Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

The leopard is easily the most elusive and sought-after sighting on most safaris. In fact, in 19 years of visiting Serengeti National Park, this is only the second leopard mother that I’ve witnessed with a cub. Finding this watchful mom was extremely lucky, but having her accept my presence while waiting to capture an image that depicted her hidden labyrinth, was a great privilege. I rarely spotted both of them at the same time, yet kept gazing into the tangled canopy of the enormous tree that was serving as both a refuge and a playground for her baby. And then it happened, the mother leopard moved high into the branches and took up a perch where she could survey a distant troop of baboons, one of the few threats that could raid their natural hideaway. The baboons were oblivious to the leopards’ presence, but mother’s gaze suggested she was considering moving the baby to another sanctuary further up the valley. Curious as to what mom was looking at, the baby proceeded into a fork of the tree nearby to see what all the fuss was about it – both paused just long enough for this exposure.