about leopard

7/29/2019 About Leopard

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E X T NE T


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General Description

Physical characteristics

Biology and Behavior

Food

Hunting

Credits


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The leopard (Pantherapardus, is a member of theFelidae Familyand thesmallest of the four bigscat" in the genus Panthera,

the other three being thetiger, lion and jaguar. Oncedistributed across easternand southern Asia and

Africa, from Siberia to SouthAfrica, the leopard's rangeof distribution hasdecreased radically becauseof hunting and loss ofhabitat


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The leopard is an agile and

stealthy predator. Althoughsmaller than other members ofthe Panthera genus, the leopard isstill able to take large prey givenits massive skull that facilitates

powerful jaw muscles.Its body iscomparatively long for a cat andits legs are short.Head and bodylength is between 125 and 165 cm(49 and 65 in) and the tail reaches

60 to 110 cm (24 to 43 in).Shoulder height is 45 to 80 cm (18to 31 in). The muscles attached tothe scapula are exceptionallystrong, which enhances the

leopard's ability to climb trees.


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The leopard is known for its ability

in climbing, and it has beenobserved resting on tree branchesduring the day, dragging its kills uptrees and hanging them there, anddescending from trees headfirst.It

is a powerful swimmer, althoughnot as strong as some other bigcats, such as the tiger. The leopardis also very agile, and can run atover 58 kilometres per hour (36

mph), leap over 6 metres (20 ft)horizontally and jump up to3 metres (9.8 ft)vertically.Leopards produce anumber of vocalizations, includinggrunts, roars, growls, meows and

"sawing" sounds


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Leopards are generallyconsidered to be noctural.However, the animal hasprimarily been studied in opensavannah habitats, which mayhave biased commondescriptions. Activity level mayvary depending on the habitatand the type of prey it hunts.For instance, radio-tracking andscat analysis in West Africa hasfound that rainforest leopardsare more likely to be diural andcrepuscular. Forest leopards arealso more specialized in preyselection and exhibit seasonaldifferences in activity patterns.


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Leopards eat small

hoofstock such as

gazelle, impala,

deer andwildebeast. On

occasion, they may

also hunt monkeys,rodents and birds.


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Leopards are versatile, opportunistichunters. In the open savanna, theyare most successful when huntingbetween sunset and sunrise, thoughthey may hunt during the day,especially in forest areas when they

have the advantage of being hiddenby dense brush or cloudy skies.Theleopard stalks its prey silently and atthe last minute pounces on its preyand strangles its throat with a quick

bite. Leopards often hide their killsin dense vegetation or take them uptrees, and are capable of carryinganimals up to three times their ownweight this way.[The leopard is theonly big cat known to carry its preyup into a tree.


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about leopard

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