Tracking the Elusive Leopard Big cat aficionados will know that leopards tend to be difficult to spot but the elusiveness only adds to the appeal. First time safari-goers should head to South Africa’s Sabi Sands Game Reserve and Timbavati, both areas renowned for leopard sightings as well as the rest of the Big 5. Leopard have been known to hunt for crocodiles in Zambia’s Luangwa River and during the day, you can track them for miles in a 4×4 or better yet, whilst walking out into the wild on foot. The lush waterways of Botswana’s Okavango Delta never fail to deliver exceptional wildlife viewing, and when it comes to tracking leopard, a select few camps are particularly rewarding – so it’s worth having a debrief with our Africa expert.
Pumas in South America Home to staggering mountain peaks, ice-blue glaciers and also pumas, Chile’s Torres del Paine landscape is a joy to discover. And now one of our favourite hotels, Awasi Patagonia is expanding its private reserve to nearly eight times its original size. What was once a sheep farming estancia, will now serve to protect the resident puma population thriving in the park and beyond. Using hidden cameras monitoring behavioural patterns, you can now track pumas with the help of a conservation team. If you’re lucky, you may spot a puma passing by your villa returning from a night’s hunt (as our Founders did).
Catching up with a Cheetah The fastest land animal in the world with a slender figure, the cheetah is often difficult to spot. Sadly, with only 8,000 in the wild, it is also a dwindling species, so savour the moment if you do see one. There are however, projects that monitor these graceful creatures such as the Mara Cheetah project in Kenya’s Maasai Mara. Visit during the migration for the highest chance of seeing a cheetah sprint across the great open plains chasing its prey. The largest and oldest park in Zambia, Kafue, has high concentrations of wildlife that gather around the floodplains including cheetah that visit regularly to hunt. The surrounding terrain is mostly flat, dotted with a few granite hills – the perfect terrain for these beautiful creatures.
Spotting the Nocturnal Jaguar Fans of Planet Earth II may have watched the dramatic moment when a jaguar took on a sizeable caiman… and won. This took place in Brazil’s Pantanal where the wetlands are alive with fascinating wildlife encounters. The Onçafari Jaguar Project is one of its kind here, championing conservation and protecting the endangered jaguar. Stay in a one of our favourite jungle lodges, Caiman Ecological Refuge, and we can make sure you’re alerted whenever a jaguar is on the prowl – including the middle of the night, the best time to see them hunting. We can’t guarantee a sighting, but then again, we’ve never failed to see one.
Rare Lion sightings African lions are often a highlight of any safari but the slightly unique lions add a further Narnian twist to this species. Black-maned lions roam the arid landscape of the Kalahari, adopting a regal appearance with their majestic size, tawny colour and striking black manes. Then there’s the severely endangered white lion. Conservationists face an ongoing battle to ensure their rightful place in nature – currently found in South Africa’s Timbavati Reserve. And if you didn’t think it could get any more weird and wonderful, head to Lake Manyara National Park, known for its tree-climbing lions. You can also spot them dozing in the branches in Tanzania’s Serengeti, the Maasai Mara and in Ishasaha, Uganda.