This leopard snapped its selfie in mega urban metropolis of Mumbai (Bombay). He looks a bit startled.
The big cat was prowling Aarey Colony, a neighborhood on the outskirts of the city, when it tripped Nayan Khanolkar's camera. The cat looks almost as surprised as Khanolkhar was. “When I saw a picture of the leopard with a look of inquiry in the direction of the camera, I realized it was special,” he says.
Khanolkar, a native of Mumbai, began photographing urban leopards after one of the big cats killed a seven-year-old in 2013. He started in Aarey Colony, which sits at the edge of Sanjay Gandhi National Park -- which covers 40 square miles and hosts more than 1,000 species, including leopards. It isn’t unusual for them to explore adjacent neighborhoods.
Still, the animals are sly and surreptitious, and difficult to photograph.
Khanolkar started his hunt by identifying several locations where leopards often pass through Aarey Colony. For this photo, he set up an infrared motion sensor in an alley, attached a Nikon D700 to a nearby building, and positioned three strobes at various points throughout the area. Khanolkar visited the spot every few days to check his trap. After four months of waiting, he captured a stunning leopard creeping through the scene.
Moral of the story: lock your doors and windows, and keep the kids inside at night.
Mostly possums, skunks and raccoons around here.
ReplyDeleteCoyotes sighted on the other side of town, and some pets have gone missing. We see news reports of bears in backyard swimming pools from time to time.
A couple years ago a woman was killed and partially eaten by a mtn. lion, while bicycling in a wildlife area.
You guessed it- the lion was later killed by officials.
=T.W.=
The leopard looks hungry and there are Indians in need of reincarnation. There is a certain balance of nature going on.
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