Unlike many other kinds of big cat, leopards tend to eschew contact with other leopards, and instead prefer to live out solitary lives hunting their prey, and staying safe in the upper tree branches which they can climb to so easily.
This footage, captured by Jaco Joubert and sent in to Latest Sightings, appears to show that although leopards might prefer to live alone, they are also not going to pass up on an opportunity to meet an old friend with a happy greeting.
A Very Happy Cat
How these two had managed to locate each other again was unknown. The most likely scenario is that one of the leopards had managed to pick up the other’s scent while it was prowling through some overlapping territory.
It’s also unknown how long these two cats had been separated for, but they were certainly very happy to see each other again. One of the leopards was sitting waiting for its fellow, while the other hurried through the underbrush to meet it.
Despite being a deadly predator, capable of bringing down prey larger than itself, and dragging it up into the high branches of trees, this leopard had the appearance of a happy housecat as it padded through the trees and the long grass.
Looking For Friends In The Right Places
By the time they’ve reached two years old, leopards will have typically left the safety net provided by their mother, and struck out to live the solitary lifestyles they’re famous for.
As adults, the only time they’re likely to spend with their own species is the time it takes to mate and potentially raise young of their own, but otherwise leopards like to keep to themselves.
These two don’t quite look large enough to be adults, so they’d either not struck out by themselves yet, or they had done so only very recently, and managed to meet each other on their route to independence.
Together Again
The arriving leopard almost couldn’t make its way through the brush quickly enough to say hello to its friend, although its friend didn’t make much of an attempt to meet it.
The rest of the meeting was thankfully less one sided, as the leopards reunited fully with little head bumps, and lots of rolling around in the long grass. Together they made for a very idyllic scene of peace and happiness.
It’s even possible that these two are a mating pair that are familiar with each other, as leopards tend to have good memories, especially when it comes to the long-term. Leopards have such good memories that they can even remember their own mothers long after they’ve left them.
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A Mystery Pair
Whatever the relationship was that these big cats had with each other, their reunion was clearly one that they’d both been eagerly awaiting, and it was a lovely scene.
Life in the wild can be tough, but having someone to spend time with, relax and feel safe with is a vital part of existence for almost all mammals that walk the surface of our planet.