111Kg Leopard killed in Zimbabwe?

Shakka said:
Most Leopards killed in Africa are not weighed, and by the time the hunter gets home, they weigh 180lbs. It is said that even PH's overestimate by 40%

For one of my Leopard hunts I bought a scale with me, and before weighing, I asked my very experienced PH what he thought it would weigh, he said, "160." I said 150. When we put it on the scale, it weighed 121.0lbs. He looked so much bigger. Plus a biologist estimated the age to be 7.5-8.5 years ols, so he was a fully mature, territorial male.

120-130 is most likely the average weight of Leopards taken in Africa. That puts some perspective on how massive a 180lb Leopard is.

This Leopard at 244lbs, unless it's a hoax, is a unicorn
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Yeah, 125 lbs armed with 4 chainsaws and a hydraulic shear in the front.
 
sgt_zim said:
Yeah, 125 lbs armed with 4 chainsaws and a hydraulic shear in the front.
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EXACTLY!! Just think of how powerful a 10lb domestic cat is, and now imagine a wild leopard who walks 10 miles a day on his hands

I have a few pics of a 3 second mauling, let me find them
 
Here ya go...
IMG_7310.jpeg
 
Shakka said:
Most Leopards killed in Africa are not weighed, and by the time the hunter gets home, they weigh 180lbs. It is said that even PH's overestimate by 40%

For one of my Leopard hunts I bought a scale with me, and before weighing, I asked my very experienced PH what he thought it would weigh, he said, "160." I said 150. When we put it on the scale, it weighed 121.0lbs. He looked so much bigger. Plus a biologist estimated the age to be 7.5-8.5 years ols, so he was a fully mature, territorial male.

120-130 is most likely the average weight of Leopards taken in Africa. That puts some perspective on how massive a 180lb Leopard is.

This Leopard at 244lbs, unless it's a hoax, is a unicorn
Click to expand...

This is a problem across predator hunting in general. Leopard, mountain lion, bears, wolves, etc. There aren't antlers to rely on, so people use weight to try and impress people. But most people don't want to put it on an actual scale, because the don't want to hurt their own (or their client's) feelings.

Part of the issue is it's so often lied about and inflated, a guy kills a 120lb leopard or mountain lion and everyone tells him it must have been small. Because so many people go around talking about how they are killing 200lb+ cats and of course a black bear is bare minimum 400lb by the time it leaves camp.
 
Sabre said:
This is a problem across predator hunting in general. Leopard, mountain lion, bears, wolves, etc. There aren't antlers to rely on, so people use weight to try and impress people. But most people don't want to put it on an actual scale, because the don't want to hurt their own (or their client's) feelings.

Part of the issue is it's so often lied about and inflated, a guy kills a 120lb leopard or mountain lion and everyone tells him it must have been small. Because so many people go around talking about how they are killing 200lb+ cats and of course a black bear is bare minimum 400lb by the time it leaves camp.
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Yes exactly!! And since skin stretches quite a bit, a good taxidermist can easily add "30-40lbs" to the mount

The PH tells the client what he wants to hear, the client is happy hearing it, and all is well

I have never seen a scale at a Leopard camp, and I bet that it's for that reason
 
Shakka said:
Yes exactly!! And since skin stretches quite a bit, a good taxidermist can easily add "30-40lbs" to the mount

The PH tells the client what he wants to hear, the client is happy hearing it, and all is well

I have never seen a scale at a Leopard camp, and I bet that it's for that reason
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I like weighing mine as much as possible just to have a clear understanding. But I have also had times where a scale just wasn't on hand when a harvest was made. Sometimes you are on a mountain and it just isn't going to happen. And sometimes the outfitter doesn't keep a scale at camp. Possibly on purpose :ROFLMAO:

I have had many times where someone told me they got a bear with an outfitter and it was a 350lb bear "at least". And they show me a picture and it was a very young, small bear. I generally ask, "You weighed it and saw the weight?" And most often they say, "well, no, the outfitter told me", or "no, but it was obvious". I don't burst their bubble, there would be no point in ruining their memory.

But I do wish it wasn't such a thing to inflate the weights when they are unknown. Mostly for this reason; I have been at camps where someone gets a very good bear, bobcat, mountain lion, whatever. Like say, someone gets a nice 250-300lb spring bear. And someone else will say something like, "That's ok, kind of small, a buddy of mine got a 600lb bear". Then they show the picture and it's about a 200-300lb bear.
 
One nice thing about hunting in Nuanetsi. The records on all cats taken is meticulous. My cat weighed 75.97kg (~167.5#’s) and had a 16-1/4” skull that was boxed for measuring. When I lifted him I thought I was going to rerupture a hernia repair I had surgery on a couple months before. And for a little guy I’m pretty strong. So I can understand how guys can overestimate weight.

For Nuanetsi a nice, big, mature tom, but by no means really big. Even for Nuanetsi. Here’s a pic of the jaws I had to take to submit for documentation.

