Our morning drive started with a burst of excitement—a male leopard appeared near the sandy riverbed. We trailed him as he moved effortlessly through rocky terrain and dense bush, weaving in and out of cover. Each turn had us pushing the vehicle through the same thickets he did, and I paid the price when a stubborn branch smacked my arm hard enough to leave a bruise. It honestly felt like I’d been punched, but I couldn’t even be mad about it. For a chance to watch him this closely—and capture shots like this—it was more than worth it!
He eventually decided it was nap time and tucked himself away in the thick grass.
We left the drowsy male leopard behind, hoping to find something with a little more energy. It didn’t take long before we struck gold again—another leopard, this time a female, moving with intent. She was clearly on the hunt, every step measured and alert. After a while, she chose to cross the river before settling on a nearby hillside where she paused to rest, scanning her surroundings.
She eventually got up and moved into the thick river grasses where we lost sight of her.
Around this time, JJ got a call on the radio that had him working his way back to the main river where the bridge is. As we crossed a sandy river bed, he spotted two leopard cubs. We quickly diverted to get a closer look. They were the cubs of the female leopard we were just watching,
We watched them play with each other for a short time and then JJ said "I know it's crazy to leave leopard cubs, but I have something exciting to show you." At first, I was a little disappointed to leave them, but it quickly turned to excitement wondering what was next. As we crossed the bridge, we could see several vehicles sitting along the river. JJ leaned in with a grin and let us in on a little secret—word had spread that a pangolin had been spotted, and, unbelievably, the lions were playing with it.
By the time we arrived, the lions were doing what they do best, sleeping. The pangolin was still in defense mode curled into a ball.
These solitary, primarily nocturnal animals, are easily recognized by their full armor of scales. If touched or grabbed it will roll up completely into a ball, while the sharp scales on the tail can be used to lash out. They are the most trafficked animal on earth and are an endangered species.
JJ said "get comfortable" indicating we would be here a while, waiting for the creature to unfurl. About 20-30 minutes later, sitting in the scorching sun, it finally started to move. It slowly came to life, assessing it’s surroundings for safety. It was cautious, often collapsing back into a ball before opening up more and more.
Eventually it stood fully upright and started to leave the area.
Pangolins are often called scaly anteaters which explains the shockingly long tongue they have.
Pangolins are extremely rare to see in the wild. There are safari guides that have worked over 10 years, guiding every day, and have never seen one. My wife and I are lucky enough to have seen two now, the first being in Tanzania.
As we watched the pangolin, some of the surrounding lions were a bit active at times and one crossed in front of an elephant in the distance leading to a nice picture.
And of course the drive wouldn't be complete without some lilac-breasted roller pics along with some other animals.
