Sponsoring the cat’s radio collar is the camera team’s way of giving back to Africa who they say has provided them with breathtaking scenery to capture on film over the last couple of years.

The leopard was in a very bad state when Gerrie Camacho of Mpumalanga Parks and Tourism brought him to Ubhetyan-o-Africa for help.

The cat was discovered trapped in a snare around its body. It had to undergo several operations, done by big cat specialist Dr Peter Caldwell in Pretoria.

During one of the operations a large ball of scar tissue, that formed internally, had to be removed.

The cat was then brought back to Ubhetyan to recuperate and was deemed healthy enough to be released back into the wild last week.

A Czech camera team sponsored R30 000 towards the cat’s upkeep and for it to be fitted with a radio collar.

The collar will not only track the leopard and alert researchers when something happens to it, but it will also provide valuable information about the movement of adult male cats.

Members of the camera team were present to assist with the cat’s release in the Buffelskloof area. The cat was very thin when it was released.

The weight loss was attributed to stress factors of being kept in captivity whilst it recuperated.

The leopard has been named Ziki after a Czech adventurist named Zigfried who travelled the world and published many books about it. He is currently 98 years old and unable to travel.

Deon Cornelius of Ubhetyan said that since the cat’s release last week Friday, he has been able to track it, and it is still in the vicinity where it was released.

The leopard, said to be at least four years old, has also managed to catch a bush-buck ewe which is a good indicator that all is well with it.

Watch: Leopard saved from snare