Leopard
From CreationWiki, the encyclopedia of creation science
| Leopard |
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| Scientific Classification |
| Binomial Name |
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Panthera pardus |
| Subspecies |
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There are 20 different types of leopards. With an estimated 700,000 living in the wild. Leopards won't live in pacts like most animals, they will live and hunt alone once they leave their mother.
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Anatomy
Leopards are the smallest of the 4 great cats. It resembles the jaguar, it's cousin. The length of a leopards can be from 3 - 6.25 feet and a tail of 22.5 - 30.5 inched high. Males can weigh from 80 -150 pound, but females weigh 62.5 - 100 pounds.
Leopards have very powerful short limbs, thick necks. They come in different shades depending on where they live. Some have golden brown or pale straw and gray sleek coats. Black leopards (panthers) are found in dense forests and watery places. The spots on their heads are smaller than the ones on their bodies.
Leopards can run about 40 mph, but only for short periods of time. They can jump 20 ft horizontally and 10 ft vertically. Leopards have good eye sight and even better hearing. They have 32 teeth with 4 of them being canines. Canines are used for killing and the other for grinding flesh and bones.
Reproduction
Leopards can reproduce at the age of 2-3 years. They are pregnant for about 3 months, and produce 1-3 cubs. The male will usually leave the female after mating.
At 6 weeks the mother will feed her cubs meat that she has eaten and regurgitated. Then at 6 months the mother will take the cubs hunting with her. At the age of one, the cubs will start hunting with all the females. And at two, they will leave their mother and find their own territory.
Ecology
Leopards adapt very easily to any type of habitat, as long as there is food. Leopards live in the rainforest, and they are the largest predator in the rainforest. They also live in the middle east of Africa and Asia.
Leopards are opportunistic carnivores that will sometimes even eat carrion (dead animals). They feed on everything from beetles for protein, to antelopes that are twice their size. When stalking prey, they get as close as possible, then pounce typically biting at their neck. They are known to drag sizable carcasses up a tree to feed on it, though this will usually happen at night. The main diet of a leopard consist of at least 30 different species of herbivores, such as young wildebeests, zebras and giraffes. They have been known to eat baboons on occasion.
Gallery
 African Leopard (P. p. pardus) |
