Photograph by Lorna Buchanan-Jardine

On a drive from Mara North Conservancy back into the heart of the Olare Orok Conservancy this stunning male leopard was spotted by a Mara Plains vehicle hanging out in a lone tree way out on the open plains, miles away from the safety of the nearest river lines. Confident and regal he seemed only slightly put out at having been discovered, and it was magical to be given a private audience with him without another car in sight anywhere on the vast horizon. He is not a cat we recognized and so Bow, our resident male, may soon have some competition for his territory and harem.