National Geographic: Eye of the Leopard

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There is an extraordinary cat in this forest.

The ultimate predator.

A silent and often invisible killer.

Every leopard has unique markings,

but this one

has a small round spot to

the right of her nose,

between the two solid whisker lines.

This will always distinguish her from the others.

This is the story of Legadema,

a jewel of the forest,

who reflects in the shine of her eyes

all the experiences is of a life

running a gauntlet of death

from her very first day.

Her story through the

eye of the leopard.

This is her place,

these flooded marsh lands of a place called Mombo

in Botswana's Okavango delta.

It is Africa's garden of eden,

with fertile floodplains filled

with nutrients and greenery.

It is the very best leopard

territory you can imagine,

and this is where Legadema must

carve out a place for herself,

defend her space and disappear

in the mosaic of the swamp and bush.

There is another leopard here,

resting comfortably in the warm embrace

of an ancient baobab tree.

Leopards have climbed this same tree for over

But now, this leopard is queen here.

And this is Legadema's mother,

a strong willed leopardess that tolerates

no intruders in her piece of Africa.

None that is, but this male.

He asks no permission.

He's the dominant leopard from

the burnt ebony tree to the south,

a huge beast who prowls through her territory,

and those of six other females as well.

He is a scar-faced survivor,

hunter of at least 36 species in his range.

Few are immune from his...

...special talents.

Variety is the key to his success.

Specialist hunters die

when their prey dies out,

but leopards simply switch

to their next victim.

As a result, leopards stalk the forests from

the tip of Africa to the eastern edge of Asia,

from coasts to mountain tops.

The most prolific great cat on Earth.

It all started for this

cub with a unique spot,

three years ago to the day.

It was a passionate and explosive affair

with snarling exposed teeth

and fur flying.

When leopards mate, their intensity

shudders through the forest.

The couple shun food for a week

and mate almost continuously.

And then quite suddenly,

they part company for months, even years.

"Legadema" is the local setswana name for the

lightning that rolls in at that time of the year.

It means

"light from the sky or above".

from the burnt ebony tree...

...became a father.

Legadema was born.

She first emerged into the sunlight

at 8th days,

senses alive, bristling with interest.

Her eyes locked on something wonderful

and enticing straight away.

She ventured out... like an explorer.

From that day on,

the forest would be changed.

Every leopard needs to learn quickly

how to climb with confidence,

to master heights for hunting

and to escape danger.

It takes time.

And from the very beginning, a cub must draw

on that deep inner instinct as a predator,

to stalk, hunt and kill.

For the survivors, it is hardwired.

The first few days

will always determine their odds.

Legadema's first attack was a good start.

Her intense focus on the kill - important,

her inherited technique almost perfect,

but she lacked something vital.

She was still too innocent to understand

the obvious signs of danger.

Her mother knew them intimately.

They have attacked before.

Twice, they killed her cubs.

Daily, they dog her every move,

waiting for yet another macabre free meal.

Each time she dropped her guard,

they had swooped down.

Now, even though she was vicious in her defense,

they'd been found.

The den revealed.

It would just be a matter of time

before they came back.

All her hopes were now invested in this latest cub.

A leopard's first instinct

is to hide and stay hidden.

Invisibility is their best weapon

and best defense.

So when the news of their den rippled

through the forest that day,

the mother knew it was time to move on.

It would be the first of many moves

for the young Legadema.

Each time, the cub would go into a typical "cat freeze",

the instant her mothers jaws clamped gently around her neck.

It was her earliest instinct.

To feed them both,

her mother needed to hunt.

To hunt, she had to leave her cub vulnerable to the things

that lurk in the darkness and prey on the innocent.

Already little Legadema knew one voice in the

frightening cacophony of the dawn chorus,

her mother's secret message to her

that she was coming home.

But she heard other calls as well.

Nearby the den, there had been growls

and cries of agony in the night.

Some hapless leopard,

an interloper himself,

had been caught out in the open,

a fatal error in lion country.

Fate had saved Legadema.

The lions on a direct route to her den were distracted

by some more pressing adventure.

Each dawn was a desperate mission

to find her way back to her cub undetected.

For a cat that prefers to live like a ghost,

running a gauntlet of detection demands

almost military stealth and planning.

The local baboon troop

is the hardest to avoid.

Over the years, the troop has grown

from a few dozen to nearly a hundred members.

They know their local leopard

and always keep a wary eye scanning

the forest floor for any sign of her.

So each and every return

to the den is a victory.

Each time that Legadema

survived another night,

was a success that none of the other cubs

in 5 years ever achieved.

Mother and daughter lived one day at a time.

Impala antelope are the

staple leopard diet here.

They gather in herds of hundreds,

but just before the rains,

they separate quietly

to find private places of the forest...

to give birth.

This glorious fragility

is a celebration of all life,

and under the constant gaze of over

a hundred baboons standing guard,

few predators can sneak in undetected.

Impala rely on this added help

and stay close to baboons.

Suddenly, all the rules of the bush

were turned upside down!

Baboons are mostly vegetarian,

adding a few insects or possibly birds

when they can get them,

but when the alpha male charged in,

sinking his teeth into her tender flesh,

it was a reminder that

there are no absolute rules here.

She couldn't resist.

The smell of blood,

the cries of anguish.

She was programmed to respond.

She left her cub

to feed her curiosity.

But the kill put everyone on high alert.

She had a cub in a new den,

exposed in a forest running wild

with baboons on the rampage,

and a quick choice to make.

Return to defend her cub,

or run and hide.

Her return,

led them straight back to the den!

If lions are her enemies,

hyenas a constant irritation,

it is the baboons

that are her nemesis!

The fortress of branches

from the fallen tree held up,

despite the baboons

attempts to dismantle it.

They survived this attack,

but for the young impressionable cub,

the rules of engagement

had been established.

Baboons would be

her most fearsome threat.

A hasty retreat up a tree

wouldn't be effective,

baboons can go anywhere leopards can,

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