LEOPARD

LROPARD
The Leopard (Panthera pardus) is an Old World mammal of the Felidae family and one of the four 'big cats' of the genus Panthera, along with the tiger (P. tigris), the lion (P. leo) and the jaguar (P. onca). Once distributed across southern Eurasia and Africa from Korea to South Africa and Spain, it has disappeared from much of its former range and now chiefly occurs in subsaharan Africa, as well as fragmented populations in India, Indochina, Malaysia and western China. Leopards which are melanistic, either all-black or very dark in coloration, are known as Black Panthers.

This spotted cat most closely resembles the jaguar physically, although it is of lighter build. Males can grow to weigh 91 kg (200 lb) and the females can weigh 60 kg (132 lb). However, in parts of their range where larger cats (i.e. the Lion in Africa and the Tiger in Asia) are absent, leopards may grow considerably larger. Certain subspecies, such as the now possibly extinct Anatolian Leopard, were known to reach almost jaguar sized proportions at times.

Behavior

Leopards are infamous for their ability to go undetected. They sometimes live practically among humans and are usually still tough to spot. They are graceful and stealthy. Among the big cats they are probably the most accomplished stalkers. They are good, agile climbers, but can not get down from a tree headfirst, because they do not have the ankle flexibility — the only two cats that do are the Margay and the Clouded Leopard.

Female leopard viewed from behind. Note the white spots on the back of the ears used for communication with cubs when hunting in long grass

Along with climbing, they are strong swimmers but not as fond of water as tigers; for example, leopards will not normally lie in water। They are mainly nocturnal but can be seen at any time of day and will even hunt during daytime on overcast days. In regions where they are hunted, nocturnal behaviour is more common. These cats are solitary, avoiding one another. However, 3 or 4 are sometimes seen together. Hearing and eyesight are the strongest of these cats' senses and are extremely acute. Olfaction is relied upon as well, but not for hunting. When making a threat, leopards stretch their backs, depress their ribcages between their shoulder blades so they stick out, and lower their heads (similar to domestic cats). During the day they may lie in bush, on rocks, or in a tree with their tails hanging below the treetops and giving them away.

Diet and hunting

Leopards are truly opportunistic hunters. They will eat just about any animal. Their diet consists mostly of ungulates and monkeys, but rodents, reptiles, amphibians, birds, fish, are also eaten. In fact, they hunt about 90 different species of animals. A solitary dog, itself a formidable predator, is a potential prey for leopards, although a pack of dogs can tree or drive off a leopard. In Africa, mid-sized antelopes provide a majority of the leopard's prey, especially Impala and Thomson's gazelles. Leopards are known to take animals up to the size of an adult eland ^[4]. In Asia the leopard preys on deer such as chitals and muntjacs as well as various Asian antelopes and Ibex. It stalks its prey silently and at the last minute pounces on its prey and strangles its throat with a quick bite. Leopards are capable of carrying animals up to three times their own weight into the trees.

Leopard resting on a tree

Because of their wide range, leopards face competition with a variety of other predators notably lions, tigers, hyenas and various species of wild dogs. Leopards avoid direct competition by hunting at different times of the day and avoiding areas frequented by them. Also in areas with large numbers of large predators, they typically store their kills out of reach in trees. Contrary to popular belief however, leopards don't always store their food in trees. Many if not most kills are dragged and hidden in dense vegetation.

Although most leopards will tend to avoid humans, people are occasionally targeted as prey. Most healthy leopards prefer wild prey to humans, but cats who are injured, sickly or struggling with a shortage of regular prey often turn to hunting people and may become habituated to it. In the most extreme cases, both in India, a leopard dubbed "the Leopard of Rudraprayag" is claimed to have killed over 125 people and the infamous leopardess called "Panar Leopard" killed over 400 after being injured by a poacher and thus being made unable to hunt normal prey. The "Leopard of Rudraprayag" and the "Panar Leopard" were both killed by the legendary hunter Jim Corbett. Man-eating leopards are considered bold and commonly enter human settlements for prey, moreso than their lion and tiger counterparts. However because they can subsist on small prey and are less dependent on large prey, leopards are less likely to turn to man-eating than either lions or tigers.