Leopard Hills, Sabi Sands, South Africa — October, 2015

[Tom Kellie]

@@Tom Kellie

I really like hyena -and I love your pictures of the cubs - beautiful little animals.

 

~ @@TonyQ

 

Thank you so much!

I need to admit that when I was observing these two I was unaware that they were ‘cubs’ rather than ‘pups’.

That's a shameful breach of basic understanding for a would-be life science specialist.

Game drives educate the obdurate...at least they have in my case.

They're truly charming infants, with characteristic babyish awkwardness and curiosity.

Tom K.

[Tom Kellie]

Wonderful pics of the tiny hyaena cubs! The mother looks very tired too!

 

~ @@Big_Dog

 

When the hyena den observation was underway, I mentioned to the ranger that I had two Safaritalk friends who might be interested in the images.

I specifically was thinking of @@Marks and you.

The mother was exhausted, yet in fairly good shape. She was noticeably gentle with her cubs, exhibiting admirable forbearance as they clambered over her.

When I revisited the den last month, they'd been relocated by their mother to a secluded pond near a long forested draw in which a seasonal river flows.

Thank you for your kind comments.

Tom K.

[TonyQ]

@@Tom Kellie

We had interesting conversations with our guide at Ol Pejeta (Andrew) about the word for Hyena babies. We tried to explore the logic of cubs/pups. I am not sure it is "basic understanding" rather than "they just are". After I came back I wondered if this differentiation is an English Language thing - I wish I had asked our guide what the words were in Swahili or other local languages. We can always play safe and call them babies and youngsters

[Tom Kellie]

Helogale parvula merits its own rhymes,

Popping up as it often does, here and there.

Restless dwarf mongoose troops surprise me at times,

Speedily scampering almost everywhere.

Skittering About

In Rotting Wood

Edited February 19, 2016 by Tom Kellie

[Big_Dog]

@@Tom Kellie - You were quite right to say so! The new den site, from that description, also sounds very beautiful.

@@TonyQ - I believe it is cubs for hyaenas, but who officially coined the term and when I don't know!

[Tom Kellie]

Torchwood, male leopard of power and grace,

Upon arrival immediately on stage,

Of nervous anxiety, not a trace,

A big cool cat of consequence in any age.

Enter the Leopard

Torchwood's Arrival

Il Magnifico

Torchwood of Leopard Hills

Resolute

Undeterred

Four Powerful Paws

[pomkiwi]

@@Tom Kellie An impressive beast indeed, my close encounters so far have been with females. Lovely pictures.

[xelas]

@@Tom Kellie

 

The Torchwood sequence is fantastic! The leopard is almost 3-D. Was it a Zeiss lens?

[Tom Kellie]

~ @@TonyQ and @@Big_Dog

 

It's very kind of both of you to expand on the notion of hyena ‘cubs’ as opposed to ‘pups’.

‘Babies’, ‘youngsters’, ‘infants’, ‘newborns’, ‘juveniles’, ‘offspring’ — yours truly needs to carefully consider which one is most apt, when penning verse to accompany the images.

I feel straightened out and therefore more confident to know that hyenas do indeed raise ‘cubs’.

Safaritalk is not only entertaining, but also educational for anyone like me who never mastered these distinctions.

Thank you both!

Tom K.

[Tom Kellie]

@@Tom Kellie An impressive beast indeed, my close encounters so far have been with females. Lovely pictures.

 

~ @@pomkiwi

 

Thank you so much for your very kind post!

I'm so pleased that you liked the Torchwood sequence.

Having photographed both female and male leopards, there is a discernible difference in overall musculature, suggesting greater power.

I hope that during your next safari you'll enjoy ample time observing a male leopard!

Tom K.

[Tom Kellie]

@@Tom Kellie

 

The Torchwood sequence is fantastic! The leopard is almost 3-D. Was it a Zeiss lens?

 

~ @@xelas

 

That's such a generous and encouraging comment, especially coming from a skilled wildlife photographer.

Thank you very much for your very nice post.

Yes, the images were photographed with the Zeiss Apo-Sonnar T* 135mm f/2 ZE telephoto lens.

Although it's a strictly manual focus lens, I found that in nearly all shooting circumstances it was comfortable to use.

