EPOW - Ecology Picture of the Week

Night Stalker

Leopard (Panthera pardus), Family Felidae
South Luongwa National Park, Zambia

Explanation:  And here we see the reason for last week's EPOW photos of impala antelope remains found in trees.  

The night stalker.

In the main photo, above, this most remarkable nocturnal predator is enjoying a capture.  We were able to follow this lone hunter well into the evening from our open-air field vehicle.
  

Our first glimpse of a skulking phantom.
  

This was a startling encounter, amazing how such a
large predator can suddenly loom from the dark,
silent as the night.
  

Later, satiated from an early night's meal ... and allowing
us to observe from a close range.

    
Leopards have one of the largest global distributions of any large cat, ranging from west and south Africa, through the Middle East, Indian subcontinent, southeast Asia, and even into the remote Russian Far East.  But they are now absent in much of their former range, owing to habitat conversion, human settlement, and persecution by people.