THE CAT OF THE SNOW

Common name: Amur Leopard

Scientific name: Panthera pardus orientalis

Status: Critically endangered

Population: less than 100

When people think of leopards one usually pictures them in the savannah resting on trees. However, their exists a very rare species of leopards found in Far East Russia within its temperate forests.

As recently as the 1970`s, their population in the wild was lower than 30 individuals making it the most endangered out of the 8 sub-species of leopards. The IUCN has listed it as critically endangered and CITES Appendix 1.

Biology

Description:The Amur leopard is adapted to the cool climate by having thick fur which grows up to 7.5 cm long in winter. For camouflage in the snow, their coat is paler than other leopard subspecies. The Amur leopard’s rosettes ( the spots on the fur) are widely spaced and larger than those seen on other leopards. The long fur is important to keep them warm during cold winters. Their tail is long and fluffy so they use it to wrap it round their bodies for additional warmth.

Weight: Males generally weigh 32-48 kg, but can weigh up to 75 kg. Females are smaller than the males at 25-43 kg.

Breeding: Females first breed at an age of 3-4 years. After a gestation period of around 12 weeks, cubs are born in litters of 1-4 individuals, with an average litter size of just over 2. The cubs stay with their mother for up to two years before becoming fully independent. Amur leopards in zoos show some evidence of breeding seasonality with a peak in births in late spring/early summer.

Longevity: In the wild, leopards live for 10-15 years and they may reach 20 years in captivity.

Diet

Prey: Amur leopards hunt a very wide variety of animals including roe deer, sika deer, badgers and hares.

Hunting Habits: Amur leopards normally hunt at night and need large territories to avoid competition for prey. They silently watch their prey and ambush them using a burst of energy reaching speeds of up to 58 kilometres per hour. They leopard is able to spring itself 6m forward and jump 3m from the ground due to powerful hind leg muscles.They then carry and hide unfinished kills, sometimes up trees, so that they are not taken by other predators.Amur leopards have rough tongues covered in tiny hooks called denticles that are used to scrape meat off the bone of their prey.

With a wild population of fewer than 100 individuals, the Amur leopard is critically endangered and this is mostly as a result of human activities.

Threats

The main threats to the Amur leopard’s survival are:

Poaching: Poaching of both leopards and prey species is a serious threat. Forests in Southwest Primorye are relatively accessible, the area is more densely populated than most of the Russian Far East, and Russia has a hunting culture both for sport and for food. The two main cities of Primorski Krai – Vladivostok and Ussurisk – are only two or three hours drive away, so the leopard’s range holds some of the most popular hunting grounds for city residents.

Forest fires: These are a direct threat to Amur leopards as they reduce the animals’ natural forest habitat, replacing it with grasslands that leopards prefer to avoid.

Inbreeding: With a population that dwindled to 35 individuals only a few decades ago, this is the only big cat with international approval to be considered for reintroduction using captive-bred Amur leopards.

Development: Southwest Primorye, a city close to which the leopard population is located, is located close to the Russian borders with China and North Korea, making it an attractive area for infrastructure projects such as new railways, gas and oil pipelines and ports. In 2005 and 2006 ZSL and its local partner, Phoenix Fund led a successful international campaign against a plan to build an oil pipeline terminal on the coast of the Sea of Japan in the range of both the Amur leopard and tiger.

Disease: Diseases such as Canine Distemper Virus (CDV), are threatening the isolated and vulnerable Amur leopard population. We are working with scientific partners to understand exactly how this disease is contracted by leopards and its origins.

What is being done?

Stopping poaching and trade

With such a small population left, the loss of each Amur leopard puts the species at greater risk of extinction. WWF supports antipoaching work in all Amur leopard habitat in the Russian Far East and in known leopard localities in northeast China. WWF implements programs to stop the illegal trade in Amur leopard parts. Together with TRAFFIC, the world’s largest wildlife trade monitoring network, we help governments enforce domestic and international trade restrictions on Amur leopard products. Amur leopards are listed on CITES Appendix I, prohibiting all commercial trade in the species.

Monitoring populations

WWF monitors Amur leopard populations and its habitat. Camera traps have often yielded amazing results, allowing the world to catch a glimpse the world’s rarest wild cat. WWF in conjunction with governments and other wildlife agencies also work to increase the population of leopard prey like roe deer, sika deer and wild boar including releasing such deer into new reserves in China to provide founder animals to rebuild prey populations.

Protecting Amur leopard habitat

This work includes increasing areas of protected land in both Russia and China, reducing illegal and unsustainable logging practices, and facilitating trade between companies committed to responsible forestry practices. In 2007, WWF and other conservationists successfully lobbied the Russian government to reroute a planned oil pipeline that would have endangered the leopard's habitat and rendered them extinct.

WWF,WildCats, the chinese and Russian goverments are all working hard to reduce these threats by funding appropriate conservation projects and educating and informing people about the importance of the Amur leopard.