Highest Explore Position #222 ~ On September 27th 2008.

Amur Leopard - Colchester Zoo, Colchester, Essex, England - September 2008. Click here to see the Larger image

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This is the same Leopard that's on my profile page...and was taken through the glass, after he came up to me and stopped and had a look around..:O)) I had to clone out my reflection on the glass as well...:O)))

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia ~ The Amur Leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis) is critically endangered. It is one of the rarest felids in the world with an estimated 27 to 32 individuals remaining in the wild (2007 snow track count). Its common names are Amur leopard from Amur River or Far Eastern Leopard.

Appearance ~ Of the eight subspecies the Amur, or Far Eastern leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis) shows the strongest divergence in coat pattern. The coat is pale cream (especially in winter) and has widely spaced rosettes with thick, black rings and darkened centres. The length of the coat varies between 2.5cm in summer and 7.5cm in winter.

Status in the wild and in zoos ~ The Amur leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis) is the northernmost of the eight leopard subspecies. The Amur leopard's range is overlapping with that of the Amur tiger or Siberian Tiger which range extends further to the north. The Amur leopard's historic range extended throughout northeastern ("Manchurian") China, the southern part of Primorsky Krai in Russia and the Korean Peninsula. This range shrank dramatically during the 20th century, due primarily to habitat loss and hunting. Today, it is critically endangered with only 27 to 34 individuals remaining in Southwest Primorye. There are probably up to 10 animals scattered throughout the Chinese Jilin and Heilongjiang Provinces, with the majority of animals concentrated near the Russian border.

The Amur leopard probably went extinct in the wild in South Korea in the late 1960s, although some recent, unconfirmed reports suggest that a few leopards may remain in and around the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea. There are likely still leopards in the rugged northern region of North Korea near the Chinese border, and it is also likely that animals from Southwest Primorye in Russia occasionally cross the border into North Korea, but reliable information is lacking.

The Amur leopard is listed as Endangered by the IUCN and is on CITES Appendix I for protection status.

There are approximately 300 Amur leopards in captivity, mostly in zoos in Europe, North America and countries of the former Soviet Union. Most, but not all, of these leopards are in zoos participating in managed conservation breeding programmes.

Ecology ~ Male Amur leopards weigh 32-48 kg, with exceptionally large males up to 60-75 kg. Females are smaller than the males at 25-43 kg.

The main prey species of the Amur leopard are roe and sika deer, along with hares and badgers.

Whilst it has been found in other regions that leopards do not do well in areas where they share territory with tigers, this has not proved to be the case in Russia. Studies have indicated that an increased tiger population in the Southwest Primorye area has not adversely affected the leopard population.

Amur leopards in zoos show some evidence of breeding seasonalilty with a peak in births in late spring/early summer. 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 will stay with their mother for up to two years before becoming fully independent. Females first breed at an age of 3-4 years.