Field guide Cole van Rooyen at the Lush Private Lodge in Pilanesberg National Park was able to capture the entire full-speed cheetah hunt. Cole shares his experience and footage with LatestSightings.com.
“We had been waiting at a herd of impala for about 15 to 20 minutes, knowing that a cheetah named Rain was in the area with her two cubs. Suddenly, the impala started running off, and Rain zoomed past our vehicle and into the bush. We thought the action had moved out of our camera shot, but we were wrong.”
Impalas have adapted to survive in Africa among the big cats. They have incredible speed and agility, being able to run up to 60 mph. They also have keen senses, being able to detect predators from a distance and communicate danger to their herd with alarm calls.
Rain is a well-known cheetah in Pilanesberg National Park, where she is one of the 9 cheetahs in the park. She is an elder cheetah and has had five litters of cubs in the park. Quite an accomplishment for a cheetah as they normally average 4 litters in their lifetime. Rain has played a crucial role in helping to preserve the critically endangered cheetah population in the park.
