The last report captured our early morning break-down on the Masai Mara, during which we breakfasted, and showed the wildlife we encountered as we were looking for a cheetah sighting. Gideon, our guide, told us that a cheetah had recently given birth although no one had yet sighted her cubs. Cheetahs are extremely solitary animals, like leopards. You won’t find cheetahs napping together, playing together or hunting together like you do the extraverted lions. They live a solitary existence, except for when they have cubs. And a tidbit we learned: Cheetahs are the only member of the cat family that does not roar! They purr as they inhale and exhale… so think of a cheetah the next time you stroke your cat. Gideon told us that unlike leopards, cheetahs don’t pull their kill up into a tree to save it from other predators and snack on it whenever they’re hungry. Lions, as we had already seen, will eat their kill until it’s gone, and lions will quickly steal a kill made by hyenas, leopard, or cheetah. Any kill they find is fair game for a lion. Cheetahs, on the other hand, are solitary killers. And, they only eat what they need at that time, then walk away, leaving the kill for the rest of the predators… the hyenas, the small jackals, vultures, etc. For this reason, Gideon told us that his favorite of all the wildlife on the Masai Mara is the cheetah…. It only eats what it needs and leaves its kill to feed the rest of the population. (A side note: Gideon usually asks the members of his groups which is their favorite animal. Women overwhelmingly reply “giraffe”, which I thought interesting. Neither Lois or I could claim a favorite animal. I could easily claim my least favorite – the hyena – but I couldn’t name a favorite. How does one choose between the rollicking, funny, majestic lion; the leopard; the cheetah; the elephant; the steadfast guardianship provided by the Topi, or the beautiful zebra? I loved the “cats” of the Masai Mara, but so enjoyed the antics of the other animals. So, that question for us remains unsettled.) While on our quest, this third morning on the Masai Mara, here is what we encountered: Cape Buffalo and Zebras And, we drove right past this wallowing Cape Buffalo… small water hole; very happy Cape Buffalo We then drove past our earlier sighting that morning of the lionesses and found that nothing had changed… They were still sleeping after their kill. And here’s the whole group And family interaction And, in a different location on our search for a cheetah-spotting, we saw this dozing lion Gideon took us to a more remote part of the Masai Mara where the cheetah was reported to be in hiding with her cubs, and much to our delight we came upon her feasting on the fresh kill of an impala. Gideon advised that gazelles and other small prey are referred to as cheetah chow. We were stopped right in front of her and she didn’t seem to care. At first, we thought she had finished eating, but soon she went back to work She finished her meal and walked a short distance away, where she plopped down and proceeded to give herself a bath. She was relaxed and nonchalant about our presence. Notice how much of the carcass she has left for others to feast upon. Notice the blood on the paw she’s grooming And now she’s done. Every cheetah is differently marked in its face on the “tear” lines… The black lines that start near her eyes and run down the sides of her face. This cheetah’s “tear lines” are very clear to see in the photo below. And notice how different a cheetah’s head is from that of a leopard; the cheetah’s is flat and elongated; it’s easiest to see this difference when looking at the cheetah’s head in profile. But, we quickly discover she’s not in a hurry to get back to her cubs. She stays to relax a bit. And then, in true cat form, she rolls over to scratch her back Isn’t this the perfect photo of a fed, groomed and relaxed cheetah? After a bit, she gets up and slowly moves away, headed back we presumed, to her cubs. The beautiful, elegant cheetah. Clearly built for speed with those longs legs and long frame. Note the profile of her head. She walks in between, and in front of, the several Land Rovers that have gathered, still unconcerned about the humans that are enthralled with this sighting. We assumed she was returning to her cubs. Below is a photo of this mama cheetah and her cubs taken a couple of weeks after we’d departed the Masai Mar by the Governors Camp staff. After returning from each safari, the camp staff asked “What did you see”, and after this trip, when we reported, very excitedly, that we’d gotten to watch the mother cheetah dine on her kill, then relax and groom herself before moving on, the staff responded that we were very lucky to get to see this cheetah. There are very few cheetahs at the Governors Camp, and they lead such solitary lives. We felt triumphant at the results of our morning’s outing.
Posted on: Fri, 28 Nov 2014 04:07:38 +0000
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