When a big cat attacks...

I've been "threatening" to write about "freedom" in the last few days, I will, I'm just waiting on some details, some decisions. When it comes to freedom humanitarian and environmental issues are closely linked. Manipulating forces affect both. I hate it when I feel I'm being manipulated, it affects my own sense of freedom... so I get protective of others when they are being manipulated, whether they be human or wildlife. But yeah, more soon...

The image takes in one of the areas of interest in the Modi Khola valley. I've had cameras in and around that particular conflict zone and am a few days away from checking cameras higher (and not in the photo) on the ridgeline above where I've written "school children start walking from here". There is a small waterhole, in deep, beautiful forest. I can't wait to see what we find. The images from the region so far have been exciting. You may have seen the video of the young black bear I posted on the Mountain Biodiversity facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/groups/205706422804198/) a little while back. 

There is more, much more ... BUT the forest leopard, the elusive "Chituwa"as it is known here remains just that, elusive.

I'm becoming more and more fascinated by this animal. So little is known about the leopards in this part of the Himalaya. As I've mentioned before the tiger and the snow leopard get all the press. Everybody goes blah blah blah about these two great cats. But the chituwa remains such a mystery. I'm really attracted to mystery. And now that there is mounting evidence that the chituwa is existing up to 4000m, well, is this animal the true mountain tiger?

Buffalo have been taken. Buffalo are big. Buffalo are strong. Buffalo can be extremely feisty and they fight hard. In the extreme steep terrain of the Himalayan jungles it takes a big cat of major strength and stealth to take an animal such as a buffalo. When I show my three photographs to locals who have had big cat encounters (the photos are of tiger, chituwa and snow leopard) most people point to the chituwa. And most of them describe a cat which is almost tiger like in size. To survive on these steep slopes and take big ungulates, well, these chituwa have to be very strong in the hind quarters... and that is the type of animal that is described to me. And it is described with a sense of awe...

Of course it could be a yeti taking these buffalo. However, the footprints look more like a cat than a yeti. The scat is also more like that of a cat. I don't know much about anything but I'm sure yeti shit is bigger than leopard shit. Cat scat, yeti shit ... I spend a lot of time checking the ground...

I'm also excited about the next camera placement, at the foot of mighty Maachapuchare, the beautiful unclimbed mountain, much higher up in a place where your sleeping bag needs to be damn good. What dwells there? Is this the overlap point between snow leopard and chituwa? Do these two leopards hunt the same prey in the same area? And will I find more bears? 

And will I be building a "rock tent" and lying in wait for days on end? Oh wait, I wasn't supposed to write that last question ... more soon  Cheers Jack.