In a property that produces a wildlife spectacle around each sandy bend, it often requires faith and a sense of exploration to meander south to a land that doesn’t lay claim to the same density of animals as its more northern reaches. It’s a place teaming with less visited creatures, a home to the extraordinary, and demonstrates the original African adventure. Charleston, the most southern property of MalaMala, is a good hour’s drive from Main Camp, and is the largest of the five farms that comprise MalaMala. Littered with unexplored areas and vast blocks of land, it is a network of game trails...

This old female leopard has often been found on the western bank of the Sand River in the latter part of 2013. She is undoubtedly the oldest leopard seen this year, and her appearance and hunting tactics prove it. Her scarred face, tattered ears and worn down teeth are a sure sign of old age. Several months ago, ranger Nic Moxham witnessed her kill a white-tailed mongoose in broad daylight. The elderly leopard spent hours trying to lick all of the meat from the small carcass. More recently, rangers watched her kill four banded mongoose within a minute. Just after her series of kills, she lay down to...

This November marks the Jakkalsdraai female leopard’s 14th Birthday. As one of the oldest female leopards on MalaMala, her relentless and indomitable attitude is remarkable. Last year, ranger Gary Hill witnessed her take down two impala rams  simultaneously during the annual rutting season, and this year we watched her stand her ground as the Charleston lion pride ambushed her and a duiker kill in a tree. Recent sightings included interactions with the Son of the Dudley Female 2009 on the eastern bank of the Sand River in Charleston. She lay on a dead branch while exchanging...

Months ago we received news from an ex-MalaMala ranger informing us that the Campbell Koppies female leopard had died. These reports can often be premature assumptions, and it was important to confirm that this news was accurate before releasing a statement. Although the Campbell Koppies female has not been viewed regularly on MalaMala Game Reserve for some time now, we owe her a few words in celebration of her life, observed and documented by guests and rangers for a period of thirteen years and nine months. In September 1999 her mother, the Ngoboswan female (a mistress of the Rock Drift male, also...

A hair-raising leopard interaction here at MalaMala shows the Princess Alice Pans male leopard fighting the Emsagweni female leopard over a young male impala carcass. What took place over the course of the morning and early afternoon was a series of interesting events. The West Street male leopard was found with an impala carcass in a Natal Mahogany near West Street Bridge late in the morning. He fed on the carcass contently before the presence of the large Princess Alice Pans male scared him off the scene.  Rangers followed up that afternoon and found the Princess Alice Pans male and the carcass...

Airstrip male The Airstrip male leopard has sustained an injury to his left eye. We presume this was as a result of an aggressive encounter with the Marthly male leopard. The photograph shows the injury clearly. At first glance it would appear that he cannot see through that eye, however, what you see is the inner membrane or inner eyelid, also known as a nictitating membrane. This eyelid, apparent in all cats, plays an important role in maintaining the surface of the eye. The photograph indicates that both outer and inner eyelids are badly bruised, causing the eye to appear shut. Upon closer...

The West Street male leopard, by ranger Pieter van Wyk The West Street male was born in April 2009 to the Ravenscourt female. He grew up to our west and was first viewed on MalaMala in mid 2011. He has since made the property his home. During his time here he’s had to keep a relatively low profile, tiptoeing on the outskirts of three different territorial males’ territories; the Airstrip male, the Princess Alice Pans male and the Bicycle Crossing male. His brief encounters with these three large males saw him running for the hills. He was also on the receiving end of confrontations...

The Newington male leopard mated with the young Emsagweni female. And a very short courtship it was! After chasing the Emsagweni female away (shortly after a single copulation), the Newington male spent the rest of the afternoon and evening waiting patiently for a meal beside a warthog burrow. Eventually, patience prevailed as he managed to catch a large female warthog as she attempted to escape from the burrow. Warning: Sensitive viewers should not press play, as this video clip shows the moments just before the warthog completely surrenders. For over a month we have had no sign of the Tamboti...

Recently there has been a lot of talk between rangers regarding the movements of the Bicycle Crossing male. Out of all the dominant male leopards currently on MalaMala, the Bicycle Crossing male is the oldest and it is he who has reigned over his respective territory the longest. Born in February of 2002, he has stood the test of time and has done battle over the years with some of the most notorious leopards that have roamed our property (such as the late Emsagwen male), and he has outlived most of them. His known offspring that can currently be seen on MalaMala include the Airstrip Male, Charleston...

The Kikilezi Female and the mystery of her cubs After a month of expecting the Kikilezi female to reveal her sixth litter of cubs, we now suspect they may have been killed by the Marthly male roughly three weeks ago. Intertwined with the mystery of her cubs’ whereabouts, was the battle between two of our largest leopards – as two dominant males began what would be a series of raw and extremely intense physical interactions. Marthly Male and Airstrip Male interaction The day began a successful sighting the Airstrip male in the vicinity of Picadilly triangle, where he appeared to be doing his...

