If I Were Going...: Africa: Karongwe/Big Cats

Cheetah

The Big Five includes two big cats – Lions and Leopards.

African Lion

We had seen Lions, but not up close. Plus, I really, really, really wanted to see a Cheetah. Karongwe Private Reserve delivered all three and so expertly that we couldn’t get over the feeling that we were on a safari ride at Disney or in some kind of wildlife documentary.

After all the fleeting glances of Lions we had seen, we were excited on our afternoon game drive to hear that some Lions has been seen nearby.

We pulled off the road and turned into a dry stream bed.

And there they were. Lions. Six of them. Very close. Very, very close.

Relaxing Lions

The vehicle drove right up to them and then we were joined by another game vehicle equally close. It was late in the afternoon and the light was gorgeous, so we took tons of photos.

Game drive proximity

The group included a male Lion, who lay on the ground ....

It's tough being the King

.... barely deigning to even open his eyelids in our direction.

Hello!

Nearby were three juveniles – two males who were starting to grow their manes ...

Siblings

.... and a female (who visited her brothers for a minute) ...

Conversation

On a rock outcrop were two females ...

Females relaxing

The young ones were fairly active, walking about a bit and gently tussling with each other.

So cool to see

They seemed to be enjoying the warmth of the afternoon sun ...

Look at that face!

We heard one – I think the male -- purring while we were taking pictures.

Half asleep

The Lion is the second-largest cat after the Tiger, with some males exceeding 550 lbs. and females reaching 400 lbs.

Very social compared to other cats, they live in prides comprising related females, cubs and a small number of adult males.

Lions are the only members of the cat family where females and males have a significantly different appearance – males have broader heads and a prominent mane (females can also have a ruff or even a mane, but that is rare).

The darker and fuller the mane, the healthier the Lion and the more attractive to Lionesses. Both females and males have tails that end in a dark, hairy tuft – lions are the only big cats with that characteristic.

Profile

Lions are inactive for about 20 hours per day. When they are active, it is primarily at night (nocturnal), although sometimes at twilight (crepuscular).

Groups of female Lions typically hunt together, preying mostly on mammals, particularly ungulates, with a preference for Wildebeest, Zebras, Buffalo and Giraffes. They generally avoid fully grown adult Elephants, Hippopotamuses and Rhinoceroses, as well as very small prey.

Lions will kill other predators such as Leopards, Cheetahs and Hyenas, but they seldom eat them. Single Lions are capable of bringing down prey such as Zebra and Wildebeest, which can be twice their own weight, while hunting larger prey like Giraffes and Buffalo alone is too much of a risk.

Regal

An adult Lioness requires an average of about 11 lbs. of meat per day, a male about 15 lbs. but they can eat 65 lbs. at a sitting (maybe that’s why they sleep so much!). Lions will defend their kills from scavengers like Vultures and Hyenas.

Multiple ways to relax

Lions prefer to scavenge, with carrion providing more than 50 percent of their diet. They scavenge animals either dead from natural causes or killed by other predators, keeping a constant lookout for circling vultures. Most of the prey on which both Hyenas and Lions feed are killed by the Hyenas.

We did spend a lot of time with the Lions

Lions tend to dominate smaller cats such as Cheetahs and Leopards, stealing their kills and killing their cubs. They will even kill adults when given the chance. Cheetahs have a 50 percent chance of losing their kill to Lions or other predators and Lions account for up to 75 percent of predator-killed juvenile Cheetahs.

They avoid Lion territory. Leopards are able to take refuge in trees; however, Lionesses will climb a tree to retrieve Leopard kills. Depending on the size of the particular Crocodile and Lion, either can lose kills or carrion to the other.

Lions have been known to kill Crocodiles venturing onto land, while the reverse is true for Lions entering waterways.

The West African Lion population is listed as Critically Endangered since 2016.

My favorite shot

OK, one of the big cats down. What was next?

Cheetahs.

A big treat

It was fairly late in the afternoon and the light was fading, when Matt pulled our vehicle over near some other cars and told us to get out. Hmmmm? That was weird. I thought getting out was not allowed.

But, we walked about 100 yards into the bush and came upon three Cheetahs – juvenile males. Two were tussling with each other and the other was sitting a little distance off.

Me and some Cheetahs

We stood very, very close. Less than 10 yards. Definitely close enough for one to take us out easily is it wanted to. But, from their posture, they didn’t want to.

Caty and Cheetahs

The Lions had been close and very calm about our arrival. Now, the Cheetahs seemed even calmer. It seemed too good to be true. Too easy.

Becca and Cheetahs

But, it was exciting. Hey, it would have been exciting had we been in an actual zoo. Still, it didn’t feel wild enough.

Wild? or not?

The lone Cheetah got up and walked over to join his siblings. Then, the three Cheetahs posed nicely for us – they even looked like they were arranged by an art director.

Perfect pose

The Cheetah occurs mainly in eastern and southern Africa and a few parts of Iran. It is lightly built, slender in contrast to other big cats, making it more similar to the cougar, which is actually its closest relative.

