Regular contributor Deon Kelbrick submitted this footage to Latest Sightings. He witnessed the action in South Africa’s Kruger National Park.
Spots spotted
Our story begins as darkness descends on the Kruger wilderness. Deon was fortunate to find a leopard curled up on a rock outcrop in a dry riverbed and illuminated it with a spotlight.
Leopards are solitary carnivores that are most active at night. As such, Deon knew it would be worth his while to spend some time waiting to see what happened.
Motion detected
As he watched, he noticed the big cat’s behaviour change slightly. Consequently, and ever on the alert, the predator raised its head slightly as it detected motion nearby.
As you’d expect from one of Nature’s most efficient large predators, a leopard’s senses are extremely keen. They have an acute sense of smell, sharp hearing, and the ability to see in 1/6 of the light we humans need.
Curious cat
Subsequently, the leopard displayed the typical curiosity of a cat. Moving with feline grace, it silently rose to investigate.
With its head held low to reduce its profile, the spotted cat carefully made its way through the dwindling light. With paws cushioning its passage, it clearly hoped to get closer to the as-yet-unidentified object of its curiosity.
Silence is golden
Because leopards know they are not the only ones with acute senses, the cat chooses its path carefully. You’ll note how it stays on the rock surface for as long as possible to avoid alerting its target.
To further mitigate noise, cats place their hind paws almost exactly where their front paws were previously placed. Accordingly, they reduce the chances of accidentally stepping on a twig that might snap, revealing their presence.
Target identified
As Deon momentarily pans his camera away from the leopard, we finally catch a glimpse of the creature of interest. It is a lone spotted hyena, plodding through the tall grass in the riverbed.
Although hyenas are social creatures, they frequently roam on their own. However, should they want company, it is only a whoop or two away.
Mysterious motives
As the camera moves back to the leopard, the stealthy predator remains undetected. However, it is an open question why it is so interested in the hyena.
It is unlikely that the leopard would attempt to catch the hyena, as they too are powerful creatures with a crushing bite. Perhaps the leopard is hoping to be led to food that it could steal.
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Reflective cat’s eyes
In the accompanying images, you’ll note that the cat’s eyes are reflective. Many nocturnal animals have a layer of mirror-like tissue behind their retinas.
Known as the tapetum lucidum, it bounces light back through the eye. This gives their photoreceptor a second chance to absorb it, thereby improving night vision.
Carefully chosen path
Having moved off the rock, the leopard stopped briefly to strategise. Then, instead of moving directly after the hyena through the grass, it carefully picked its way along the sand.
Unfortunately, the footage ends before we find out what happens next. Like so many of our observations, this behaviour seems destined to remain a mystery.
