Tag: Kruger

Watch: Small turtle shows lions who’s in charge of watering hole

The Africa lion is king of beasts, but a brave little turtle is not impressed. Watch as the turtle takes charge of its watering hole.

The Africa lion is king of beasts, but a brave little turtle is not impressed.

The accompanying footage shows a small turtle – more precisely a terrapin – swimming boldly up to a male and female lion in what initially seems a defense of its watering hole.

It’s worth watching to the end as the turtle becomes more emphatic with each encounter and the lions aren’t sure how to respond to the interruption of their important drinking time.

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The rarely observed interaction was captured by guide Reggi Barreto, 30, in the MalaMala Private Game Reserve in Greater Kruger Park.

Barreto told Latest Sightings: “I knew the lions would look for water to drink and we positioned ourselves in the perfect spot with the sunlight in our favor, ready for the sighting. What came next we did not expect – I was pleasantly surprised when the terrapin came out of the wallow towards the male and then the lioness.”

While the carnivorous terrapin might have been defending its territory, it’s more likely that the turtle detected blood on the facial hairs of the lions, which had just feasted on a zebra carcass.

Said Barreto: “It was an incredibly rare sighting for me to film – watching the terrapin approach the lions that had blood on their chins from the zebra. It seems as though the terrapin was actually more interested in getting some of that blood off the lions’ chins, as opposed to ‘chasing the lions away.’ ”

–Images courtesy of LatestSightings.com

Cheetah ambushed by leopard, but hardly overmatched

A tourist at South Africa’s Kruger National Park has captured rare footage of a leopard trying to ambush an unsuspecting cheetah.

A tourist at South Africa’s Kruger National Park has captured rare footage of a leopard trying to ambush an unsuspecting cheetah.

Both cats are remarkable predators: the leopard holding an edge in terms of weight and strength, but the cheetah possessing more speed than any other land mammal.

That sets the stage for the scene that unfolded recently in front of Thokozani Phakathi, who sent the accompanying footage to Latest Sightings and described the event as “an unforgettable encounter that I will cherish for as long as my mind, heart, body and soul are together.”

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dg0_HAm-w3g]

The video begins with the leopard sauntering alongside and upon a roadway, marking its territory as tourists watch in awe from their vehicles. At about the 1-minute mark the leopard seems to sense the presence of an approaching animal and lowers its crouch and plots a potential ambush.

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At 1:10 the leopard crouches deeper in the grass as the cheetah jogs into the picture. Phakathi said the young male cheetah had been calling out and seemed stressed, perhaps in search of a family member. The leopard, motionless behind a tree, waits until the cheetah is only yards away before charging.

Wrote Phakathi: “Just as the cheetah was a few meters away, the master of disguise pounced for a strike, the cheetah jolted with shock but accelerated and ran for his dear life.

“At some point, it was only the cheetah’s tale separating the two spotted cats, but the fastest [land mammal] on earth seized the moment to live up to his title and dashed off, escaping potential injuries or death as he was no match to that hefty fellow predator.”

The cheetah was too fast, but seemed to realize it had nearly walked into a deadly trap. When Phakathi saw the cheetah after the leopard had left the area “the cheetah was shaken and trembling like a leaf. He was even jumping in fear whenever tree branches were coming to contact with his legs or tail.”

–Images courtesy of Latest Sightings and Thokozani Phakathi

Leopard receives fright of its life at watering hole

The remarkable reflexes of a leopard were on display last week after it was startled by another leopard as it sipped from a watering hole.

The remarkable reflexes of a leopard were on display last week after the animal was startled by another leopard as it sipped from a watering hole.

The amusing footage, captured via motion-sensor camera outside a Hoedspruit Wildlife Estate residence in South Africa, shows the frightened leopard leap so suddenly that it frightens the approaching leopard back into the wilderness.

After the footage was shared to social media platforms by Latest sightings – Kruger, Gillian Leigh Soames, who lives at the residence, explained that the leopard cubs are 11-month-old siblings.

The scene was captured at night; the flashes viewers can see are from another infrared trail camera and invisible to critters that visit the watering hole.

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“It is pitch black out there at night and the animals do not see the flash at all,” Soames stated on Facebook, in response to viewers who wondered if the flashes might frighten the animals. (Some wondered if the flashes were caused by lightning.)

Overall, reaction to the video was appreciative.

“That is hilarious!” one viewer commented. “Just like regular kitties.”

“Oh my gosh, how high can a leopard jump?” another asked.

Hoedspruit Wildlife Estate is near Kruger National Park, one of Africa’s largest game reserves.

Soames, referred to by many as “South Africa’s Leopard Queen,” told For The Win Outdoors that the watering hole is on her property and that motion-sensor cameras are used monitor wildlife activity.

“This pond is in our garden,” she said. “We have leopards here at least twice a week.”

–Video and photos courtesy of Latest Sightings – Kruger and Gillian Leigh Soames