IMG_1133.jpeg
 
Betterinthebush said:
When I lifted him I thought I was going to rerupture a hernia repair I had surgery on a couple months before. And for a little guy I’m pretty strong. So I can understand how guys can overestimate weight.
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I think that's at least part of why people overestimate as well. Lifting 150lbs on a bench press is way different from lifting an awkward, always shifting bag of jelly off the ground that weighs 150lbs.
 
Betterinthebush said:
One nice thing about hunting in Nuanetsi. The records on all cats taken is meticulous. My cat weighed 75.97kg (~167.5#’s) and had a 16-1/4” skull that was boxed for measuring. When I lifted him I thought I was going to rerupture a hernia repair I had surgery on a couple months before. And for a little guy I’m pretty strong. So I can understand how guys can overestimate weight.

For Nuanetsi a nice, big, mature tom, but by no means really big. Even for Nuanetsi. Here’s a pic of the jaws I had to take to submit for documentation.

View attachment 792449
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Wow thats an awesome cat! 167 id BIG anywhere...good for you!

Did they age him? His teeth are rounded off, but still intact, etc I would guess, from what I see, 6.5 yo
 
Betterinthebush said:
One nice thing about hunting in Nuanetsi. The records on all cats taken is meticulous. My cat weighed 75.97kg (~167.5#’s) and had a 16-1/4” skull that was boxed for measuring. When I lifted him I thought I was going to rerupture a hernia repair I had surgery on a couple months before. And for a little guy I’m pretty strong. So I can understand how guys can overestimate weight.

For Nuanetsi a nice, big, mature tom, but by no means really big. Even for Nuanetsi. Here’s a pic of the jaws I had to take to submit for documentation.

View attachment 792449
Click to expand...
I disagree - a 75kg leopard is REALLY BIG! Well done!
If you look across the rest of the huntable area in Zim (and even further afield), those southern lowveld cats are generally the largest. I have been present at a leopard mauling from a large lowveld cat and its a terrifying spectacle, I can assure you.
 
Shakka said:
Wow thats an awesome cat! 167 id BIG anywhere...good for you!

Did they age him? His teeth are rounded off, but still intact, etc I would guess, from what I see, 6.5 yo
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Yes. Spot on the money. His spot pattern had been recorded several times during leopard surveys. He was 6.5yo. They’ve been trying to catch this cat for a couple years. Almost caught him last year at the end of the season. But he was very clever. I filed a hunt report on it.
 
I had a phone meeting with Adrian just now on a different issue that we’re working on but got some more details for those interested.

1) both weighings were done supervised. One in a barrel that the barrel weight tare had been zeroed off of (at a taxidermist) and the other at a shipping company with digital scales (the video that most have seen).

2) the hunter was using a .416 Rigby and the cat took three shots (all good shots, with the last being muzzle to chest contact) Two dogs were mauled severely after the cat hit the ground with a bullet (the first) through the shoulder/lungs. One hound (one of my favorites, I have a picture of us together with my cat) had to be euthanized. The other had to have her front leg amputated. I will sorely miss Snoopy on my next hunt with Adrian in ‘28.

3) the leopards skull boxed at 17-1/2”
1789492775634.png


4) the cats belly was empty. Adrian cut the cats tracks a full 16km away (off) from the closest bait station. This cat was a mutant, one-of-a-kind, animal.
1789493164307.png

5) by everyone’s opinion that counts (PH’s) the cat was aged to be 7-1/2 yo. Maybe 8, but definitely 7.
 
Betterinthebush said:
Yes. Spot on the money. His spot pattern had been recorded several times during leopard surveys. He was 6.5yo. They’ve been trying to catch this cat for a couple years. Almost caught him last year at the end of the season. But he was very clever. I filed a hunt report on it.
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Thank yu for those photos I loved looking that them. I looked at countless photos of skulls/teeth where I knew the age, plus I handled a bunch of skulls with a biologist as well. I really enjoy doing it and anything involving Leopards

I am obsessed with Leopards. I read and read everything that's out there on them and I even did 2 field studies besides actual hunting safaris.
I killed 2 but passed on many more.

As you know, it is difficult to age a Leopard in the tree, that's why we must use cameras and do our best to shoot only fully mature males.

So many 2-3 year olds are taken that shouldn't be
 
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Imagine that thing coming into your tent for a midnight snack.
What a toad!
 
Huge Leopard. Congratulations to the hunter, the PH, and the rest of the team. Sorry to hear they lost a great dog and another lost a leg.

That area of Zim has always produced some of the largest leopards in Africa. One of the reasons why I hunted there for both my hunts. They are however notoriously smart and even more challenging to hunt in that area. Bait hunts are exceptionally difficult with lower than average success rates in cattle country, despite that area having some of the highest leopard densities in southern africa
 
Mtn_Infantry said:
Congratulations to the hunter, the PH, and the rest of the team. Sorry to hear they lost a great dog and another lost a leg.
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Thanks, man. Adrian has taken a beating this year with vet bills. He and his clients have given as much as they had taken this year. But losing a superstar pack leader this close to the end of the season is particularly hard.

You would have loved watching him work.
IMG_1227.jpeg
 
Think of the difference between the aggression of a Leopard and a Mt Lion. Both are more or less the same size, with the same equipment, but they can't be any more different in mindset
 
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