CAPE TIMES, 14 June2011
Cape Leopard
Pastel by Angela Key
It’s a wildlife artists dream… a leopard in our own back yard!
I’ve lost count of the hours I’ve spent tracking leopard spoor in the sand, studying pugs for signs of erosion; indents left by rain drops or tiny trails left by termites and ants can tell a lot about how recently a leopard was there. Even with modern technology like GPS collars, it’s not easy monitoring leopards.
A Namibian biologist tells of how on 1200 occasions he walked right up to leopards he located with radio collars. Of those 1200 occasions, he actually SAW the leopard only twice! They just move off. You hear signals bleeping all around, but the leopard slinks down on its belly and snakes off.
Our Cape Leopard is even more elusive. As their habitat diminishes and landowners continue to use indiscriminate predator controls, these leopards could soon face the same fate as the long-extinct Cape Lion. So you can imagine my excitement when this magnificent specimen was spotted right here on a farm in the Hemel and Aarde Valley. Since capturing the leopard and fitting it with a GPS collar, the Landmark Foundation has been monitoring its movements in the mountains. One-hundred infrared cameras have been strategically located from Cape Infanta and Bot River Lagoon to the Riviersonderend and Langeberg Mountains. To date, 23 leopards have been tagged in the Foundation’s Leopard and Predator Project. The GPS data obtained will give researchers an insight into population density and behavioural dynamics to ensure the survival of this threatened species.
Visit the Missions House Gallery in Onrus River for a glimpse of this magnificent Cape leopard.
Or you could take a hike in the Hemel and Aarde and hold thumbs!!!
