The leopard is a large and serious predator of the cat family, the females of the animal weigh about 50 kg, the weight of males is 70 kg or more.

The graceful beauty of a wild cat is very deceptive. An elegant predator, stretched out in bliss on the grass, in a split second turns into a merciless and fast hunter, who swiftly attacks his prey. The word leopard is translated from Greek as leon (lion) and pardus (panther). The habitat of representatives of the cat family of the tropics and subtropics, they are widespread in Asia and Africa.

The color of the leopard is very bright and beautiful: the golden skin is decorated with an intricate pattern in the form of black rings and spots. In addition to the traditional spotted coloring, the skin of a leopard can be black, such animals are called black leopards or panthers. In bright sunlight, you can see that a spotted pattern is visible under the anthracite-colored skin. When two colors are crossed, kittens are born in captivity, of which half the litter is black, half is golden. The color of the coat and its density depend on the habitat of the animal: the inhabitants of the savannas have a sandy color, the inhabitants of the desert wear lighter fur. If felines live in an area with severe climatic conditions, then their fur is thick and dense, in more comfortable conditions the undercoat of animals is thin.

Leopard females weigh about 50 kg, males weigh 70 kg or more.

The light and plastic figure of a leopard has a pronounced rounded head, a long tail and slender, lean paws. The tail of the animal has a length equal to half the length of the body of a wild cat. It is not only a decoration, but also an indicator of the predator's mood. The cat does not change its royal posture either during rest or at the moment when it is preparing for an attack. The leopard is well armed - in its arsenal are sharp claws, which are retracted into special scabbards at rest, the blow of the claws of the beast is dagger-like, it pierces the victim with claws similar to sharp, honed blades. The powerful teeth of a predator easily hold a prey that exceeds its own weight and, when moving around the area with prey in its teeth, it develops speed up to 16-18 meters per second.

The tree climbing skills of the leopard surpass those of any world champion in acrobatic disciplines: the height of the jump up is four or more meters, it jumps up to eight to nine meters in length.

The predator is able to climb up any trees, including those with an absolutely smooth trunk. Leopards often descend from a tree trunk head first. Each adult has its own hunting grounds, which are marked with claws and urine. The animal stops the intrusion of an opponent with a warning roar.

Leopard, lion, tiger and jaguar are the four most prominent representatives of the panther genus. But the snow leopard and the smoky leopard, with an outward resemblance to a leopard, have nothing to do with this genus. Biologists call the leopard a supercat, he feels equally confident both on the ground and much higher, easily moving in the branches of trees.

In the family of leopards there are hybrids: leopon and jagopard.

• Leopon is a hybrid obtained by crossing a male leopard with a female lion. The leopon was first officially registered in India at the beginning of the 20th century. Over time, they began to breed in captivity. Leopard hybrids are not able to bear offspring. Outwardly, the leopon looks peculiar: its head looks like a lion's, the rest of the body looks like a leopard. Male hybrids can grow a mane similar to a lion's mane, more than 20 centimeters long. The color of the animal contains black and brown spots, and there is a tassel on the tail.
• Jagopards are obtained by crossing a leopard and a jaguar.

How much does a leopard's "lunch" weigh?

The average weight of a leopard's prey is 25 - 50 kg. But this does not mean that the predator is ready to be content with small prey. The animal is able to cope with a zebra, a deer or a horse. But, if a cat is hungry, then it does not disdain frogs, mice and fish. The leopard is a thunderstorm for all kinds of monkeys, they avoid meeting with him, and even the sight of the animal's skin inspires panic in the monkeys. A smart and cautious predator, even if there is an abundance of food, climbs into livestock farms, where livestock becomes its prey. This behavior of a leopard can only be explained by self-confidence: avoiding a meeting with a person, he still goes for “easy” prey, hoping for his speed and power.

The perfect hunting skills of a leopard allow it to perfectly disguise, remaining unnoticed on a thick fork of a tree, when the skin merges with the color of the bark, or to sneak in the grass 30-40 cm high, snuggling tightly to the ground. Only the tail can betray the animal: when the animal is worried, its tail hangs down, and the tip twitches a little. The leopard hides the obtained trophy in a place inaccessible to jackals and wolves: on rocks or in the forks of trees. The advantage of climbing trees allows the predator to store a certain supply of food. He can eat up the remnants of the “second freshness” dinner on the fourth or fifth day, but if another predator has touched his reserves, the cat will not touch the prey even if it is hungry.

How long does a leopard live?

The record lifespan of a leopard in captivity is 24 years. Under natural conditions, the age of an animal's life is much shorter. Predators live both in families and alone. In winter, when the rut (mating period) begins, they keep in pairs, but sometimes rivalry begins because of the female. Showdown rarely ends with the death of males: for all their aggressiveness, leopards are quite reasonable and not conceited.

Male leopards are exemplary spouses; they do not directly participate in the upbringing of offspring, but live close to children and sometimes visit them. The mother at this time takes care of the babies and zealously raises them, at the age of one and a half years, the cubs begin an independent life and the leopard family breaks up.

Up to three kittens are born in the family, they grow up under the care of their mother and reach sexual maturity at the age of 30 months, leaving the parental nest. Predators start their own family at the age of 2-3 years, the age of 6-8 years is the peak of the animal's physical activity, by the age of 12-15 leopards reach old age.

Leopards can roar, but are a little quieter than lions. In addition, they can purr like domestic cats. Leopards have acute hearing, they hear five times better than humans. Leopards have one feature: they do not need to drink a lot of water, they have enough of the moisture that enters the body with food.

Leopards are poached for decorative skins and whiskers and bones that are used in the manufacture of medicines. Although the population of predators is quite large - about 500 thousand individuals, more than 10 times the number of lions, tigers and cheetahs combined, they belong to the category of protected animals close to critical. The weight of leopards taken by man was: males - from 36 to 38 kilograms, females - from 28 to 45 kilograms. Hunting for these beautiful and dangerous animals is not prohibited in a number of their habitats. But environmentalists are already sounding the alarm and insisting on limiting and completely banning the shooting of felines. Endangered include such subspecies as: South Arabian, Far Eastern, Ceylon, Javanese and Persian leopards.

