pregnant!

Leopards!

A few Leopard shots are long overdue!

This female Leopard is called Hlabankunzi, (Shangaan word for Torchwood tree and an area she frequents alot). She has successfully raised her first litter of 2 cubs to over 7 months already, a remarkable effort for a first time mother. She is seen frequently around the lodge area which is at the core of her territory. Some pics of her hunting and resting in the dappled light with one of her cubs after a meal.

























This territorial male is called Tegwaan (Shangaan for Grey Heron and an area he frequents alot) and is the father of the cubs. He is seen much less often as he roams a huge territory and is always on the move as in this pic when he was marking an calling.

Eyes on the back of his head!

We found this brownish orange coloured Flap Necked Chameleon at the lodge, he kept his eye on me while I took a few photos. This colour form is not very common, they are usually green! He was this colour the whole time, so it wasn't a colour change change because of his stressed mood with us being there. It could have been related to the surroundings, temperature, time of year.

This is a big male, you can see the big occipital flaps on the back of the neck.