Endangered Animals: The Leopard

The leopard (Panthera pardus) is the smallest of the four “big cats." There are nine subspecies of the leopard and four of these are on the critically endangered list published by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The leopard is mainly found in Africa but there are small groups found in Pakistan, Russia, Sri Lanka and China.

  1. Description

    • Leopards have dark rose-like markings on their bodies, known as rosettes, and these help the leopard camouflage itself when it stalks its prey. The leopard is straw colored with a white chest and stomach area. The body of a leopard is fairly long with short limbs and large feet. The head and body measure between 50 and 65 inches and the tail can measure up to 43 inches in length. Leopards range greatly in size and can weigh between 70 to 200 lbs.

    Habitat

    • Leopards are adaptable animals and can be found in forests, grassland, savannah and semi-desert. They can live on cliffs, swampy forests and in mountainous areas. They spend a majority of their time in trees protecting the food they have caught and avoiding predators such as lions.

    Diet

    • The leopard has a varied diet that includes gazelle, baboons, wildebeest and aardvarks. They are opportunistic feeders, well known for taking fish from eagles and stalking the mountain gorillas. They will feed on animals that are already dead (carrion) and will steal from tigers, but not from lions or hyenas as these animals are likely to prey on the leopard. The females are the primary hunters and tend to hunt every five or six days with several carcasses being stored in a tree at any one time.

    Reproduction

    • Leopards are known to mate at any time of the year and one female is often pursued by several males. The average gestation period for the leopard is 96 days and up to six cubs may be born at any one time. Newborn cubs weigh around 1 lb. when they are born and are carried around by their mother when young. The male leopards are not involved in the rearing of the cubs. They are usually kept away by the female, but have been seen bringing meat to the nursing mother (queen).

    Conservation Status and Breeding Programs

    • The number of leopards left in the world has been dramatically reduced over recent years due to the loss of its habitat. Nearly half of the species of leopard are on the endangered animal list--the Amur, Anatolian and Barbary leopards are now almost extinct. Leopards eat carrion and this means they can easily be poisoned by farmers in villagers who consider leopards to be pests, as they are known to take livestock from farms. Leopard hunting still goes on today, despite the species being endangered, as high prices are still paid for leopard skins The Amur leopard that is found in Russia is on the verge of extinction with around only 30 left in the wild. Farmers burn their fields, which has destroyed the leopards homes. The Amur Leopard and Tiger Alliance (ALTA) is an organization that supports the conservation of leopards and for many years has been financing breeding programs in China and Russia. There are now around 300 Amur leopards in zoos with the aim being to reintroduce these animals into the wild.