Big cats roaming the East African Wild

The Big Cats are quite fascinating, each uniquely different from the next. They include the mighty Lion “King of the jungle”; Cheetah “the fastest land animal” and the Secretive Leopard all found in East Africa. Overall the big cats of the world include the Tiger, Jaguar, Lion, Leopard, Cheetah, Cougar and snow Leopard, the first four being members of the genus panthera due to their robust roar which can be heard as far as 8km away but all belong to the same family Felidae. They are vicious predators commanding respect from other wildlife.

Inhabiting the savannah, woodlands, dense bushes and grasslands of East Africa, the Lion (panthera Leo) dubbed the King of the jungle due to its brave nature as a predator is the second largest cat after the Tiger. The biggest male lion is estimated to weigh 250kg with the female weighing an estimated 168kg both with exceptional strength capable of bringing down the biggest of buffalos 4 times its size.
Most legends often portray the Lion as powerful, brave and dignified and that’s why you will find its image on coats of arms and national flags in many nations across the globe.
These carnivorous felines’ characteristics include a short ocher coat, a tufted tail, with the male having a thick mane of brown or black hair encircling the head and neck. Scavengers in nature their main source of food comes from hunting with the rest coming from stolen kills from others predators. The female in most cases does most of the hunting which is made successful by a number of them collaborating thereby laying an ambush into which they drive the prey.
Unlike most big wild cats, the lions are pretty social and can be found in prides of about 15 ranging from 5 to 10 females, their young, and 2 or 3 territorial males. The males in each pride work in unison all with a common goal which is to protect their females. Whenever a new male takes control of a pride, he usually kills the present cubs usually found in litters of 2 or 3 and will proceed to sire own offspring.
The main threat facing Lions comes from the Humans who for centuries have been killing Lions in rituals of gallantry, as hunting trophies, and for their medicinal and magical powers. The most recent is habitat encroachment leaving little or no room for them to roam freely. However there are measures underway to protect them and conserve their habitat.

The Leopard (Panthera pardus) is a large, carnivorous feline having either ocher fur with dark rosette-like markings which assist them to camouflage perfectly. Spotting Leopards has often proven to be a daunting task due to the fact that they are very elusive, solitary and nocturnal boasting of abilities such as climbing, swimming and can live in rather diverse habitats as compared to other wild cats. This include dense bush in rocky surroundings and riverine forest adapting to many places in both warm and cold climates a factor that has seen human encroachment of the parks not affected them as much.
Leopards incessantly move about their territory, hardly ever staying in an area for more than two or three days at a time. Ranges are marked with urine and claw marks and leopards proclaim their presence to other leopards with a rasping cough.
As a predator the Leopard is quite cunning, crafty hunter, its prey ranges from mammals, fish, reptiles and birds. Lions and hyenas have been known on occasion to take away a leopard's kill but thanks to its tree climbing abilities the leopards store their larger kills in trees where they can feed on them in relative safety.
Humans have for decades been the major and most constant threat to wildlife especially due to the increased encroachment into parks and reserves leaving little or no room for the wildlife, global warming is also a contributing factor thanks to pollution of the environment which has inter caused the depletion of the O-zone layer leading to global warming consequently hundreds of deaths of wildlife to lack of sufficient food as no mother earth is not performing as expected. Other threats include hunting for gallantry rituals or in the case of leopards their soft, beautiful fur has been used for clothing with the tail, claws and whiskers being popular fetishes.

The Cheetah (genus Acinonyx) is a sprinter renowned for its speed estimated at 120km/hr usually for short distances of 460m. It is able to achieve this due to its large nostrils that allow for increased oxygen intake, and an enlarged heart and lungs working in unison to circulate oxygen efficiently enabling its respiratory rate to increases from 60 to 150 breaths per minute in a typical chase. Its tail acts as a rudder-like means of steering to allow it to make sharp turns while its semi retractable claws adds it an extra grip during the high speed pursuits.

Out of the 3 big cats in East Africa, it is the smallest with the males weight estimated at 55kg and 40kg for the female with a length of 1.4m. Distinct features of the Cheetah include short tan far with round black spots, effective camouflage while hunting; deep chest, narrow waist, a small head with dark tear marks running from the corner of its eyes down the sides of the nose to its mouth which greatly aid in keeping the sunlight away from its eyes hence is able to see long distances; It also has a white underside with no spots. Unlike the other two big cats the Cheetah is known only to purr but not roar. This features help distinguish it from the Leopard for which it’s usually mistaken.

The cheetah is found in habitats of grassland, woodland savanna and semi deserts. The male is quite sociable and territorial grouping together for life in coalitions. Each male in a coalition mark their territory by urinating on objects such as trees, logs, or termite mounds, the scent is the identifier. Males will attempt to kill any intruders and fights result in serious injury or death. Contrary to the male females do not establish territories but rather live in home range when raising their cubs and in solitary the rest of the time. They are also known to hunt alone though the cubs occasionally accompany their mother in order to learn the art of hunting. Females start procreating from as early as 2years giving birth to an average litter of 3 to 5 cubs over a gestation period of 90 to 98 days though it is known to at times give birth to up to 9 cubs. The first eighteen months of a cub's life are crucial as they learn survival skills, at eighteen months, the mother leaves the cubs, who then form a sibling/sib group, that will stay together for another six months. On reaching two years, the female siblings leave the group, and the young males remain together for life in a coalition.
Both however find it hard to adapt to new environment and are under constant threat from Lions who kill the cubs for the mere pleasure of it and Hyenas who prey on the same don’t help matters much as they are contributing to the Cheetah’s extinction. Once widely hunted for its fur, the cheetah now suffers more from the loss of both habitat and prey and scientist are foreseeing a possible extinction. Recent studies show that not more than 12,000 remain worldwide majority being found in eastern and southern Africa. In East Africa, easy spot are made in the Maasai Mara game reserve Kenya and Serengeti national park in Tanzania. Though in fewer numbers, it can also be spotted in Tsavo National park Kenya, Mkomazi in Tanzania and Queen Elizabeth in Uganda.

East Africa offers you the chance to see the big cats in their natural habitats. The chance to make documentaries of the same is also allowed as long as you follow the right criteria and gain the necessarily documentation and licenses. A good example of a superb documentary made in East Africa in the infamous “Big Cat Diary” with viewers across the globe. For a safari the best time is over the drier months when the grass is short and sighting is so much easier.

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