December 2009
NGOBOSWAN FEMALE +/- 16 ½ YEARS
SOUTHWESTERN MALAMALA, NORTHWESTERN FLOCKFIELD
(5 sightings)
She is reaching the final stages of her remarkable life, the signs are finally starting to show and she is winding down. She has stopped scent marking and she hasn’t been seen in the vicinity of west street bridge in ages. A remarkable female and a remarkable legacy she will leave but lets hope its not to soon that she departs this world.
November 2009
NGOBOSWAN FEMALE +/- 16 ½ YEARS
SOUTHWESTERN MALAMALA, NORTHWESTERN FLOCKFIELD
(4 sightings)
A large reason for the lake of sightings of this mature and established female is due to the rain, thicker bush and an abundance of long grass to hide away in. She is feeling a lot of pressure on her territory with her daughter scent marking and trying to establish herself and lay claim to parts of her territory and then her older daughter the Kikelezi female also putting pressure on from the north the Ngoboswan female must be feeling it. The few times she has been seen age is starting to catch up with her. She is a very successful leopard and although she is still a very successful hunter she has lost condition and is not looking as good as she was 6 months ago. However with the baby impalas around as and easier source of food this will help her, but one does get a feeling like with the Newington female that the time of her reign is coming to and end, but time will tell if the Ngoboswan female can beat the age clock and continue on as a great leopard.
October 2009
NGOBOSWAN FEMALE +/- 16 YEARS
SOUTHWESTERN MALAMALA, NORTHWESTERN FLOCKFIELD
(7 sightings)
A very quiet month for this female, she seems to have slowed down significantly in the recent months, age perhaps finally catching up to her. Still looking healthy she is however showing signs of aging, her face is looking tatty especially her ears, her lip on her bottom jaw is losing its elasticity and her general demeanour is that of a cat aging. On a brighter note she still is giving guests a spectacular insight into leopard behaviour, as she is still one of the most relaxed leopards at Mala Mala, allowing us into her world has been a privilege and many people have watched her raise cubs, hunting, fighting, and mating. Lets hope she survives for many months to come, as it will be a sad day at Mala Mala when she eventually passes on.
September 2009
NGOBOSWAN FEMALE +/- 16 YEARS
SOUTHWESTERN MALAMALA, NORTHWESTERN FLOCKFIELD
(11 sightings)
She has become less territorial over the last few month allowing her daughter to freely scent mark throughout her old territory and even allowing the Kikilezi female her offspring from 2001 to roam unhindered throughout the her range. An interesting sighting at the beginning of the month had her showing up at a bushbuck kill on the eastern floodplain close to main camp, an area she hasn’t been for almost 8 years. She continues to feed her daughter who is now approaching two years in age, who should have left the nest nearly six months ago. This behaviour is most peculiar and lends itself to the theory that she is trying to keep this cub for as long as possible because she knows its will be her last. The daughter only to happy to be spoon-fed mills around the sand river waiting for that familiar grunt when she knows dinner has been secured. The Ngoboswan female has also lost a lot of kills this month to the son of the Dudley female and her old sparring partner the bicycle crossing male, one sighting had her the two males her daughter and the Kikilezi female around the base of the sausage tree at Flockfield camp all competing for an impala carcass she had stashed in the branches. The female lost out quickly to the bicycle crossing male while her daughter was fighting with the Kikilezi female over territory, the son of the Dudley female the ever present scavenger just snuck in a lay at the base of the tree waiting for scraps to fall out. Lets see what happens in the future as this mother leopard of Mala Mala slowly loses her grip over the land.
August 2009
NGOBOSWAN FEMALE +/- 16 YEARS
SOUTHWESTERN MALAMALA, NORTHWESTERN FLOCKFIELD
(11 sightings)
Still with a great presence on Mala Mala she continues to live between west street bridge and Rattrays camp. She does however look to be slowing down and there are signs of her aging. During the month she also was seen on many an occasion to call out her independent female offspring and lead her back to a kill of some sort. A very interesting theory could be that she doesn’t yet want to get rid of this offspring, as she might know that it is her last litter and therefore is trying to hold on to her. The daughter will of course benefit from the free meals but in the long run might suffer if she doesn’t learn to live on her own. She might also leave her territory to the daughter and so wait around a little longer to make sure no other female tries to take over. In the next couple of months the full story will reveal itself to all watching this magnificent feline.
July 2009
SOUTHWESTERN MALAMALA, NORTHWESTERN FLOCKFIELD
(11 sightings)
Two less sightings of her this month than last. Still seeing her in the same areas as last month, with an ever so slight shift to the east. Most sightings she appears to look rather thin, but it still does not stop her from catching prey. The only hindrance she may be experiencing is treeing her kills. Twice it was witnessed where hyaenas stole her kill, one was an impala and the other a baboon. With the baboon her daughter was present and they were able to retrieve half the carcass.
