Hi everyone,
Here is the 2nd part about the lady of Djuma herself.
Karula means peaceful and it is not hard to see why she is called this. She makes any tree look comfortable and her demeanor around the vehicles is very relaxed…usually! But she is a lady and from time to time she can have her off days! If you catch her on one of these days and get to close, she will warn you!
18/7/2010 – Just after she had said her piece!
I remember her having a kill just off Gowrie Main in July, we could see the carcass but the visual of Karula was poor. What I could see of her, I felt she wanted a bit of space, so we sat a little distance away and waited for her to move in her own time. Sadly a guest in a vehicle parked a little way from us wasn’t as patient and stood to get a better view. At this point Karula charged at the vehicle, stopping a few meters from it. This was her way of saying get out of my space. The guest sat down immediately and she backed off. What amazed me was that she came to sit a bit closer to us and we were able to see her more clearly. This certainly goes to show she is still a wild animal. With her being so relaxed around vehicles it can sometimes be forgotten or even thought she is tame. This is definitely not the case! We view her on her terms!
The easiest way to ID her is the “WOW” on her forehead, between the eyes. Her fur is quite dark compared to the boys, Mixo and Induna.
She also shares the same characteristic with her daughter Saseka, the eyelash marking under her left eye. The way she differs is the two spots and arrow head that points towards her nose on her left cheek and a triangle of 3 spots above her whisker line.
The right side has a “S” shape from the corner of her eye and a very large dark spot above the end of her whisker line.
I hope this helps to ID her. I am sure there are many more differences all over her body, but the face is the part we look at the most so I have picked the patterns that can be easily seen!
Thanks again for all the pictures sent in of our beautiful leopardess!
Written by Tara
Original date released Feb 2 2011
She’s a beautiful ‘lady’!!!!!
“WOW”….. She says it all herself. She is so magnificent!!! Maybe if her forehead was alittle bigger……. She is a regal lady. I love these stories and pictures, I find them very interesting. Thank you
Wow and Wow again!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thank you tara,
we saw her twice. Once with Andrew in Nov 2010
and in April the 1 st with her 2 cubs with Taxon 2011
like to come sooooon again.
I am loving these blogs. Reading them from a long way away in Mongolia, recalling vividly the wonder of Djuma, her peoples and her creatures.
What a gorgeous girl. She makes such pretty babies too
Stunning animal. One of the most beautiful created by God!!!
Thanks for finding the time to describe the terminlogy for the newbies!
I have been following Karula for about five or six years now and come every year from America to see her. She is not only my favorite wild animal on earth, she is also the most beautiful leopard I have ever seen. (and that is many) I have a very large picture painted on canvas in my media room of her, so I can also visit her every day. Thank you Karula for all the pleasure you have brought to me.