The West Street Male was found late in the afternoon, feeding on the scraps of what looked like the remains of a young bushbuck kill. It didn’t take long for him to finish off the carcass, and before we knew it he was on the go again and we lost sight of him as he headed down to the river. The following morning the West Street Male was found roaring in the middle of the Flockfield Lookout. He was “giving it horns”, as he continues to consider the area under his ownership. When we traced the sound of the deep and confident roar we heard, we were expecting to find the Airstrip Male or the Bicycle...

The Tamboti female is arguably the most photogenic leopard on MalaMala, and in recent times she has become even more sought after by photographers and non photographers alike. Her first litter has had everyone ‘going bananas’! For the moment she is still keeping her two cubs just to the west of our property, and only leading them onto MalaMala when she’s made a kill – the three of them returning west as soon as they’ve consumed their meal. Perhaps she feels safer there. We recently had a great sighting that went like this: Tracks of a female leopard and two cubs coming...

Last week surprised us with two pairs of mating leopards. The Airstrip male was found mating with the Kikilezi female in the rocky areas of Campbell Koppies. The Airstrip male’s father, the Bicycle crossing male, was located in the Tamboti Thickets, mating with the ever elusive Flockfield Female. This was the third recorded sighting of the Kikilezi female and Airstrip male mating over the last 4 weeks.  During the previous two courtships, the Airstrip male showed little interest as he ignored the Kikilezi female’s attempts to mate after only one or two days. In true style of a dominant male...

Born: October 2000 Mother: White Cloth female Father: Rock Drift male or ‘Tjololo’ Litters: 2005 – 2 cubs – independent daughter 2008 – 1 cub – independent son 2011 – 2 cubs – 1 female currently dependent The Matshipiri female is yet another well-known leopard of MalaMala, and progeny of the famous ‘Tjololo’. She was born in October 2000 to the White Cloth female. The Matshipiri female had a twin brother that reached independence, but that disappeared soon thereafter. His status is unknown. Her first litter produced an independent daughter that moved off the property. Next,...

This week two female leopards have earned themselves a name, and a place among the rich heritage of the leopards of MalaMala. Both females have been around for some time, and have been providing consistent viewing on the property. The Emsagweni Female The daughter of the Kikilezi female was born in December 2009, in a litter of three. Her father is believed to be the Emsagwen male, who was a powerful male that mysteriously vanished in 2011. The Emsagweni Female’s new name is adopted from a road that runs through a core area where she is establishing her territory, and it is fitting that the...

Born: April 2006 Mother: Western female Father: Bicycle Crossing male The mother of this leopard is the Western female, who is also known as the ‘Maxabeni female’. She has had a long career, yet has struggled to raise cubs to independence. The Hogvaal Male is yet another leopard to be sired by the well-known Bicycle Crossing male. The Hogvaal male will be turning seven years old in 2013. He has become a prime specimen, and has matured well since we featured him in July 2012 as a newly named leopard of MalaMala. He is the older brother to the Newington male, who is becoming territorial in...

Date of Birth: December 2000 Mother: Tavangume Female Father: Wallingford Male This leopard is a huge specimen, and must surely rank as one of the biggest of the leopards that roam the Sabi Sands. His tracks could even be mistaken for those of a lioness, if not closely inspected. He was born in the western parts of Sabi Sands to a mother and father that we are not familiar with. He was previously known as “the large male leopard from Sparta”, and is otherwise known as the “Camp Pan male” or “Xmobonyane”. The core territory of this leopard lies to the west, although he is frequently seen...

Born: June 2006 Mother: Dudley female Father: Bicycle Crossing male In June 2006, the Dudley female gave birth to a litter of two male cubs. When the cubs were still young, they – and their mother – were feeding at a kill, which was sniffed out by hyenas. Confusion ensued, and the cubs were separated from their mother. The Dudley female managed to locate one of her cubs and she successfully raised him to independence. He is now known as the Charleston male, and is territorial in the southern parts of the property. The Newington female, the grandmother of these two cubs, happened to be in...

Date of Birth: December 2009 Mother: Kikilezi female Father: Bicycle Crossing male General: Born in a litter of three, her two siblings died at a young age. She was forced into independence by her mother in March 2011. In October of the same year, with her instincts of motherhood running high, she followed the mating pair of the Airstrip male and the Tamboti female for the duration of their courting. In May 2012 she was seen in a serious fight with the Airstrip male, who did not want to mate with her. The altercation is probably due to the fact that she was still too young, and the male knows that she...