Short review:

Our hero has several names - leopard, panther, leopard. In the Russian-speaking environment, this predator is most often called a leopard, while black leopards are usually called panthers. The word "leopard" today is used only in relation to the snow leopard, or irbis. Whatever the name of this magnificent cat, famous for its deadly grace and agility, is well known to us since childhood. However, in this article I will try to talk about it in as much detail as possible. I hope this will expand your knowledge about this beautiful animal.
Leopard. It is as beautiful as it is deadly. The leopard is the embodiment of the feline essence itself. In this predator, as perhaps in no other animal, incredible dexterity, cunning, strength and grace are in perfect harmony.
So, after this brief introduction, let's move on to the origin.

Origin:

The leopard belongs to the Pantheridae subfamily, that is, Pantherinae. This branch, separated from the common feline trunk, is the youngest. It is to this subfamily that the most formidable predators among the cats belong, and, perhaps, among the predatory order as a whole. Unlike cats of the subfamily Felinae, all panthers are adapted primarily to kill prey that are superior in size and physical strength. Of course, cats of the subfamily Felinae, in turn, in rare cases, can deal with prey that exceeds their size, but only in panthers, the main part of the victims are animals larger than themselves. Based on this, cats of the subfamily Pantherinae are the most professional killers among all land predators. They do not specialize in any particular prey. Their physical strength, agility and intelligence allow them to hunt any animal that they can overcome, and at any time of the day. Their main time of activity is not limited to the dark hours of the day, unlike cats of the subfamily Felinae, which are usually (but not always) more nocturnal animals than cats of the subfamily Pantherinae. Cats belonging to this subfamily are the largest and strongest, and therefore they do not avoid stronger predators that hunt during the day. For this reason, all panther cats have a round pupil, or at least a rounded one, and not an elliptical pupil, as in the vast majority of members of the subfamily Felinae. Other differences between panthers and the latter is also the fact that all panthers are able to really growl, which felines are not capable of. The ability to growl is due to the structure of the hyoid apparatus, which outwardly resembles a curved Latin letter "H". It consists of 11 small bones. In the center they are connected to each other by two elastic ligaments. The growl results from the resonance created by these ligaments. In the representatives of the subfamily Felinae, the sublingual apparatus is completely ossified, so they are not capable of such powerful and rough sounds. In addition to roaring, panthers can also purr, like the cats from Felinae, and even purr. However, they can only purr on exhalation, as felines purr both on exhalation and on inhalation.
The species Panthera pardus formed in Africa about 1.5 million years ago (maybe a little earlier). In Asia, the oldest remains of the leopard date back a million years. Now that we have a more or less clear picture of the origin of the subfamily Pantherinae and the species Panthera pardus itself, let's proceed directly to the classification.

Taxonomy:

The leopard is a typical representative of the Pantherinae subfamily and directly genus Panthera, which in addition to it includes the most formidable predators of the cat family - tiger, lion and jaguar. He is the smallest representative of his kind, but the most dexterous and one of the most dangerous. Like its closest relatives, which were mentioned above, the lepard can make a powerful growl, which cats from the Felinae subfamily, which includes all small cats, as well as lynxes and cougars, are not capable of. Below, for convenience, is a clear classification table of the leopard in the animal kingdom:

Kingdom: Animalia (animals)
Type: Chordata
Subtype: Vertebrata (vertebrates)
Superclass: Tetrapoda (quadrupeds)
Class: Mammalia (mammals or beasts)
Subclass: Theria (viviparous mammals, or true beasts)
Infraclass: Eutheria (placental or higher animals)
Order: Carnivora (predatory)
Suborder: Feliformia (feline)
Family: Felidae (felines)
Subfamily: Pantherinae (Pantheridae)
Genus: Panthera (panthers)
Species: Panthera pardus (leopard, or panther)

Appearance:

