These two little chaps have been quietly growing up under a massive rock in the southern most reaches of the reserve, unbeknownst to us, until now. A bit of luck, well, mostly guess work, led to the discovery of the den site a few weeks ago. Patience turned out to be the key, as they were rather nervous at first of the massive Land Rover parking on top of their rocky fortress. This was until we were lucky enough to be there when the mother arrived back at the den site, and introduced her youngsters to the vehicle. Since then, it has taken a few trips down south to get useable shots of these little guys, but it has been well worth the wait!

I fully understand that hyaenas are not everyone’s cup of tea, no thanks to Disney there, but look at these faces! How could you not give them a vote in the cutest cub throw down?

Check out the poll at the end, and cast your vote!

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Adding to the unusual events, he had not killed the little chap, but instead, stood over it, looking quizzically at it. The female leopard, having heard the cry for help from the little nyala, came rushing in to see if she could get a part of the meal on offer. She too put instinct aside, and watched it for a while.
By the time I managed to get into a position to photograph the madness, the nyala lamb made a mad dash for it, taking the two leopards with it, in what became a cruel game of cat and, well, nyala. These miniature chases went on for a while, but only allowed one photo opportunity. I did get a sequence that I am extremely proud of, given the terrain, and lighting! (Check the madness on Mating leopards kill nyala)
Eventually though, it all came to an end, when the female leopard laid down the business, ending the nyala’s misery.
Immediately after, the male came back to the kill, chased off the female, and took his prize. While he was feeding, she repeatedly tried to mate with him, but he took her advances as an attempt to steal his quarry, and met her with enough aggression to keep her at bay.

Now the two on one fight is not usually fair, but this little chap brings a few extra weeks experience to the table, aging comfortably at between six to eight weeks.

The little blighter was found completely by chance, while watching kudu feeding nearby the rocky den. The spotted fluff ball made a dash across the rocks, giving away the den site, and allowing us a unique photographic opportunity! When he realized he had been seen, he went for the tried and trusted, ‘stand still’ approach that leopards instinctively use. The near foolproof technique almost worked, but the human frontal lobe won the battle, and I managed to find him again.

Amazingly, he relaxed up to the vehicle almost immediately, and allowed for a good photo session. He moved cautiously around the large rocks for a while, and then very casually rested in some shade, right next to me!

So there we have it, the throw down has been…thrown down… Which ball of fluff takes the title of the cutest cub?

In part one of this showdown, we have, (said in ring side announcers voice) weighing in at a combined weight of eight pounds two ounces, hailing from a rocky outcrop in the north of the reserve… two of the cutest little lion cubs I have ever seen!
I managed to get a glimpse of these little chaps at between three and four weeks old! Unbelievable luck!
It all started with a sighting of the female, moving through some pretty tall grass. When she moved through an open patch, a couple balls of fluff were scampering around her feet. I managed a few glimpses through the grass, but no pics were on offer.
Being a seasoned pro, (the mother of the cubs is the oldest female in her pride, at roughly sixteen years), she felt comfortable enough around the vehicle to move out onto the road – and where mom goes, the cubs will follow! This produced an amazing opportunity to get some shots!

They were full of energy, and seemed to be enjoying their first outing into the real world, and in a world where danger lies waiting around every corner, there is a certain freedom afforded to the cubs of the top of the food chain!

In part two, we will have a look at the challenger…

I have been going on over the last few months,(The good luck continues; It took a while to find it) about the seldom seen pangolin, and how lucky I have been to see them, but the rumours seem to be losing momentum, as a lifetime fourth popped up!
This is the first one I have seen at night, surprising, as they are mostly nocturnal, and gave me the chance to try using the spotlight to light the scaly subject up.
It was great to see him roll up into his defensive ball, then poke his head out just a bit, to see which direction was the safest, followed by a charge for the tall grass.
The greatest challenge, however, was not the lighting, nor trying to find the head, but trying not to loose yourself in the moment, and forget that the lions, leopards and hyaenas do not stop prowling through the night, because you want to photograph a pangolin!
With a little help, I managed to stay on the right side of trouble, and have added a few shots to the pangolin library that I am proud of.

Now, finding servals is not easy, (see Slightly smaller spots.), but finding them in the day, is a near impossibility! This little lady, however, is going against all the textbooks! She is as relaxed as you like, and seems to be more active in the day, than at night. This makes photographing her a whole lot easier! It also helps, that if you are patient enough, she walks right up to you, and poses beautifully!
I was patient enough; she posed beautifully!

At one point, she smoothed past a LBJ, (little brown job – a term for an unknown bird {turned out to be a Cisticola}), and I thought I was in for the shot of a lifetime, (see the serval flying through the air, bird in claws), but after a quick look, she decided to keep at the mice, her meal of choice. She did catch one or two, but in a scrappy fashion, (read: No photos), not the usual glamorous leap they are famous for. I will keep trying for that shot!

I will continue hanging around the areas where she has been seen, as this treat might not last forever. Whatever happens, I will definitely let you know!

It is a very uneventful, emotionless affair, with the little blighter being dropped into the dry winter grass in a slump of buffalo and afterbirth.
The rest of the herd didn’t even break rhythm from their cud chewing to take notice of the little fella as he joined the team.

We all know that the lions enjoy a good buffalo every now and again, and our newbie, by default, instantly became target number one! The trick to beating this unfortunate start, is to get up and moving as quickly as possible. Like a heavyweight boxer after taking a good right, the fourteen minute old buffalo calf wobbled around trying to find his legs. No more than two and a half minutes later, he was able to follow his mother! This was an amazing a feat as the actual birth! It was a solid effort from the wide eyed young gun, as his journey from cute, young calf to grumpy old male began.

Making baby leopards is a complicated affair. Firstly, leopards are solitary animals, and although they do meet up from time to time, there is always a lot of hissing, growling and general hating. Secondly, the male has a barbed penis, enough to cause any relationship to struggle… What this means is, when leopards mate, there is an explosive reaction after each session. Great to photograph!

I spent a lucky day with just such a couple, and witnessed the passionate sexcapades.
After each session, the female does her level best to smack the living daylights out of the male, (remember the barbed penis), and he tries his best to get out of the way of said claws! The result: a series of images I am quite chuffed with, and a few fresh scars for the young lover!