Don't Misunderstand The Leopard

Few wildlife enthusiasts have tracked leopards more closely or known them more intimately than JONATHAN and ANGELA SCOTT, who have made the Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya their home for over 40 years. They speak to DEEPANWITA GITA NIYOGI about their book, The Leopard's Tale, that chronicles the secret and risky life of two leopards and their cubs.

- Deepanwita Gita Niyogi

What prompted you to set out on the arduous trail of leopards? Why did you choose to document the lives of Chui and Half-Tail?

Leopards are the most elusive and charismatic of all big cats. They are not just stunningly beautiful, but also present the challenge to study and reveal the secrets of their way of life. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, when we were following Chui, it was difficult to spot a leopard in Africa, let alone photograph one. At that time the estimate was that up to 50,000 leopards were being killed each year in the continent for their skin.

Chui disappeared in January 1984 after giving birth to Light and Dark. She was five years old then. Though she reappeared briefly in October 1985 with three cubs, we have not seen them again. A few years later, Angie and I spotted two-year-old Half-Tail in Chui's old range—Leopard Gorge and Fig Tree Ridge—and started following her. We tracked her as she grew up, attained adulthood, became a mother and raised three cubs, until she was killed in 1999 at about 11 years of age. Along with Half-Tail, we were also documenting her daughter Zawadi. But she too disappeared at the age of 16.

Leopards are highly secretive. What challenges did you face while following them and their cubs at a stretch for some 30 years?