The leopard, along with the cougar, is the fourth largest modern cat. Depending on the subspecies and sex, the weight of a leopard varies from about 20 to 100 kg. Males are larger and more massive than females. On average, the weight of an adult male is 50-90 kg, and only in very rare cases does it reach 100 kg. From zoos, heavier animals are also known. Physically, the leopard is very strong, especially considering the relatively small size of the animal. It perfectly combines qualities such as strength and agility. He can take down an animal much larger than him.
The leopard is one of the best jumpers in the animal kingdom. Among cats, it is surpassed in this respect only by the cougar, and then only slightly. The leopard feels free, both on the ground and in the trees. In addition, he is an excellent swimmer, and can, if necessary, cover huge distances by swimming, for example, swimming across a wide river. Like all cats, the leopard is not capable of a long run, as it runs out of breath rather quickly. However, it can reach speeds of about 60-65 km / h (or maybe even more), and its reaction speed is simply fantastic. All this makes the leopard an excellent hunter and a great fighter, although he tries to avoid direct collisions, as he leads a solitary lifestyle, and serious injuries can mean death for him.
All the sense organs of the leopard are excellently developed. He has sharp eyesight, and he sees perfectly, both during the day and in the darkest night. His hearing is unusually thin, capable of picking up the slightest rustle. Leopards are able to hear high frequencies that are inaccessible to the human ear. The sense of smell is also quite well developed, especially if we take into account the fact that the sense of smell in all cats is not very sensitive. In addition, the leopard has well-developed vibrissae, which play an important role as an organ of touch.
The skull of a leopard can reach over 28 (almost 30) cm in length. However, on average, the length of the leopard skull is approximately 23 cm (in small subspecies it can be even less). The presence of a fairly large cranial ridge indicates great power jaws. The powerful muscles of the neck and shoulders, in turn, contribute to a strong grip. At the same time, it should be borne in mind that the leopard always knows exactly where exactly to bite the victim. In the mouth of a leopard there are 30 strong teeth, among which, first of all, the huge fangs of a predator are striking. All this makes the bite of a leopard truly terrible. With his jaws, this lucky hunter is able to hold the carcass of an antelope, which far exceeds his own weight.
In addition to a deadly grip and impressive teeth, the leopard is armed with sharp retractable claws and powerful paws, the impact of which is very dangerous in itself. The length of the claws on the front paws, on average, is about 5 cm. Moreover, not only the claws on the front paws are deadly, but also on the hind legs. For example, if the enemy still managed to press the leopard to the ground and grab onto his throat, then with his hind legs he can easily rip open the belly of the enemy. As already mentioned, a leopard and a puma are equal in size to cats. However, with the same size as the cougar, the leopard is almost always stronger than it. Since, firstly, he has stronger jaws. Secondly, he has a more powerful skeleton, and therefore more powerful muscles. And finally, thirdly, he is much more violent and aggressive than the cougar. Well, it also seems to me that the leopard is smarter than the cougar, since it belongs to the subfamily Pantheridae, and the panthers are the youngest branch of the cats and they are considered the most highly intelligent among cats.
In leopards living in the tropical and equatorial zones, the color is brighter and more contrasting, with more frequent spots than in leopards living in temperate climate. In leopards from the jungle and forests, the color is darker and more saturated than in animals that live in savannahs, mountains or semi-deserts. Depending on the climate also depends on the length and thickness of the coat.
In addition to the typical spotted color, there are absolutely black individuals among leopards, popularly called black panthers. This is not a separate species, as previously thought, and not even a subspecies. The black color of the leopard is the result of a certain mutation. Such individuals have an excess of melanin, the pigment responsible for black and brown colors. Black leopards even have a blackish tongue, and their eyes are usually Green colour. It is interesting that the spotted pattern is still preserved in such individuals, and in the light one can see the black spots characteristic of all leopards, which are darker than the general black color. Melanists are found among all subspecies, but most black leopards live in tropical forests. This is due to the fact that in a dense tropical forest, it is easier for individuals with such an unusual color to survive than, for example, in the savannah.

Behavior:

The leopard leads a terrestrial lifestyle, but it climbs well and even hunts in trees. Often he goes hunting under the cover of night, but often hunts during the day. Like all panthers, it is active both at night and during the day.
The leopard is a solitary hunter. This animal prefers solitude, except for the mating season, during which the male and female stay together for a short time. Therefore, he used to rely solely on his own strength. In this regard, he does not like to take unnecessary risks and always soberly assesses the situation. If he has the ability to run away, he can run away even from an opponent who is weaker than him. But this beast is by no means a timid one. When necessary, he always takes the fight and he is terrible in anger. Cold-blooded and prudent, strong and surprisingly fast in movements, the leopard is an extremely dangerous opponent and, as mentioned above, he is able to defeat an animal much larger than him.
The leopard is a territorial animal. Each individual has its own individual area. The size of individual plots largely depends on the abundance of food. If there is a lot of prey, then the plot, of course, is smaller. If prey is rare in the area where the leopard lives, then, accordingly, the animal needs a larger territory. The individual sites of males partially or completely include the sites of one or more females. Males jealously protect their territory from the encroachments of another male. In the female, territoriality is less developed, however, she also tries not to enter the lands belonging to other females.
Leopards mark their territories with odorous urine. These odorous marks contain information for other leopards, thanks to which the other animal can find out what sex the animal left the mark, its approximate age and readiness for mating. In addition to such odorous signals, leopards also leave purely visual marks - traces from their own claws on tree trunks.
In addition to beauty, grace and strength, the leopard is very smart, and is one of the most intelligent animals (not counting, of course, the higher primates). Tracking a leopard, even for a professional hunter, is an extremely difficult task. No wonder the famous hunter John Hunter considered the leopard the most dangerous animal in Africa. When a leopard becomes a cannibal, he turns into the very embodiment of a nightmare. Man-eating leopards are one of the most bloodthirsty and lucky cannibals in the animal kingdom. Thanks to the books of another famous hunter, Jim Corbett, we know about two, perhaps the most legendary man-eating leopards - the Panar man-eater, which killed about 400 people and the Rudraprayag man-eater, on whose account 125 registered victims. This cunning and calculating assassin terrorized Rudraprayag for a long 8 years before Corbett finally managed to shoot him. Actually, it must be said that leopards and people did not have a relationship from the very beginning. The enmity between the genus Panthera and Homo goes back thousands of years. Back in prehistoric times, the ancestors of leopards and the leopards themselves hunted our ancestors. And our ancestors, gathering together, sometimes dealt with a nightmare cat. This is probably why, even now, of all predatory, a civilized person experiences the greatest fear precisely before the representatives of the cat family. Big cats in some tanistic way affect our subconscious. Who knows, maybe it's genetic memory...
Despite its intellectual abilities, the leopard is difficult to train. It is much more difficult to train him than a lion or a tiger, but still possible. The main thing is to understand the animal, to find your own special approach to it. But, in fairness, it must be said that a tame leopard is always potentially more dangerous for humans than, say, a tiger. Look closely at the leopard. In his eyes - fragments of ice, look haughty, proud. This cat will not tolerate familiarity. She will always be devoted to her instincts, her innate qualities. In the section on the origin of the panthers, it was already said that the leopard is not strictly a nocturnal animal. This is a lone hunter, in which absolutely everything is perfect. No wonder the leopard is called the supercat.

