Watch: There’s nothing fishy about this leopard’s diet
Rather than a game of cat and mouse, a leopard braved the mud in a shallow waterhole to catch a generous meal of fresh catfish.
Nature enthusiast Candice Pappin was lucky to watch a leopard grow up in Klaserie Private Nature Reserve. While every sighting of it is special, one will never be forgotten.
Pappin, who shared her footage and story with Latest Sightings, says over a few days in July, she noticed the leopard returning to a specific waterhole. He kept coming to check the water level.
“I knew he was waiting for all the fish to be huddled under the log, so I kept coming to check on him,” she says.
According to Latest Sightings, some African species of catfish have adapted to survive with almost no water for certain periods.
“They enter a dormant state called aestivation and use hardly any energy. In extreme cases, they can survive by burrowing into the mud.
“That said, they haven’t adapted any abilities to deal with all the new predators they face when the water levels drop. And the leopard knew this!”
One morning, Pappin went to check if the leopard was still at the waterhole. He was, and she spent three hours with him, but without much activity. Just as she was about to leave, a couple of warthogs came for a drink, and the excitement began!
“He [the leopard] immediately went into a stalking position, but the warthogs caught his scent and ran off as he came sprinting out of hiding.”
The leopard missed out on the warthogs, but the chaos caused by their escape made the fish squabble, which caught the leopard’s attention.
“Like a switch, it triggered something inside him. He ran straight onto the log and decided it was now or never! Looking at the fish, he reached into the muddy water, and with a swift movement, grabbed one!
“I couldn’t believe what I had just witnessed. The adrenaline was pumping; those three hours had paid off, and what a show it was! He went into a catching frenzy.
“At one point, he decided to walk straight into the muddy water and submerge his head, which was very entertaining! He eventually ended up covered in black mud from head to toe.
“By the time he was done, he had caught 11 fish! Some he carried into our hide or placed under a bush, others he left lying on the dried mud, and a few were stolen by a saddle-billed stork and a fish eagle.
“The ‘fishing spree’ continued for days after that, and I’m sure it will carry on until all the fish are gone and the ‘puddle’ has disappeared,” says Pappin.
It seems it’s not unusual for leopards to go fishing, with various videos of them enjoying their catch posted on the internet, including one published by National Geographic and one published by BBC Earth.