Date of Birth: January 2007 Mother: Campbell Koppies female Father: (old) Gowrie male Litters: 2010 – unknown number of cubs – male cub died at around 6-8 months old This female leopard was previously called the daughter of the Campbell Koppies female 2007 and is not to be confused with the (old) Mlowathi female that passed on many years ago now. She is almost exclusively seen around the Mlowathi River system and further to the west. The majority of her territory lies to the north, and there must be intricate arrangements with her mother and her older sister (the Ostrich Koppies female) as all of...

Date of Birth: October 2004 Mother: Campbell Koppies female Father: (old) Newington male Litters: 2009 – 2 Cubs – died at young age 2010 – 2 Cubs – recently independent daughter General: Also known as the ‘Ripape’ in other areas, the Ostrich Koppies female was born to the Campbell Koppies female in October 2004. Her father was the now deceased Newington male, not to be confused with the (new) Newington male, who earned his name in May 2012. She was a dominant force from early on in her career as an adult, and forged a territory between the Mlowathi and Matshipiri Rivers. She placed...

Date of Birth: November 2007 Mother: Ngoboswan female Father: Bicycle Crossing male Litters: None General: The Tamboti Female has struggled to produce any cubs despite numerous attempts. One of the first instances that we recorded her mating was in May 2011. It was an unbelievable event. The Airstrip male was mating with the Western female, and the Tamboti female had been attracted to the area. The Western female was tolerant of the young Tamboti female’s presence, and the two females took turns to mate with the Airstrip male! This behavior is very uncommon and has scarcely been documented. The...

Date of Birth: October 2001 Mother: Ngoboswan female Father: Newington male. This was interesting at the time, since this young male was by no means the dominant force in that area. It is almost certain that the courting was successful as shortly after they mated, the Ngoboswan female was quick to step up her efforts to get her two old daughters – the Campbell Koppies female and her sister – out of her territory. Litters: 2006 – 2 Cubs – Son of Kikilezi female 2008 – 2 Cubs – Son of Kikilezi female 2009 – 3 Cubs – Daughter of Kikilezi female 2012 – 2 Cubs – Currently one...

Date of Birth: September 1999 Mother: Ngoboswan female Father: (original) Tlebe Rocks male or Rock Drift male Litters: 2004 – 2 Cubs – Ostrich Koppies female 2007 – 1 Cub – Daughter of the Campbell Koppies female 2009 – 3 Cubs – died at a young age 2009 –? Cubs – died at a young age 2011 –? Cubs – unknown survivors General The Campbell Koppies female, known as ‘Ntima’ in the north, was born to the famous Ngoboswan female in 1999. She had a brother that was killed in the floods of 2000, and a sister who also reached independence. She successfully raised her first two litters to...

Date of Birth: December 1997 Mother: Ngoboswan female Litters: Unknown General This female is also known as the ‘Vomba’ female. The result of The Daughter of the Ngoboswan females’ litters is unknown, since she spends much time to our west and is seldom seen. At her age, it is likely that she has produced many litters. We know of two of her female offspring that have visited the old domain of their grandmother over the years. One was born in 2006, the other in 2008. They are known as the ‘Tutlwa’ and ‘Mashaba’ females. The latter is seen on the odd occasion on Marthly where she has...

Although no longer with us, the Ngoboswan female still has offspring that are viewed at MalaMala. Date of Birth: December 1992 Date of Death: April 2010 Mother Unknown. Believed to have been the Tugwaan female (1984-2000), but this is not confirmed. Litters 1997: 1 Cub – Vomba Female 1999: 3 Cubs – Campbell Koppies Female 2001: 3 Cubs – Kikilezi female 2005: 2 Cubs – Son of Ngoboswan female 2007: 2 Cubs – Tamboti female General The Ngoboswan female was first seen on the property as a nervous leopard of around four years of age. This large and powerful leopard, with her rich golden coat, will...

In this post we focus on three young leopards that are poised to make a standing among the male leopard hierarchy on the property. These three youngsters have been around for a while now, and although it may still be some time until they mature and are able to compete with the stalwarts, it makes for an interesting topic to reflect on the different paths they have taken to independence and the strategies involved in staking their claims to a territory. None of these leopards are truly territorial for the time being. This implies that they do not actively scent mark or roar to advertise an area which...

The leopard dynamics of MalaMala make for interesting reading. We have been able to document the ancestry of these special creatures over the past few decades, with the result that we have records of all the leopards that move through MalaMala. Last month we had a number of leopards that earned themselves the privilege of being named. This implies that the leopard has established itself on the property, and is regularly viewed. We have named quite a few new male leopards. These are mostly young males that are cashing in on the fragments of the large territory that the Emsagwen male left behind after he...