Hunting and competition with other predators:

As mentioned above, a leopard can hunt at any time of the day, but where its more formidable relatives, the tiger and the lion, live side by side with it, in order to avoid competition, the leopard is often forced to hunt under the cover of night. The prey of this lucky hunter can be any animal from a frog to a small buffalo. In the African savannah, he most often hunts impalas, gazelles, wildebeests, hartebeests, warthogs, etc. In Asia - on deer, wild boars, mountain goats, etc. The leopard, unlike the lion and tiger, almost never eats carrion. In favor of the fact that the leopard is a very skilled hunter is the fact that the leopard knows how to professionally deal with such dangerous prey as the porcupine. For example, tigers often get wounded by the fearsome quills of this large rodent. Sometimes, they even become crippled, as porcupine quills stuck in the body of a predator cause infection and cause severe pain. For this reason, predators can become cannibals. For example, in the body of the famous man-eating tigress from Muktesar, who was shot by the already mentioned Jim Corbett, many porcupine quills were found. The leopard, on the other hand, kills the porcupine, as a rule, much more skillfully than the tiger. According to Jim Corbett, he instantly grabs the porcupine by the weak spot - the head, and kills him. Thus, leopards are much less likely to be injured by porcupines than tigers.
Having killed his prey, he must, as quickly as possible, drag it up a tree, since stronger predators, such as, for example, a lion, or a pack of hyenas, can take away legitimate prey from him. I think largely for this reason, the victims of the leopard are most often such relatively small antelopes as impala, or bubal. After all, he still needs to drag the dead carcass up the tree. It should be noted that the strength of this cat is such that it is able to drag an animal up a tree twice its own weight. In addition to antelopes, the leopard often hunts monkeys, most often baboons, and, like the tiger, has a certain weakness for dogs. There are many cases when leopards dragged dogs right from under the noses of their owners so quickly that by the time they came to their senses, it was often too late.
In the savannas of East Africa and in the Asian jungle, the leopard is full of enemies. His stronger cousins, the lion and the tiger, can easily take his prey from him and, on occasion, even kill him. So the leopard tries to avoid meeting with its terrible relatives.
In addition to lions, other worst enemies of the leopard live in the African savannas - spotted hyenas. A leopard can easily finish off even the largest hyena, but a lone leopard cannot do anything against a pack of such predators. If he did not manage to drag his victim up a tree in time, then the prey that he got with such labor is lost. The leopard also avoids collisions with a pack of hyena dogs. But, in fairness, it is worth noting that the latter do not give him as much trouble as the spotted hyenas, which the leopard simply cannot stand.
In Asia, the leopard has skirmishes with red wolves. These predators, having gathered in a large flock, represent serious threat for the leopard. Sometimes, the leopard has to escape from them in the trees. Unlike them, gray wolves do not pose a serious danger to the leopard and try to avoid encounters with this beast.
Sometimes there are skirmishes with the Himalayan and brown bears. However, such skirmishes are quite rare, especially with brown bear. Yet these animals occupy completely different ecological niches. And then, in any case, the leopard can easily dodge the bear and run away.
However, in the tropical forests of Central Africa, the leopard is the top predator. There are no lions, no hyenas, and of course no tigers. The leopard is the largest and most powerful predator African jungle. Here he hunts duikers and other forest antelopes, as well as monkeys. In addition, even such a large animal as a bongo antelope, or a young buffalo (forest buffaloes are much smaller than their counterparts living in the savannas) can become its prey. There are cases when leopards dealt even with adult gorillas. However, as a rule, the leopard does not hunt gorillas, and tries to avoid them. Like it or not, but still the gorilla is much larger and stronger than the leopard.
Now I will tell you briefly about the very method of hunting this extraordinary beast. Like all cats, the leopard uses ambush hunting. Having outlined the victim, he imperceptibly sneaks up to her at an acceptable distance, then makes a lightning attack. The leopard overtakes its prey in a few seconds. If the pursuit drags on, then he interrupts the chase, because he does not have the endurance that antelopes, deer, etc. have. A leopard can hide anywhere, for example, in tall grass, or in rocks. Often a leopard attacks its prey directly from a tree.
Having overtaken its prey in the blink of an eye, the leopard, like all cats, first digs into it with its sharp claws, and then inflicts a deadly bite on the neck, thus cutting through the trachea, or simply suffocating the animal. If the prey is small, then it can immobilize it with a bite on the scruff of the neck.
A leopard kills its prey, in my opinion, much more elegant than a lion. For example, the impala, it often overtakes right in the air. These antelopes are incredibly jumpy and, when running away, they rush almost 10-meter jumps. Sometimes, a leopad, which jumps just as well, overtakes them while both animals - hunter and prey - are hovering in the air. During such collisions, the leopard, clinging to its prey, makes a real somersault with it. It is a terrifying, and at the same time, a beautiful sight.

Procreation and care for offspring:

For leopards that live in hot climates, such as Africa or India, the breeding season is not clearly defined. Animals can breed throughout the year. However, in countries with a temperate or cold climate, the breeding season falls at a certain time of the year. For example, on Far East The mating season is approximately January-February. During this period, male and female spend all their time together. The couple copulate many times a day. Each time the copulation lasts a few seconds. During mating, the female, like all cats, lies on her stomach, and the male, covering her, bites her scruff, like in lions or tigers. After the female is in heat (oestrus), the male leaves her. All care for the offspring lies with the female. Males do not take any part in the upbringing of their offspring. On the contrary, on occasion, adult males can even eat small kittens. Therefore, the mother fiercely protects her offspring from encroachment from any side. And the leopard mother is something terrible. She can, on occasion, even put a bear to flight, so it's best not to mess with her.
Pregnancy lasts an average of about 90 days (plus/minus about 10 days). As the birth approaches, the female begins to look for a safe haven for childbirth. It can be a crevice in the rocks, a cave, or even a hollow in the trunk. big tree. There can be from 1 to 6 cubs in a litter, but most often there are 2-3 of them. Newborn kittens weigh about 500-700 g, they are blind and very vulnerable. In case of danger, the female can move her cubs to a new lair.
Kittens grow quite quickly, and around the 10th day, their eyes open and other senses become more acute. Closer to three months, the mother begins to slowly wean them from milk. By this time, they already, as a rule, know the taste of meat and begin to show great interest in environment. Like all predator cubs, little leopards are very curious. Following their mother, they try to imitate her in everything and take the first steps towards an independent life. By about 5-6 months they are already able to catch small prey. However, they acquire full independence only by the age of two years, sometimes a little earlier. Males reach sexual maturity at about three years of age, females a little earlier. Life expectancy is about 20 years or more. The life expectancy of animals living in captivity live, as a rule, longer than the life expectancy of their fellows living in natural conditions.

