African Wildlife - Leopard (Panthera Pardus)
The Leopard is a big and strong cat reaching a height of 70 cm
and a mass of up to 80 kg. The life expectancy of the Leopard
is approximately 15 years. It is recognizable through its spots
which are arranged through out the Leopard's body in black rosettes
with a yellow-brown centre.
The Leopard is capable of killing prey up to the size of an adult
Eland which can weigh up to ten times its own weight. They are
solitary predators and are usually more successful when they hunt
at night. Leopards will often lie in wait in a dry streambed or
on a well used path to a waterhole and then ambush animals that
come by. The leopard first paralyses its prey through a bite on
the back of the neck which damages the spinal cord. The prey is
then strangled with the Leopard's powerful jaws and dragged away.
The Leopard often uses trees to cache their kills and is able
to lift a carcass of up to its own weight.
Being solitary animals male and female Leopards will only associate
briefly to mate. Leopard females normally have two to three cubs.
The Leopard cubs are hidden in dense bush, rock clefts or even
down burrows for the first two months. They will only emerge from
their hiding place when they are strong enough to climb trees.
Despite all these precautionary measures the female Leopard only
succeed in raising on average half of her cubs from each litter.
African Wildlife Paintings by South African Artist