June 2009
SOUTHWESTERN MALAMALA, NORTHWESTERN FLOCKFIELD
(13 sightings of female)
Still showing no sign of slowing down she has ejected her cub. She is in great condition and not having to provide for the cub will make her winter months easier. During the month she was found on three kills that the next day her daughter sniffed her out and joined in the feeding. The Ngoboswan female allowed the cub to feed while she patiently waited her turn. Much aggression was witnessed during these sightings and although the female allowed her cub to feed she didn’t want her around taking food from her mouth. In the coming months she is more than likely going to shift her territory slightly to accommodate her daughter, let’s hope she shifts up river and not west off the property.
May 2009
1 FEMALE CUB 1 YEAR 7 MONTHS
SOUTHWESTERN MALAMALA, NORTHWESTERN FLOCKFIELD
(8sightings of female; 3 sightings of female and cub; 6 sightings of cub)
Judging from the above statistics it is becoming increasingly evident that the young female is gaining independence from her mother. However, twice this month the Ngoboswan female led her daughter to kills, both being impalas and close to West Street bridge. The times that the daughter has been found alone she is usually in the vicinity of Flockfield lookout and the Tamboti thicket area. An interesting sighting this month was when one of the Ngoboswan female’s kill was stolen by the Manyelethi male, which in turn attracted the attention of the Kikilezi female and her cub. During the day the daughter returned and stalked the cub of the Kikilezi female, seemingly wanting to reclaim her meal. Sneaking in she managed to steal a portion of the impala before she was treed by hyaenas that were also drawn to the area. The female cub lost the hard stolen meal to the hyaenas but escaped the Manyelethi male and Kikilezi female’s attention, which at her young age is a good thing.
March 2009
16 YEARS 7 MONTHS
1 FEMALE CUB 1 YEAR 5 MONTHS
SOUTHWESTERN MALAMALA, NORTHWESTERN FLOCKFIELD
(4 sightings of female; 3 sightings of female and cub; 1 sighting of cub)
Not being seen as much as in previous months this pair continued to provide excellent game viewing. The female led the cub and rangers to two kills in the month with one of them being stolen by the bicycle crossing male. The cub is now reaching the age where shortly she will become independent, forced out on her own to mature and hopefully one day continue her families’ legacy. The cub has been spending a lot of time east of the river which is a good sign for us that if she leaves she might well take over this part of her mother’s territory and continue to live on Mala Mala.
February 2009
16 YEARS 6 MONTHS
1 FEMALE CUB 1 YEAR 4 MONTHS
SOUTHWESTERN MALAMALA, NORTHWESTERN FLOCKFIELD
(1 sightings of female; 6 sightings of female and cub; 5 sightings of cub)
Making less appearances this month than usual these two females didn’t disappoint, one morning they were found walking purposefully to a kill site. A ranger followed them for almost two hours until eventually a young impala carcass was found. The cub was again seen many times alone waiting for mom and she provided endless hours of entertainment stalking all manner of beats. On the last day of the month the two were found outside Rattrays camp looking pensive. Both were well fed but the female was growling towards some bushes and soon it was discovered that a third leopard was in the area, the Dudley female. All three leopards were in the area of a young impala carcass, we were not sure who killed the impala but neither party was willing to relinquish it.
Ngoboswan Female Leopard And Cub - Image By Andrew Bachelor
January 2009
16 YEARS 5 MONTHS
1 FEMALE CUB 1 YEAR 3 MONTH
SOUTHWESTERN MALAMALA, NORTHWESTERN FLOCKFIELD
(4 sightings of female; 6 sightings of female and cub;10 sightings of cub)
These leopards feature heavily in this months report as they were seen the most out of any other leopards. The Ngoboswan female tends to stay a bit more hidden than her young cub who is very relaxed around the vehicles. It appears that the female is forcing the youngster to become more and more independent and the youngster is up to the task. We have often followed her for good distances away from where her mother left her. It also appears that the youngster is capable of hunting small animals as she never appears to be too thin.
On many occasions though both the female and the cub were found together and eating together. The age of the Ngoboswan female is against her as it appears she is struggling to carry kills up trees and thus have had quite a few stolen by hyenas. They also had a kill stolen by the Bicycle Crossing male. Nevertheless she is a great hunter and has supplied her cub with ample food over this month.
Both these leopards still maintain their territory of the western bank of the sand river south of west street bridge. Occasionally the Ngoboswan female is seen coming from the west but is appears she spends most of her time near the river. She was seen to make a kill towrdas the end of this report period at about 10am, suggesting that she is still good enough to catch prey even during the day.