Habitat:

The leopard is one of the most widely distributed feline species. Among the subfamily Pantherinae, today it has the widest range of habitat (among panther cats, only the lion was wider than it, but its range has long been greatly reduced). This cat easily adapts to a wide variety of biotopes. It can be found in dense tropical jungles, open savannahs, snow-covered taiga, semi-deserts and high mountains. It endures both merciless heat and extreme cold. The only thing is that he does not particularly like deep snow, which makes it difficult for him to move, since the leopard is not adapted to walking in deep snow, like a lynx or puma. For this reason, hunting leopards in the Far East is relatively easy. The fact is that animals use the same trodden paths, avoiding snowdrifts.
Today, the original range of the leopard has decreased, some subspecies are completely exterminated, and some are on the verge of extinction. However, the leopard is the most numerous cat species in the subfamily Pantherinae. Its number is approximately from 500 thousand to a million, according to various estimates.
I will not list all the countries in which the leopard lives. This range map will tell you better than me:

Subspecies:

In view of the fact that the leopard settled in the globe very extensively, then this species has formed many subspecies, in other words, geographical races. I must say that with the subspecies of the leopard, as with the subspecies of many other animals, confusion is going on. There is no unanimous opinion on this matter. Some tend to distinguish many subspecies, others less. Today, scientists have about 30 subspecies of the leopard. Some of them can be easily distinguished from each other, others are very similar to each other, and there is a doubt about whether it is worth allocating one or another subspecies at all. I do not set myself the goal of telling about all modern subspecies of the leopard, but I will talk about those subspecies that are best known to me.
Panthera pardus pardus is one of the largest subspecies. It lives in Central and East Africa. It is called the African leopard, although this name is not entirely accurate, since in Africa, in addition to it, there are several more subspecies. Its color is contrasting, the spots are plentiful, the general background of the coat is lighter than that of leopards living in the jungle. This subspecies is still quite numerous.
The Barbary leopard (Panthera pardus panthera) inhabits North Africa. The subspecies is endangered. The sizes are large.
The Indian leopard (Panthera pardus fusca) lives, as the name implies, in India. The sizes are medium and large. The color is contrasting and saturated.
Panthera pardus kotiya lives in Sri Lanka. Similar to the Indian subspecies, but generally smaller. The color is contrasting, the colors are saturated, like that of the Indian leopard.
The Persian leopard (Panthera pardus saxicolor) originally, in addition to Iran, lived in many other countries of Central Asia and the Transcaucasus. However, by now it has been exterminated in many places of its original habitat, and in others its numbers are catastrophically low. For example, there are only a few left in Armenia. Needless to say, this subspecies is endangered. The Persian leopard can reach the maximum size for its species, being one of the largest subspecies of the leopard, but individuals of medium size are also found. The coloration is not as contrasting as that of tropical subspecies. The general background of the wool is sand-colored, and outwardly this leopard looks a bit like snow leopard. The eyes are usually lighter than those of tropical leopards. The Persian leopard tolerates both heat and cold well and can go without water for a long time.
The Anatolian or Persian leopard (Panthera pardus tulliana) lives in Turkey. He used to live, also, in the north of Israel. Outwardly it is very similar to Panthera pardus saxicolor, and I'm not sure if it is even worth isolating it into a separate subspecies.
Panthera pardus ciscaucasica, in other words, the Caucasian leopard. There are only a few of these leopards left in the Caucasus. This subspecies, in turn, is also similar to Panthera pardus saxicolor. Maybe it's the same subspecies. In any case, the leopards that are still preserved in the mountains of Armenia belong to the subspecies Panthera pardus saxicolor.
The Arabian leopard (Panthera pardus nimr) lives in the Middle East. In Israel, single individuals are still preserved. The subspecies is on the verge of extinction. The color is rather pale. This is one of the smallest subspecies of the leopard. Previously, a subspecies was distinguished - Panthera pardus jarvisi (Sinai leopard), but in fact this is the same subspecies as Panthera pardus nimr.
The Far Eastern or Amur leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis) is the northernmost form of the leopard. The coat is long and fluffy. The eyes are usually blue in color. The color is quite saturated, especially considering that this is not a tropical subspecies. The Far Eastern leopard is easy to distinguish from a number of other subspecies, as it has a bright personality. Sizes are usually medium, sometimes large. The subspecies is in critical condition. There are about 30 of them left in nature, and surprisingly, this population is very stable.
The North Chinese leopard (Panthera pardus japonensis) is very similar to the Far Eastern subspecies. The dimensions are about the same as the last one. Perhaps it is not necessary to separate these two subspecies.

Photos:

African leopards:

Barbary leopards:

Persian leopards:

Indian leopards:

Sri Lankan leopards:

Arabian leopards:

Far Eastern leopards:

Northern Chinese leopards:

Melanistic Leopards:

Skulls of African leopards:

African leopard claw:

A leopard (leopard) is an animal that belongs to the class of mammals, the order of carnivores, the cat family, the subfamily of big cats, and the genus panther.

International scientific name: Panthera pardus (Linnaeus, 1758).

