Rare 'black panther' photographed for first time in a century

Black Panther has been everywhere in recent years - but spotting one of the animals the famous superhero is named after in the African wilderness is a little more rare.

A wildlife photographer and biologists working in Kenya have captured images that scientifically document the elusive African black leopard also known as a black panther for the first time in more than a century.

A tiny minority of leopards have a genetic mutation that causes them to appear all black.

Black leopards are actually a type of black panther, made famous by the Marvel Comics character of that name. Black panther is a general term that covers any black big cat. Black jaguars in South America, for example, are a type of black panther. Any black leopard in Africa and Asia is a type of black panther.

A team of San Diego Zoo biologists shot the rare footage after spending months watching and waiting.

The images are believed to be the first confirmed sighting of the rare animal since 1909.