The slightest sound or movement will trigger an instant reaction from the apparently comatose leopard. I found this particular animal in the Aberdare National Park in the Kenya highlands. He was draped over the branch of a wild fig tree, perfectly posed for this painting. Chui is the Swahili word for leopard.

Unlike lions, leopards are solitary. They often hunt at night to avoid competing with the much larger lion and a leopard will usually drag its kill into a tree to protect it from scavengers like the hyena. They will spend their day draped in the branches of a favorite tree, avoiding the worst of ground-level insects, catching a welcome cooling breeze and, through lazy, half-closed eyes, mentally logging the movements and locations of possible prey seen from a treetop lookout post. At dusk, a leopard will descend and emerge at a point where his instincts direct him to hunt. The leopard, with his arrogant independence, his ruthless hunting skill and beautiful coat, epitomizes everything feline. - SC