The Greek word πάνθηρ, from which comes the word "panther", another name for the leopard, consists of two bases: πάν (everything, everywhere) and θήρα (beast, predator), that is, literally "full-fledged predator." Although it is believed that the word "panther" comes from the Sanskrit pundarikam - "tiger", "yellowish beast". Prefix leo from Greek Λέων indicates a relationship with a lion. In Rus', the leopard was known as the leopard, pard and pardus, although the last two names also applied to another animal - the cheetah. The word leopard, which is also called this type of mammal, is of Turkic origin.

The leopard is able to attack a person. But man-eating leopards are much rarer than tigers and lions that attack people. Only an old or sick animal can do this. A healthy and young animal attacks a person only if it is wounded.

A leopard eats up to 20 kg of meat per day. After killing large prey, it feeds on it for another 4-5 days. Only after that the leopard goes on the next hunt.

Leopards drink a lot, especially after eating. In this regard, they always settle in those places where there is constant water. Cats go to the watering hole, as a rule, at night.

In addition to animal meat, leopards eat grass to cleanse the gastrointestinal tract of the hair they ingest while grooming their fur.

Cheetah on the left, leopard on the right

What is the difference between a jaguar and a leopard?

The structure of the body in both animals is similar. But the body of the jaguar is more massive, stocky and strongly built: the animal looks more solid and strong-boned compared to the leopard.

The jaguar has a shorter tail - 70-91 cm. In a leopard, it reaches 110 cm.

Unlike the leopard, the jaguar's head is larger and looks more massive.

The jaws of a leopard are smaller and narrower than those of a jaguar.

The difference between a leopard and a jaguar can be seen in the spots of the animals. The spots on the skin of the jaguar are similar to leopard ones, but are larger. In addition, the color of the jaguar seems brighter. The animals are united by the fact that they can both be melanistic, that is, black (though with spots slightly showing against the black background), and the name "black panther" can be applied to both the jaguar and the leopard, because both of these animals belong to the genus panthers.

The maximum speed of a leopard is 60 km/h. The Jaguar is faster: it can reach speeds of up to 90 km/h.

The jaguar differs from the leopard in terms of habitat: it lives in the south of North America, in Central and South America, and the leopard is in Africa and Asia.

The nutrition of both animals is about the same, but the jaguar is an excellent swimmer and supplements its diet with fish, frogs, turtles, and even small alligators. The leopard swims well, but reluctantly, and rarely eats fish. But, in addition to terrestrial inhabitants, he eats monkeys and other animals that live in trees.

Another difference between a jaguar and a leopard is that the leopard hides half-eaten prey on a tree or in the grass, and the jaguar buries it in the ground.

Pregnancy in a female leopard lasts up to 90 days, in a jaguar 100-110 days.

North Chinese leopard above, Brazilian jaguar below. Top photo credit: Rufus46, CC BY-SA 3.0. Bottom photo credit: Charlesjsharp, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Leopard hunting

Leopards, like other predators, are useful in that they destroy sick animals, restrain the growth of pest populations, such as monkeys.

People hunt beautiful spotted cats for valuable fur, and also destroy them because predators attack livestock. But, in general, leopard populations are declining due to economic activity people and, accordingly, changes in the habitual habitats of snow leopards. In some areas, the leopard is on the verge of survival, and in some it is completely destroyed. But, nevertheless, in most of its range, the animal successfully survives due to its ability to successfully hunt and adapt to any living conditions. In some countries, leopards are also killed for fun.

This mammal is one of the so-called "big five" animals - the favorite objects of sport hunting, among which are the lion, elephant, buffalo, rhinoceros and leopard. For this international organization, which controls the issue of trade in endangered wild species of animals and plants, allocates quotas for shooting leopards. The population of these predators is not declining from this. The states that receive these quotas take care of the conservation of the species.

• Female leopards keep cubs with them for quite a long time, especially males. They stay with their mother for 2 months longer than girls. The longer a female is followed by her brood, the fewer kittens she will give birth to during her life.
• Because leopards love to eat dogs, scientists fear the spread of distemper, a disease that dogs are susceptible to, among them.
• The leopard, or leopard, has always been a cult animal among the ancient peoples. In Asia, shrines and shrines were erected in honor of him. For many African tribes, the leopard is considered a sacred totem. But the predator achieved the greatest reverence in the society of leopard people. This secret society existed, and possibly still exists in Africa.
• The kings of African tribes are usually dressed in the skin of a leopard. By this they show that they have the strength, dexterity, speed of this animal. They inspire terror in their enemies. Other members of the tribe cannot wear this robe, as it threatens them with death.
• The leopard has a "namesake" among marine mammals - a predator from the genus of seals, which is named the sea leopard for its characteristic spotted coloration and the glory of a dangerous hunter.
• The white leopard (aka snow leopard) is not a light-colored leopard at all, but a separate species of mammal. It has the name irbis and lives in the mountains of Central Asia.
• The Bengal cat breed is very similar to a leopard, which is a hybrid of a domestic and Bengal cat. By the way, this breed has a very developed hunting instinct, and the nature of the cat combines the temperament of a domestic animal and a wild animal.
• In medieval heraldry, the image of a camelopard, a hybrid of a camel and a leopard, was often used. The animal, symbolizing courage and zeal, was depicted with the body of a leopard and the head of a giraffe, on which 2 horns grow.
• Clouded leopards also belong to the cat family. They live in southeast Asia and represent a separate genus within the family.

Leopard is a species predatory mammals groups of cats. The leopard, also called panther or leopard, is a subfamily of big cats, and is considered one of the members of the panther family. In the 20th century, the leopard was included in almost all security documents of countries on the planet, including the Red Book of the Russian Federation.

Appearance

Leopard is a big cat that second in size only to the lion and tiger. The body of the leopard is muscular and elongated, but at the same time light and elastic. The length of the animal's tail is more than half the size of its body. The legs of the animal are small in size, but at the same time very strong. The paws are massive and wide, and the head has a rounded shape and is not large. The crown of the leopard is decorated with short, rounded ears that are wide apart.

