A drought trapped these helpless catfish in a muddy pool. When a leopard figured it out, it couldn’t resist jumping in to try and catch them, causing all the fish to flip and panic!

Candice Pappin, a nature enthusiast with Touched by nature safaris, was lucky enough to watch this leopard grow up in Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, making every sighting she gets extra special. But this one will never be forgotten.

Over a few days in July, Candice noticed the leopard returning to this specific waterhole. He kept coming to check the water level, and when it was dry enough, we found out why…

“I knew he was waiting for all the fish to be huddled under the log, so I kept coming to check on him…”

Some African species of catfish have adapted to survive with almost no water for certain periods. They enter a dormant state called aestivation and use hardly any energy. In extreme cases, they can survive by burrowing into the mud.

That said, they haven’t adapted any abilities to deal with all the new predators they face when the water levels drop. And the leopard knew this!

One morning, Candice went to check if the leopard was still at the waterhole. He was, and Candice spent three hours with him, but without much activity. Just as she was about to leave, a couple of warthogs came for a drink, and the excitement began!

“He immediately went into a stalking position, but the warthogs caught his scent and ran off as he came sprinting out of hiding.” The leopard missed out on the warthogs, but the chaos from their escape caused the fish to squabble, which definitely caught the leopard’s attention.

“Like a switch, it triggered something inside him. He ran straight onto the log and decided it was now or never! Looking at the fish, he reached into the muddy water, and with a swift movement, grabbed one!”

“I couldn’t believe what I had just witnessed. The adrenaline was pumping; those three hours had paid off, and what a show it was! He went into a catching frenzy…’’

“At one point, he decided to walk straight into the muddy water and submerge his head, which was very entertaining! He eventually ended up covered in black mud from head to toe.”

“By the time he was done, he had caught 11 fish! Some, he carried into our hide or placed under a bush, others, he left lying on the dried mud, and a few were stolen by a saddle-billed stork and a fish eagle.”

“The ‘fishing spree’ continued for days after that, and I’m sure it will carry on until all the fish are gone and the ‘puddle’ has disappeared.”