Gilles and I were fortunate enough to be at one of those iconic cheetah sightings last week, and to have our best camera gear with us. Of course, as pointed out in many earlier blog updates, we see cheetahs nowadays very regularly. Someone who stays with us for 5-7 nights can quasi expect to see them at least once, if not twice. It isn’t guaranteed, but it would be unlucky not to see them within that time frame.

It is estimated that we have at least 5 cheetahs now on our reserve (I personally think it’s the odd one more), and there are plans to introduce 2 more, so the population is steadily increasing. Sad news, it would appear, regarding the cheetah cub we have been seeing on and off for a while: The mother seems to have abandoned him, and by now we assume he (or she) hasn’t made it. That’s truly sad. In wild nature, however, the survival rate of cheetahs is fairly low, so whatever the reasons, this happens. The survival rate is probably about 30%, so for a cheetah cub to make it is hard, and beset by risks and many hazards. The same is true for all cat cubs, by the way, including lion cubs.

Anyway, without any further ado, here is the video! We spotted these two male cheetah brothers right on the edge of “Broken Dam”, basking in the late afternoon sun. After we observed them for about half an hour, our other game driver turned up, and all our guests got to see the cheetahs as well. So, curtain open, here it is! Enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlX9VmvSIPg