They have been known as fearsome predators and skillful hunters since
ages and this successful hunter has come to the standards set by his predecessors as he carefully selects its dinner from a flock of unsuspecting Sandgrouse birds before snatching it straight from the air and tucking in.
Photographer Matt Prophet, 37, was thrilled when he saw the ferocious
cat patrolling through the grassland ready to pounce on the birds. He was all pleased when he, luckily, snapped the rare encounter at Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, an exclusive animal hide away which crosses the borders between Botswana and South Africa.
The young leopard can be seen leaping through the air under the African
sun to catch one of the Namaqua or Burchell breeds of the Sandgrouse birds. Balancing on its two back legs, the predator opens wide and snatches an unsuspecting bird from out of the sky before wasting no time and tucking straight into its meal.
These solo hunting skills are a trait picked up from the cat's mother who is also a specialist Sandgrouse hunter. The unlucky bird who didn't manage to dodge the leopard's hungry efforts was the rarer of the two species, a male Burchell Sandgrouse.
Unfortunately for Sandgrouse, they don't make discreet entrances when they arrive on the scene for their twice- daily guzzle.
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