CHEETAH SIGHTINGS - 2008

December 2008

There were five sightings of cheetah this month which is above the average. All sightings were of males, with two different males seen. One male was slightly nervous and the sighting didn’t last long. The other four sightings were of the relaxed male often seen and two sightings were particularly interesting. The first was when a ranger followed up on alarm calling impala and found the male in the process of killing a juvenile impala. The cheetah had just caught the impala and was struggling to kill it due to the fact he had it by the back of the neck. Once dead the cheetah rested recovering his breath but when he tried to feed on the kill the young impala sprang to life and tried for freedom but was quickly brought down and finished off. The second sighting was when a ranger followed gathering vultures and discovered the male with a sub adult female kudu carcass. Judging by the size of the cheetah’s stomach and the feeding pattern it looks as if the cheetah had made the kill in the morning fed, rested and then fed again in the afternoon, luckily no other larger predators had found his kill or him.

Number of different Cheetahs encountered : 2

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November 2008

Several sightings was had of these graceful felines. Making a welcome appearance again this month was the same female and her two year old male cub that we’ve been erratically viewing over the last couple of months. Seen whilst on the hunt the youngster provided great entertainment chasing after wildebeest which are way out of his league.

Number of different Cheetahs encountered : 3

Photograph by ranger Matthew Meyer

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October 2008

Cheetah sightings this month were a little disappointing, they were seen on five different days but it looks as if only three different cheetahs were seen. The female with her sub adult male cub were seen twice and a male was seen on three different occasions we believe he was the same on all three days. On memorable sighting was finding the single male being chassed by the white cloth female along the Gowrie boundary. The female and male cub were found in Matshipiri open area, stalking a herd of impala but didn’t make any attempt, instead they moved south to West Street Bridge and as darkness descended were left going west out of the river.

Number of different Cheetahs encountered : 3

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September 2008

Cheetah vewing this past month has been rather slow. Only three different cheetah were seen, the adult female and her son and the solitary male. They were seen predominantly around the Matshapiri Open Area and Mlowathi River system. They were not seen to kill this month, but the female and her son were found in the Mlowathi Dam Area, feeding off a duiker kill. The cheetahs are all in good condition and the son of the female is growing well. Soon he should be ready for a solitary life on his own. Cheetah were viewed 8 times this month.

Number of different Cheetahs encountered : 3

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Photograph by ranger Wesley Neumann

August 2008

This was certainly a very exciting month for cheetah. There were a total of 10 sighting of this species in the report period. Not only did the total number of sighting increase, but also the number of different individual cheetah increased from 2 to 5. Rangers are ecstatic with the prospect of having the higher concentration of cheetah on the property. The highlight of the month involving this fast feline was when a very young cub was discovered around he old borehole. The cub was estimated to be around 4 weeks old and was extremely nervous. The cub seemed to be alone and ran into some thick cover as soon as the vehicle spotted it. The area was put out of bounds, but vehicles continued to work the open areas in a hope of finding the mother, to no avail. Hopefully the period ahead will reveal a lactating female cheetah as well as a quality sighting of the new cub.

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July 2008

This month was the first time in many months that a cheetah was seen on Charleston, in the Jakkalsdraai open area. This same male cheetah was seen a few weeks later around the Kapen and killed a duiker in south-eastern Flockfield. This is a good sign and shows that winter allows areas to open up enough for cheetah to feel comfortable enough roaming around in. there are still a few month of winter left so one hopes that they will continue to come into the area and allow for great, more diverse game viewing.

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May 2008

There were only two cheetah sightings during the report period, and both were of the young male cheetah that is seen in the northern section of Eyrefield

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April 2008

Cheetah sightings were slow this month. There were only three sightings of the adult male cheetah that frequents the Clarendon Dam area. As the dam has dried up, there will be fewer cheetah encounters until the rains come again towards the end of the year and refill these important water sources.

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January 2008

Cheetah viewing this month has not been as active as in previous months. The coalition of two young males has not been seen as frequently in the Clarendon area and the single male cheetah has also been conspicuously absent. It is likely that with more water available over a larger area due to the rainy season the cheetah are spending more time in the larger section of their territory in the KNP.