The leopard has spread much further than any other representative of big cats. Its 14 subspecies live in Africa, Central and Southeast Asia, the Middle East and some islands. From this article you will learn only about one species - the Indian leopard. You will find a photo and description of the features of the animal below.
Appearance
The Indian leopard is a large and strong animal with powerful paws and a wide, slightly square muzzle. Despite this, he is very elegant and agile. He is flexible and dexterous, in a matter of seconds he can climb a tree or jump on the prey that he is waiting for while sitting in the bushes.
His body is elongated and compressed from the sides. It is very muscular, which makes it seem massive. Compared to him, the paws look too short and the head is small. But even the largest leopards are much smaller than tigers and weigh only 40-60 kg.
The body length of males reaches about 130-140 cm, females - 100-120 cm. The tail is almost the same in length as the body and is 80-100 cm. This is the main tool for maneuvers and difficult turns during high-speed movements of the animal.
Indian leopard: a description of the color
The fur of the animal is thick and dense, painted in red shades with beautiful black spots. It looks much brighter than that of African counterparts and has a larger pattern. On the back and sides, the spots are more clearly visible, and on the belly and inner side of the paws they are poorly expressed and blurry.
The coloring of the Indian leopard is too bright, and, it would seem, noticeable in any situation. In fact, it is clearly distinguishable only in a zoo or, say, an apartment. In wildlife, among stone placers or thickets, such a motley color becomes invisible, allowing the predator to remain invisible to its victims.
A leopard pattern is a kind of fingerprint in humans. Each individual is individual and is one of the identification marks. Spots exist even in black panthers; they are necessarily present on the fur, although they are hardly distinguishable to the naked eye. This particular animal is not a separate species. Dark coat is the result of a gene mutation that is responsible for the color of the coat and body. Black individuals often appear among leopards and jaguars, especially those that live in dense tropical thickets. They can be born with quite ordinary "parents", and having got their own family, they can give birth to colorful children.
Where does the Indian leopard live?
The name of this subspecies speaks for itself. The leopard lives within the Indian subcontinent and is found mainly in India, Nepal, Bhutan and Pakistan. It inhabits tropical rainforests, as well as deciduous and coniferous forests of taiga, growing in the mountains of Asia.
In the west, the settlement of the Indian leopard is limited to the Indus River, in the north to the Himalayas, in which it reaches a maximum of 2500 m. In the mangroves and in the swampy areas, there is no subspecies, so in the east and south its range is limited to the Brahmaputra River and the Ganges delta, which forms The world's largest mangrove forest.
Lifestyle
Indian leopards are true loners. They do not form prides and do not form temporary groups even for hunting. Several leopards living in one place can only be seen during the mating season and during the offspring rearing. Adult individuals occupy a private territory of 20-50 km 2 and violently protect it from all outsiders.
They are active mainly at night and in the evening. In the afternoon they prefer to relax, climbing into a quiet secluded place. They swim and climb trees perfectly, but prey mainly on the ground. They track their prey, sitting in an ambush, slowly getting closer to it. When the distance is sufficient, they attack, throwing themselves at the victim in a sharp jump with spread legs.
Leopards eat rabbits, badgers, foxes, large ungulates, reptiles and birds. In the forests of Asia, they have enough competitors that can significantly surpass them in strength. In addition to them, snow leopards, tigers, lions and the closest relatives, smoky leopards, hunt here. So that the prey is not taken away, the Indian leopard immediately drags it to a tree, where it eats.
Its obvious advantage in the fight for food is speed and endurance. At a speed of 58 km / h, he is able to run for an hour without getting tired. In length, the leopard jumps to a distance of 5-6 m, and vertically jumps to a height of 3 m in one jerk.
"Red Book" animal
The increase in cities and towns, the expansion of agricultural land affects the life of Indian leopards very badly. Despite the fact that it is a strong and dangerous beast, it avoids collision with other predators and prefers solitude. A person, piece by piece, takes away from him the territory on which he can live and hunt quietly. This makes the leopard change its habits, go deeper into the jungle and divide into small, very isolated populations, which subsequently degenerate.
In addition, the leopard is a popular prey among poachers. Its skin, fangs and other parts are valued on the black market and regularly appear among merchants in India, Nepal and China. Over the past 25 years in India alone, about 3 thousand animals have been killed, not to mention the rest of the countries.
Today, the Indian leopard, like other big cats, is considered a vulnerable animal, which is protected by the laws of the states where it lives. But the measures that protective organizations take are weaker than human activities.