As you can imagine there are many predators in the Mara. We saw and have photos of hyena, mongoose, bat-eared fox, jackals, serval, and the rare caracal. I even had a mongoose visit my tent one night as he pitter-pattered around the sides. I did not know what it was at first, and when I looked out the screen he was looking right at me. After 3 seconds he took off, and I never heard back from him again.

This page will link to the 3 primary predators we encountered. Within each section I have picked out the photos that show some of their more active behavior. I want to depict them as we saw them in their natural environment, and something more than you will see in a zoo.

Cheetah

Their eyes are magic in the morning sun as they look for breakfast

Lion

This is the same lion in the Disney movie African Cats. They call him Fang in the movie, we called him Snaggletooth.

Leopard

You can see the reflection from my flash in this leopard’s eyes. They have a structure at the retina, called the tapetum lucidum, that causes this reflection.