That you noticed the seemingly 3-dimensional qualities of the images is prima facie evidence why I bring Zeiss lenses on safari.

They may lack the magnification of larger lenses, yet their superlative image quality is consistently satisfactory.

Tom K.

[xelas]

@@Tom Kellie

 

Using a Zeiss lens for a photographer is like using a Swarovski binoculars for a birder! The difference is obvious and visible.

 

You are a skilled photographer, Tom! No doubts about this. You have nailed the focus perfectly, and doing so on a manual lens is a skill I have already forgotten (AF is not always as precise as we want to be).

Edited February 21, 2016 by xelas

[Abena]

The photo of the hornbills on the termitary (never knew that's what a termite mound was properly called!) - very cool! of course all the rest of the photos are also great

[Abena]

@@Tom K. - your photos are great! It's hard to pick out any one I like more than the other, but I have to say those leopards are magnificent

[Tom Kellie]

@@Tom K. - your photos are great! It's hard to pick out any one I like more than the other, but I have to say those leopards are magnificent

 

~ @@Abena

 

Thank you so much for taking time to view this ongoing trip report.

I greatly benefit from your encouraging comments.

Receiving such kind words from Ghana buoys me up!

Tom K.

[Tom Kellie]

@@Tom Kellie

 

Using a Zeiss lens for a photographer is like using a Swarovski binoculars for a birder! The difference is obvious and visible.

 

You are a skilled photographer, Tom! No doubts about this. You have nailed the focus perfectly, and doing so on a manual lens is a skill I have already forgotten (AF is not always as precise as we want to be).

 

~ @@xelas

 

Your generous words have almost knocked me out of my computer chair!

I certainly don't think of my photographs as having attained a high standard.

When I look through Safaritalk trip reports, I find myself shaking my head in admiration at the wondrous skills of so many members.

During the past two safaris guides in both South Africa and Kenya were puzzled why I would leave the larger lens off to spend a day shooting with the Zeiss Apo-Sonnar T* 135mm f/2 ZE telephoto lens.

I fumbled around, unconvincingly explaining that the image quality obtained thereby more than compensated for the loss of magnification.

That you've discerned that difference moves me. Thank you so much for taking time to tell me.

Tom K.

[SafariChick]

@@Tom Kellie I've gotten behind on your report I'm afraid but just now I jumped to the end and read the last two pages. Those hyena cubs are so adorable! I will have to catch up with the middle of the report now!

[Terry]

@@Tom Kellie,

 

Happy to see Torchwood again. Your photographs of him are beautiful. We saw him on three separate days back the first week of November. Our ranger was worried about him impinging upon other males territories while he was yet too small to successfully hold his own in a fight with more mature males.

 

Great trip report. Enjoying it all

[Tom Kellie]

@@Tom Kellie I've gotten behind on your report I'm afraid but just now I jumped to the end and read the last two pages. Those hyena cubs are so adorable! I will have to catch up with the middle of the report now!

 

~ @@SafariChick

 

I'm so pleased that you liked the two hyena cubs!

I'd never previously seen hyena cubs, thus was surprised at their dark charcoal coats.

They were relatively relaxed, not noticeably nervous at our presence, babyish in their motions.

Seeing them next to their exhausted mom showed a highly appealing side of spotted hyenas.

Thank you for taking time to visit this ongoing trip report!

Tom K.

[deano]

@@Tom Kellie - wow again on that leopard sequence. The separation between subject and background is like something out of a Hollywood sci-fi blockbuster - amazing. I hope to see Mr. Torchwood for myself one day (and I will be researching Zeiss lenses shortly...).

 

Hyena cubs - my two cents based entirely on what I am told by various guides over the years is that hyena are more closely related to cats than dogs despite their appearance. Hyaenidae has its own section in my go to mammal reference book (as do dogs - Canidae and cats - Felidae) so it would seem that somebody much more intelligent that me decided that since hyena are more closely related to cats than dogs then cubs it is.

 

kind regards

 

deano.

[Tom Kellie]

@@Tom Kellie,

 

Happy to see Torchwood again. Your photographs of him are beautiful. We saw him on three separate days back the first week of November. Our ranger was worried about him impinging upon other males territories while he was yet too small to successfully hold his own in a fight with more mature males.

