Sanctuary

“With no remains of a kill to be seen,” recounts artist Guy Combes, “it took me a while to figure out what had happened here before I arrived. The beautiful female leopard perched precariously in the fork of a boscia tree-for which the Maasai Mara is famous-looked like she had either just fed or was expecting cubs and three hyenas circled its base. My conclusion was that she had successfully hunted in the early dawn, managed to drag her quarry into the tree, partially fed, but then lost the remainder of her prey to the hyenas. Leopards and hyenas are both fearsome predators, but if outnumbered a leopard is far better off retreating to safety. The leopard’s phenomenal ability to climb trees is essential, not only for keeping prey away from others, but also to reach sanctuary when faced with danger. The hyenas finally lost interest and moved away, allowing this leopard to descend and slink off to a nearby ravine.”

Guy is fresh off his “Old World-New World” Joint Exhibition (with Greenwich Workshop artist Andrew Denman) at Nature in Art Museum in the United Kingdom. He is a signature member of the Society of Animal Artists, Artists for Conservation and last year was the first ever winner of the International Artists Magazine wildlife competition.