Slim and powerful

The Cheetah reaches 28-35 inches at the shoulder and weighs 45-160 lbs. Taller than the Leopard, it is notably smaller than the Lion.

The exceptionally long and muscular tail measures 24-31 inches and ends in a bushy white tuft.

The first two-thirds of the tail are covered in spots and the final part is marked with four to six dark rings or stripes. The arrangement of tail stripes differs among individuals, but the tail of an individual typically resembles its siblings' to a greater extent than it resembles its mother's. Every Cheetah also has a unique pattern of spots.

Cheetahs can’t roar, but they can purr.

Resting

The Cheetah is the fastest land animal, with speeds of 40-70 mph. Their tough foot pads make it easier to run on firm ground and their hind legs are longer than the forelegs. Concentrated nerve cells arranged in a band in the center of the eyes significantly enhance visual acuity.

Cheetahs are active mainly during the day, with hunting their major activity. Adult males are sociable despite territoriality, forming groups called "coalitions.”

Females are not territorial; they may be solitary or live with their offspring in home ranges.

Playing

Cheetahs prey on antelopes and gazelles, hunting primarily throughout the day using vision rather than by scent. The chase usually lasts less than a minute; if the Cheetah fails to make a kill quickly, it will give up. Cheetahs have an average hunting success rate of 40 to 50 percent. The prey is taken to a shaded place where those not involved in hunting will immediately start eating while the hunters recuperate, sometimes panting for up to an hour before eating. A Cheetah can consume as much as 22 lbs. of meat within two hours.

Departing

Cheetahs lose around 10-15 percent of their kills to other predators, but are rarely observed feeding on the kills of other carnivores. They are classified as Vulnerable due to habitat loss, poaching, illegal pet trade and conflict with humans. The a global population is only 7,100 wild individuals.

After we photographed them for a while, they slowly got up and sauntered casually away, looking back as us briefly as they disappeared in the Bush.

We heard that another group from the Lodge had to follow them to even get a peek and they didn’t get to see much of them. So, I guess we were lucky.

Four out of five

Well, by now we had seen four of the Big Five and we had seen a Cheetah. Karongwe is supposed to be one of the best places to see Leopards and we certainly looked a lot, including driving repeatedly along the fence line (sometimes wildly off-road) near the highway where the Leopards are known to hang out. But, no luck.

All we had seen was a track.

Track

Our last game drive was an early morning drive – very, very cold (by far our coldest day) and Matt and Obvious were intent upon finding Leopards. We drove and drove – sometimes through prickly acacia trees where we were all in danger of losing an eye or getting badly scratched. Obvious left the vehicle and tracked. He even showed us drag marks where a Leopard had taken prey down the road.

No Leopards.

Finally, Matt said it was no use and we would have to “go to Plan B.” What was Plan B? He answered, “Well, there really isn’t one. We’ll just drive around and see what we see. It wasn’t too long before what we saw was a Leopard.

A nice pose

Well, actually, two Leopards, although the glimpses we had of the cub were incredibly brief.

Quick glimpse

Fortunately, the female stayed still for us to photograph. The light was bad, she was in twigs and branches and I had only one camera that morning (I will explain that in a later post). But, a Leopard! The Big Five accomplished.

Five of five

Compared to other big cats, the Leopard has relatively short legs and a long body with a large skull. It is similar in appearance to the jaguar, but has a smaller, lighter physique.

Males stand 24-28 inches at the shoulder, while females are 22-25 inches; males weigh 80-200 lbs., females weigh 60-130 lbs.

Hiding

A Leopard can run up to 36 mph, leap 20 ft. horizontally, and jump up to 10 ft. vertically.

Although they are smaller than other big cats, they are able to take large prey due to their massive skulls and powerful jaw muscles.

Leopards are strong enough to drag carcasses heavier than themselves up trees; an individual was once observed hauling a 275-lbs. young giraffe up 19 ft. into a tree.

Leopards have the largest distribution of any wild cat, occurring widely in Africa as well as eastern and southern Asia. There were originally 27 Leopard subspecies, but now there are believed to be nine. What we saw was, obviously, an African Leopard.

Long and lean

Leopards tend to be nocturnal, resting for most of the day and for some hours at night in thickets, among rocks or over tree branches. Leopards have been observed walking up to 15 miles across their range at night, which may be why we had so much trouble finding them.

Good-bye

Solitary and territorial, Leopards must compete for food and shelter with other large predators that may steal their kill, devour their young or even kill adults. Leopards co-exist alongside other predators by hunting different types of prey and by avoiding their territories. Leopards may retreat up a tree in the face of direct aggression from other large carnivores, but have also been known to kill or prey on some competitors. Troops of Baboons will kill and sometimes eat leopard young and, occasionally, Nile Crocodiles may prey on Leopards that go near water.

Our Leopard stayed for a short time, speaking to us briefly with a grunt, and then walked off, disappearing into the Bush just as her cub had.

Gone!

So, Karongwe certainly delivered on the big cats – with species not seen in Kruger (Cheetahs and Leopards) and with a much closer view of Lions than Kruger.