 

Great trip report. Enjoying it all

 

~ @@Terry

 

Hadn't realized that you'd seen Torchwood one month after I did. Thank you for telling me.

Last month I was reacquainted with Torchwood. He's thriving. I have remarkable photos of him “stalking” catfish in a drying up pond, pouncing, then emerging coated with stinky black mud!

Thank you so so so much for your highly encouraging comment!

Tom K.

[Tom Kellie]

@@Tom Kellie - wow again on that leopard sequence. The separation between subject and background is like something out of a Hollywood sci-fi blockbuster - amazing. I hope to see Mr. Torchwood for myself one day (and I will be researching Zeiss lenses shortly...).

 

Hyena cubs - my two cents based entirely on what I am told by various guides over the years is that hyena are more closely related to cats than dogs despite their appearance. Hyaenidae has its own section in my go to mammal reference book (as do dogs - Canidae and cats - Felidae) so it would seem that somebody much more intelligent that me decided that since hyena are more closely related to cats than dogs then cubs it is.

 

~ @@deano

 

As yours truly has been 100% ignorant of the evolutionary biology and taxonomic context of hyenas, whatever you've read sounds accurate to me.

My own research specialization never embraced hyenas, thus what I've read in Safaritalk has been continuing education minus any examinations.

Reading your comment about the blurred background — bokeh — behind Torchwood reinforces my own satisfaction from using a Zeiss lens during a game drive.

As it happens, I use five Zeiss lenses — the Distagon T* 21mm f/2.8 ZE, the Distagon T* 35mm f/2 ZE, the Makro-Planar T* 50mm f/2 ZE, the Makro-Planar T* 100mm f/2 ZE and the Apo-Sonnar T* 135mm f/2 ZE.

The following URL link to the Fred Miranda site lists all Zeiss lenses, with helpful customer reviews and rankings.

http://www.fredmiranda.com/reviews/showcat.php/cat/53

I can't say enough for Zeiss lenses. As @@xelas has kindly noted, they're the top-of-class lenses for exceptional imagery.

Yes, they're manual focus, which necessitates a certain level of care and attentiveness. If one adjusts to that, their exquisite precision and extraordinary color rendition consistently yields images of distinction.

For the same reason that I use a variety of Montblanc fountain pens to correct student papers or to write notes, I use Zeiss lenses whenever possible to obtain the almost 3-dimensional image quality which I admire.

I'm so pleased that the leopard sequence has inspired interest in Zeiss manual focus lenses. They're the cat's meow, even if the cat in question is Torchwood-the-Leopard!

Thank you so much for taking time to visit and comment on this trip report.

Tom K.

[Tom Kellie]

Fallen leaves cover the forest floor,

Torchwood's broad paws make scarcely a sound.
He cares not what his day has in store,
Sensing possibilities abound.

Near a Fallen Tree Trunk

Seen Through a Natural Screen

Torchwood Blazes His Own Trail

Out for His Morning Constitutional

Master of Thigmotaxis

Right of Passage

Stepping Over Branches

Less Than Four Meters Distant

 

[TonyQ]

@@Tom Kellie

A beautiful leopards and beautiful photos. In some of those taken through the bushes you can see the advantage of manual focus.

 

@@deano

Our guides in Kenya said the same about Hyena cubs. It sounds plausible but I wonder if the babies were called cubs before these relationships were described by science ? (I have no evidence for that ) In the UK, baby foxes (related to dogs) are called cubs. I have heard baby Jackals described as "Cubs" and as "Puppies". I think language is gloriously inconsistent (actually I can only speak about the English Language!)

 

Addition: I have just looked at Wikipedia (not always reliable I know) about hyena. "When the hyena was discovered in the medieval times, it was found categorized under several odd names. The Striped Hyena, for instance, was referred as Water Wolf because of its wolf-like appearance and often showing up at the coasts lurking for food even in the water."

I wonder if this led to calling the babies "cubs" as we do talk about wolf cubs?

Sorry for going off topic, but the lovely hyena baby pictures in the report made me think!

Edited February 22, 2016 by TonyQ

[Tom Kellie]

‘Why leopards?’ one well may ask,

When all big cats project strength and grace.

Well, leopard rosettes don't mask,

The fierce intelligence on their face.

Where's Health and Safety?

Rosettes on Parade

Torchwood

Torchwood in Overcast Morning Light