Budding photographer Abhishek Pagnis was on a family vacation when life took a wild turn as he captured a black panther that was standing 20 feet away from him.
Abhishek Pagnis, a Pune-based engineering student was on a family vacation to the Tadoba Andhari National Park in Maharashtra. The 23-year-old considers himself very lucky to be present at the moment where he could capture the surreal imagery of the black panther. Overwhelmed, he spoke to the Indian Express and said,
“It was my first ever wildlife trip. We waited for over 2.5 hours around the area where he (the leopard) is usually spotted hoping to see him.”
The photograph dates back to June 2019 and had gone viral when he shared it on the internet. He recalled the moment when he witnessed the leopard and said,
“The animals around raised an alarm and started making noises. When a predator animal such as a lion or tiger is nearby, prey animals like deer and monkeys let out alarm calls to alert others. This was our cue to stop our vehicles and prepare the cameras.”
The Leopard Was Shy
Talking about the unexpected daring of the black cat and said,
“He is actually a shy leopard. The ones seen in Kabini Reserve are quite bold leopards. So, there are many sightings. However, this one from Tadoba is very shy.”
Although the black leopard has been spotted many times in the national park, Abhishek considers himself to be really lucky to have spotted the cat just 20 feet away from him.
“This was clicked in June last year and went viral only today morning after someone posted it on twitter. We were not scared and instead were thrilled to have spotted the leopard.”
A month earlier, a black panther was spotted in the Kabini forest of Karnataka. The images had gone viral.
Source: The Indian Express