This animal has small eyes with rounded pupils. The mane is absent, vibrissae white or black reach a size of 120 mm. As for how much the leopard weighs, these indicators differ depending on the geographical area of ​​\u200b\u200bresidence. Animals that live in a wooded area have a smaller body weight and size than their counterparts that are in open areas. Males of these felids, as a rule, exceed the size of females by a quarter. The length of an adult leopard can vary in the range of 85-200 cm. The tail can reach a length of 55-80 cm.

Leopard color features:

Habitat and distribution of leopards

The places where leopards live are much more than the places where any other feline species live. Leopards are common in forest-steppe and forest areas, as well as in the mountainous and savannah territory of the African continent. Also, this type of cat inhabits the southern territory of Asia. Once upon a time, leopards inhabited the Transcaucasus, most of Africa, India and Pakistan. Also, their habitats captured Sri Lanka, Zanzibar and the island of Java.

Today, in many historical habitats, this species either does not occur very rarely, or is completely extinct. Among these countries are Zanzibar, the Sinai Peninsula and Morocco. In other places, the range of leopards has a structure divided into separate populations located at a considerable distance from each other. If we consider the territory of Russia, then leopards can live in the Primorsky Territory. It is also possible to meet an animal in the Caucasus.

Speaking of African leopards, it should be noted that for the most part they like to live in the jungle located in the central part of the mainland, as well as in the highlands. Also, these predators come across in the semi-deserts and savannahs of Morocco. Leopards are in great need of water, so they avoid living in dry places, bypassing the regions of Namibia and the Sahara.

In Asia, animals are usually live on the Amur in coniferous forests, as well as in subtropical and tropical forests, which are located on the plains and on the slopes of the mountains of India and South Asia. The places of residence of snow leopards in Asia continue up to the Arabian Peninsula. These animals do not come across only in the arid deserts of Asia, as well as in Borneo and Sumatra. However, archeological finds confirm that leopards once inhabited Sumatra as well. The current habitat of leopards captures parts of Afghanistan, Kashmir and the Caucasus, including the Himalayas.

Habitat of leopards in the Caucasus

In the Caucasus, the leopard population declined significantly at the end of the 20th century, becoming simply insignificant. We can confidently say that in this area these predators are on the verge of extinction. In the Caucasus, the range of leopards is located mostly on the forest foothills.

The range begins from the western areas, near Tuapse, and captures the northern territories. Then it reaches the eastern part to the end of the Caucasus Range. As for the foothills, snow leopards inhabit their forests and sometimes come across in their upper sections, less often above its border. The range of animals at the foot of the Caucasus Range descends down to the slopes of the mountains, and in Transcaucasia, habitats captured the piedmont part of the Lesser Caucasus, including the area between Kura and Rion.

Animal habitats in Central Asia are represented in Western Asia - in Afghanistan and Iran. This area is conditionally divided into several parts.

• In Turkmenistan, the main part of the range is represented by the Kopetdag.
• In Central Asia, the range is located on the right bank of the Pyandzha and Amu Darya rivers.
• The Far Eastern habitat belongs to the Korean Peninsula and Northeast China. This part of the range is located in Transbaikalia, the Amur Region and the Ussuri Territory.

Social and territorial behavior

Leopards are solitary predators that are mostly nocturnal. These animals can easily adapt to any living conditions. They can live in deserts, mountains, and forests. The territory of their individual residence can vary from 10 to 450 km. sq. - it depends on the availability of food and the terrain. The small physique of the leopard does not prevent him from successfully hunting large animals - their prey can sometimes reach up to 800 kg.

Leopards have the unique ability to climb trees. These animals can climb them, both for recreation and for hunting monkeys. But mostly leopards still hunt on the ground. Usually a predator quietly and carefully approaches the prey at a distance of one jump, and then pounces and strangles its victim. If the jump was unsuccessful, then the predator does not pursue the prey. In some cases, the animal may deliberately approach the victim noisily, and then hide. In this case, the victim, not understanding where to expect an attack from, is confused. Often a predator will lift the remains of prey up a tree to keep them from hyenas and jackals.

As a rule, the diet of a leopard is made up of ungulates - roe deer, deer and antelopes. It may occasionally feed on monkeys and rodents, as well as snakes and birds. Can hunt horses and sheep. Dogs, as well as wolves and foxes, often suffer from leopards. An animal for lack of food sometimes steals prey from its relatives. As far as a person is concerned, predators rarely attack people- for this you need to disturb the leopard. But he will certainly attack if he is wounded - in this case, the consequences will be very sad.

Breeding leopards

As a rule, leopards breed all year round in the southern regions of its range. Populations that are in the Far East breed most often in late autumn. The reproduction of these animals, as a rule, is accompanied by a roar and a fight from the male, which, naturally, for cats. At other times, the leopard is rather silent, which cannot be said about a tiger or a lion.

Pregnancy of the female, as a rule, lasts 3 months. The result of this is the birth of 1-2 (in rare cases, three) cubs. Shelter animals most often equip in crevices of rocks or caves. Also as a lair may be holes created by uprooted trees. Predators select an inconspicuous and quiet site for this. Leopard cubs are ahead of tiger cubs in development - as a rule, after 2 years they are sexually mature.

Snow leopard hunting

This predator has always been a significant trophy for hunters. They hunted leopards only within the range of their residence. Hunters have such a term as the "big five", which includes animals such as:

Each of the listed animals is considered for the hunter luxurious trophy and valuable booty.

If we consider hunting for snow leopards in the 19th-20th century, then we can say that in the regions of Asia and Africa this type of hunting had an uncontrolled and absolutely chaotic character. This was the main reason for the problem of the disappearance of this rare predator.

