Almost indistinguishable from the grey stone of the mountain side, the big cats’ stealth and savagery has earned them the sinister sobriquet ‘the grey ghosts of the Himalayas’.
But it is their prey who may more accurately be dubbed ghosts, for once in the sights of a stalking snow leopard there is very little chance that they will survive to tell the tale.
Can you spot him? Barely distinguishable from the grey mountain side, snow leopards’ stealth has earned them the sinister sobriquet ‘the grey ghosts of the Himalayas’
Creeping closer: The big cat is difficult to spot as he slowly stalks a couple of blue sheep in the foothills of the Himlayas
Ready for the kill: Its body coiled like a spring, the leopard waits for the right moment before breaking cover and pouncing on the unsuspecting sheep below
The dramatic set of photographs follows one snow leopard as it stalks a blue sheep in the Himalayas, inching closer and closer before pouncing and ripping the animal’s throat open.
Then, in a whirlwind of gravel and dust, the big cat pounces. Leaping 50 metres from its hideout, it chases the youngest of the blue sheep up, then down a steep rock face.
The juvenile runs for its life, but the outcome is almost certain. One false step and the snow leopard has its jaws tightly clamped around the animal’s neck.
Matter of life and death: The snow leopard bounds down the mountainside, with its blue sheep prey making a desperate run for it
Coming in for the kill: The leopard rapidly closes in on the blue sheep with a giant leap from on outcrop to the next, quickly closing in on the hapless animal
Switchback: The desperate sheep changes direction in the hope that it can wrongfoot the advancing snow leopard
Desperate: Even in the difficult mountain terrain, there is no way it can outrun the determined predator on its heels
The end is nigh: Finally, in a cloud of dust and gravel kicked up in the chase, the hungry cat catches up with his prey
Fight of his life: The animal desperately tries to flee, but at this stage there is no escape from the crafty predator
The coup de grâce: The snow leopard sinks his teeth into the blue sheep and drags the doomed animal down the mountainside
Time for dinner: He pauses for a second over the felled beast, catching his breath, before beginning the meal he has worked so hard for
Takeaway food: The predator drags off the dead blue sheep to a spot where he can feast in private
Mr Riley said that capturing the moment of the kill evoked in him a mixture of ‘intense exhilaration and tremendous relief.’ He believes that his photographs are the first ever taken of a snow leopard making a kill.
Did you spot him? The snow leopard began his mission hiding behind this rocky outcrop, peering down at the blue sheep below
Not easy to see: Here the circle shows how the predator blended in with the rock of the mountainside, his oblivious prey grazing below
Sleek and discreet: This picture shows how the animal’s distinctive markings camouflage him against the patters of the rocks
With just 7,000 in surviving in the wild, and those that are there so difficult to spot, the snow leopard has become something of a holy grail for wildlife photographers working in the Himalayas
Almost imperceptible: This picture featured earlier this month on MailOnline shows another snow leopard stalking the Himalayan foothills
Snow leopards are classed as endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Hemis National Park, a stronghold for the creatures, is home to around 50 or 60.