Have you ever seen a leopard or any field signs of leopards in the Eastern Cape? We’d love to hear from you if you have – you’ll be contributing to important leopard research and you stand a chance of winning some awesome prizes to boot!
The Cape Leopard Trust’s (CLT) leopard database collects information on leopard activity and threats to leopards from across the Cape provinces. Over the past 3 years, this database has collated thousands of records – thanks to fantastic contributions from citizen scientists, researchers, and partner organisations. Currently, most data points are from the Western Cape, but in 2024 our sights are also set on expanding leopard knowledge in the Eastern Cape.
In 2023, the Cape Leopard Trust partnered with Jamma International, Panthera and Nelson Mandela University to support PhD student, Silindokuhle Tokota. His work focusses on the status of, and the threats facing leopard populations in the Eastern Cape. Over the next couple of months, the CLT invites leopard records from across the Eastern Cape to be submitted to our database. These points will contribute to Silindokuhle’s research and shed light on an understudied area for leopards within South Africa.
The competition:
Contributors who submit Eastern Cape leopard data points between 4 March and 6 May 2024 will be automatically entered into the SPOT SNAP SUBMIT! Lucky Leopard Competition for the chance to win one of these fantastic lucky draw prizes:
- Two-night stay for two people at Tree Tops Safari Lodge, Lalibela Game Reserve
- One-night stay for two people at Kuzuko Lodge, Greater Addo Conservation Area
- A Footprints in the Fynbos children’s book in the language of your choice (Afr / Eng / Xho)
- A Cape Leopard Trust goodie bag
What exactly are we looking for?
We are seeking all verifiable observations of leopards and their field signs in the Eastern Cape from 2010 onwards.
Leopard sighting records can consist of camera trap photos, photos of leopard signs (i.e. spoor/tracks, scats/droppings, scratch marks on trees, feeding sites) and photos of direct leopard observations (i.e. visual sightings).
We need a photo, date as well as a location point for each record.
How to submit your records and enter the competition:
Go to app.capeleopard.org.za and follow the steps to create an account.
Each data point must be submitted individually to the online portal, so if you have multiple observations to share or prefer to contribute via email, please contact [email protected]
Competition rules and terms:
- Winners will be drawn from the list of individuals who submit a record between 4 March and 6 May 2024.
- Individual names (and not records) are entered into the draw, and each name is only entered once.
- To be eligible to win a prize, records must be verified as leopard by our team and the record must be from the Eastern Cape and from 2010 to present.
- Individuals who prefer to submit records via email (rather than via the online portal) in their personal capacity are eligible, but not representatives of organisations.
- Entries are open to anyone residing within South Africa and aged 18 or above
- Entries close on 6 May 2024 at midnight, and the winners will be announced mid-May via email and on the CLT social media channels.
Please share the competition flyer below and help us spread the word!
The Eastern Cape SPOT SNAP SUBMIT! Lucky Leopard Competition is supported by Lalibela Game Reserve and Kuzuko Lodge. Thank you!
Background on the CLT leopard database and online data portal
Leopards in the Cape occur at low densities and utilise considerably larger home ranges compared to leopards in other parts of South Africa. This vulnerable species faces multiple threats to their survival, including limited and fragmented habitat, reduction in prey numbers and high levels of conflict with people. The Cape Leopard Trust manages a consolidated database of leopard distribution and threats to leopards in the Cape provinces.
Leopards are nocturnal, solitary animals whose excellent camouflage and secretive nature often means that their presence in an area can go largely undetected. In a bid to centralise leopard presence data we created an online data portal for citizen scientists to upload their leopard observations and contribute to our database. Within our online ‘Leopard Data Portal’ (app.capeleopard.org.za) you can submit your data to one of three purpose-built platforms, namely ‘Leopard Spotter’, ‘Threat Tracker’ and ‘Snare Aware’. The data portal is both desktop and mobile-friendly. Being a web-based application, it is compatible with various operating systems and doesn’t need to be downloaded to your mobile device. Just save the link to your phone’s home screen and use it as an app. Submitted data is confidential, anonymized, and stored securely.
