Namibia Leopard Project Update
In April last year our Namibian conservation partner, N/a’an ku se Foundation, rescued a female leopard cub who had been either orphaned or abandoned. Sadly, this is not an uncommon occurrence in Namibia due to adult leopards being shot in human-wildlife conflict incidents, and the severe ongoing drought, and this is not the first time the team has had to intervene to save a life. Leopard cubs are very resilient little fighters, and despite the fact that she was so tiny and alone, had a very good chance of survival and subsequent release into the wild once she was old enough - approx two years from her rescue date.
Sweet little Sarabi when she first arrived
More than a year on and that not-so-little-anymore cub is thriving! She has been gifted the name of Sarabi (you may recognise this regal name as mother of Simba, from The Lion King), and all human contact has been kept to an absolute minimum. In fact, only a small handful of people have seen her in real life, and its been a joy to watch her grow through the wonder of motion sensored camera traps.
Sarabi in her first boma (enclosure) a few months after she arrived
I’m proud to announce that thanks to our wonderful sponsor, PhotoPills, we have been able to fund the entire cost of Sarabi’s rehabilitation, care and GPS tracking collar for when she is released. I’d like to say a huge and formal thank you to Rafael from PhotoPills, who is the founder of the legendary photography planning app, for supporting this project. Also thanks to our friend, photographer and conservationist, Donal Boyd, for introducing me to Rafael and facilitating this collaboration.
Wildlife conservation is about protecting threatened species, but its also about building a community of passionate like-minded individuals, organisations, creatives and business owners from around the world to be able to actually make things happen. Since starting African Cat Project 8 years ago, we have worked hard to build these relationships and it has resulted in some amazing things happening. I’m really grateful for everyone I have connected with, and continue to connect with, on this conservation journey.
Sarabi in her second, much larger boma, earlier this year
We still have a bit of a way to go with Sarabi, including after her release, which we are planning for next year, and I will of course keep you all updated. Be sure to follow us on Instagram and Facebook for more regular updates and camera trap images. I just love the ones that captured her mid-pounce, below!
Click here if you’d like to read more about our conservation efforts and contribute to our projects in both Namibia and South Africa.