In some regions of Asia, leopard poachers are still found today, but this type of hunting is prohibited by law throughout the country. Alas, the demand for valuable and beautiful skins of these animals is still large on the "black market", and the organs of these predators are often used in folk medical recipes. Many states of the African continent give a certain quota for hunting leopards - this is due to their large numbers in these territories. If you are interested to know how much the skin of a leopard costs, then the price per skin can reach up to $15,000.

The classic hunting scheme for this animal involves the use of a carcass that is of interest to the snow leopard (usually a roe deer or a monkey) as bait. For this purpose, only fresh carcasses are used, since any kind of cat does not recognize a rotten smell.

As a rule, poachers pick up a lonely place where a predator often comes. The carcass of the bait is attached to the bottom of the tree so that it is perfectly visible against the sky. The animal comes to the smell of the victim already with the onset of night, uttering a kind of roar. This roar is similar to a cough or the sound of a saw - the hunter will not confuse it with anything. After the hunter needs to act quickly- Shot at close range. If the animal is wounded, it is very aggressive and dangerous to the hunter, trying to attack instead of running away. Often a leopard only pretends to be killed - one has only to approach, and the animal rushes at the hunter.

At the end of the 19th century, the fashion for leopard skins reached its peak, making this predator its prey. Many stars at that time liked to flaunt in leopard skin jackets, and also took photos for magazine covers in this form. All this has significantly reduced the population of snow leopards on the planet. In the seven years of the 1950s, the European fur market was replenished with more than 300,000 leopard skins.

Leopard, Panther (Panthera Pardus) is a species of mammals from the cat family. The fourth largest cat in the world (after the tiger, lion and jaguar). Leopards live in Africa and Asia. These animals live mainly in dense, moist forests, preferring to stay close to water.

The leopard is an animal that is distinguished by its graceful and flexible body, long tail and paws with large claws. The leopard has a very beautiful spotted color, which makes it attractive. The main color of the coat is considered to be a red hue, which gradually turns into White color, on the underside of the body, where the leopard has a stomach.

But among animals there are such breeds that are distinguished by increased pigment in the wool, then the animals are distinguished by their dark color, on which spots are practically not visible. Such leopards are called panthers. The wool of such animals is distinguished by its density and shortness. Their wool is very valuable and is used as a finishing material.

Panthers are much smaller and lighter than lions or tigers, allowing them to climb trees perfectly. They spend a lot of time there, sleeping and resting lounging in the branches. Often they drag prey into the trees when they hunt, so that hyenas and vultures do not interfere with them.

Leopard is the most mysterious cat

Leopards are the most mysterious of all the big cats. These animals are so careful and vigilant that even in reserves it is difficult to track their mode of life.

The color of the fur of these predators helps to hide in the foliage of trees, grass and makes leopards almost invisible. There are also black individuals.

The black color of panthers is a manifestation of melanism caused by a gene mutation and is characteristic only for females, with rare exceptions. The black coat is not perfectly black, it always shows visible spots to a greater or lesser extent.

Leopard and jaguar - comparison

The leopard is often confused with the jaguar. , unlike leopard cats is very muscular, although they are similar in appearance. In fact, the leopard has a stronger structure. He has longer and slender legs, thin chest. A jaguar can be distinguished from a leopard by the black spot in the center of the rosette on the skin. Leopards and jaguars in wild nature live in different areas.

Leopard and jaguar - comparison.

A leopard, like a cat, leads a solitary lifestyle. Often, how the leopard moves is not even audible, as he does it on his soft paws. This animal loves to camouflage among the grass and trees to madness. And he does it well due to his spotted color. Leopards go hunting only at dusk, and sit in a shelter all day. But if the leopard sees prey in front of him, then he can go hunting in the daytime.

The leopard is the great hunter of the terrestrial fauna.

The diet of the leopard consists of ungulates, namely antelope, roe deer, gazelles and wild pigs. There are also areas where leopards feed on monkeys, reptiles and rodents. If they have nothing to eat, then they can attack birds, but this happens extremely rarely. Animals disdain carrion and eat it only in the most extreme cases.

The leopard lies in wait for prey in a shelter, stealthily creeps up to a close distance to it and pounces on it with large jumps.

Listen to the voice of the leopard

• Leopard and panther are the names of the same animal.
• Leopards are very strong. They can lift a victim heavier than themselves into the crown of a tree.
• Panthers descend from tree trunks upside down.
• Black panthers also have spots on their coats but are difficult to see.
• The favorite food of young leopards is baboons.
• Each individual has a unique motley pattern by which they can be recognized.
• The black panther is more aggressive than other leopards.
• Leopards can jump up to 7 meters.
• Different types of leopards can vary greatly in size and color.

The tree is the leopard's favorite resting place.

Leopard size:

• Body length from 100 to 150 cm (record 190 cm)
• Height from 60 to 80 cm
• Weight: 60-80 kg (for females) and 70-90 kg (for males)
• Tail length up to 110 cm
• Life expectancy in the wild is 12 years (record 17 years), in captivity 25 years.

Leopard breeding

« wild cat is resting on a tree.

Leopards breed regardless of the season, with the exception of animals that live in the north.

Pregnancy in a female lasts three months, usually she bears three babies. For her cubs, the female leopard chooses a secluded place, most often in dense thickets.

The cubs are born completely blind, but they grow very quickly and very soon they leave their lair for a walk on their own, in order to explore the world. Young children stay with their mother for up to a year and a half, at which time she brings them wounded animals and teaches them how to hunt.

Adult leopards have almost no enemies, as they are hidden from other animals. The main opponents of leopards are hyenas, lions, tigers and wolves. All these animals can attack young leopards and take their prey from them. But still, it is extremely difficult to take prey from leopards, as they hide it in the trees.

While hunting, a leopard can get hurt by a buffalo. But often, such situations occur either with young or inexperienced animals.

https://youtu.be/mdaDwFTylz0

If you find an error, please highlight a piece of text and click Ctrl+Enter.