Leopards of Dead Tree Island

In 2011, Richard Armitage narrated a wild-life documentary about the lives of leopards in the Okavango Delta in Botswana.

Made by Earth Touch for National Geographic, it was first shown shown in the USA on National Geographic Wild in August, and in the UK in October 2011.

The film follows the lives of three leopards living on Dead Tree Island in the Moremi Game Reserve. Five year old Buddha is the dominant male in the area, Mozweyo is one of his mates, and three year old Teepa is their only surviving offspring.

Mozweyo has recently given birth to two more cubs, and the programme shows her fight to feed them and protect them from predators. It depicts the harsh reality of the lives of the animals of Dead Tree Island, both predators and prey - leopards, lions, hyenas, baboons, monkeys, jackals, elephants and impalas.

Ultimately, neither of Mozweyo's cubs survives, and some viewers may find the scenes of their deaths distressing.

Video clips from Leopards of Dead Tree Island

This clip is from the beginning of the programme, and introduces the three leopards whose lives it follows.

Watch the clip

Another video clip from the programme can be seen on National Geographic's website. It shows the final hours of Mozweyo's last remaining cub, whose hind leg has become caught in a tree. A post on the Earth Touch website describes the incident in more detail and includes film footage with a commentary by the cameraman who was observing the leopard and her cub. (Some viewers may find these two clips distressing, particularly the second one, which includes footage of the cub's death that the National Geographic film omits.)

Further information

Leopards of Dead Tree Island on the National Geographic website
'A leopard cub's last breath', a video clip from the programme
'Leopard encourages her paralysed cub', a description of one of the scenes from the documentary on the Earth Touch website.
Information about the Moremi Game Reserve