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Leopard
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Fossil range: Late Pliocene or Early Pleistocene to Recent
Conservation status
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: Felidae
Genus: Panthera
Species: P. pardus
Binomial name
Panthera pardus
Linnaeus, 1758
Historic (red) and present (green) range of the leopard
The leopard (pronounced /ˈlɛpərd/), Panthera pardus, is a member of the Felidae family and the smallest of the four "big cats" in the genus Panthera, the other three being the tiger, lion and jaguar. Once distributed across southern Asia and Africa, from Korea to South Africa, the leopard's range of distribution has decreased radically because of hunting and loss of habitat, and the greatest concentration of leopards now occurs chiefly in sub-Saharan Africa; there are also fragmented populations in Pakistan, India, Indochina, Malaysia, and China. Due to the loss of range and declines in population, it is graded as a "Near Threatened" species by the IUCN.[2] Its numbers are greater than other Panthera species, all of which face more acute conservation concerns.[2]
Compared to other members of the Felidae family, the leopard has relatively short legs and a long body with a large skull. It is similar in appearance to the jaguar, although it is of smaller and slighter build. Its fur is marked with similar rosettes to those of the jaguar, though the leopard's rosettes are smaller and more densely packed, and the leopard's rosettes do not usually have central spots as the jaguar's do. Both leopards and jaguars that are melanistic (completely black or very dark) are known as black panthers.
The species' success in the wild owes in part to its opportunistic hunting behavior, its adaptability to habitats, its ability to run at speeds approaching 58 kilometres per hour (36 mph), its unequaled ability to climb trees even when carrying a heavy carcass,[3] and its notorious ability for stealth. The leopard consumes virtually any animal it can hunt down and catch. Its preferred habitat ranges from rainforest to desert terrains.
Etymology
In antiquity, it was believed that a leopard was a hybrid of a lion and a panther, as is reflected in its name, a Greek compound of λέων leōn ("lion") and πάρδος pardos ("male panther"), the latter related to Sanskrit पृदाकु pṛdāku ("snake, tiger, panther").[4][5]
A panther can be any of several species of large felid; in North America, the term refers to cougars; in South America, to jaguars; and everywhere else, to leopards.
The generic component of its modern scientific designation, Panthera pardus, is derived from Latin via Greek πάνθηρ pánthēr. A folk etymology held that it was a compound of παν pan ("all") and θηρ ("beast"). However, it is believed instead to derive from an Indo-Iranian word meaning "white-yellow, pale"; in Sanskrit, this word's reflex was पाण्डर pāṇḍara, from which was derived पुण्डरीक puṇḍárīka ("tiger", among other things), then borrowed into Greek.[4][6][7]
Taxonomy and evolution
Like all of the feline family, the Panthera genus has been subject to much alteration and debate, and the exact relations between the four species (as well as the clouded leopard and snow leopard) have not been effectively resolved. DNA evidence shows that the lion, tiger, leopard, jaguar, snow leopard, and clouded leopard shared a common ancestor nearly 11 million years ago (Ma)—the basal divergence amongst the Felidae family.[8] The fossil record points to the emergence of Panthera just two to 3.8 million years ago.[8][9]
In a mitochondrial DNA study, Yu and Zhang (2005) suggest that the leopard is most closely related to the snow leopard, and they go so far as placing the latter as a fifth species of Panthera, P. uncia.[10] Canonical works, such as the Mammal Species of the World, continue to list the snow leopard as the only species within its genus, Uncia uncia,[11] but this could change; Johnson et al. (2006) support the placement of the snow leopard within Panthera. They suggest, however, that the snow leopard is most closely aligned with the tiger. The leopard is held to have diverged from the Panthera lineage subsequent to these two species, but before the lion and jaguar.[8] Older research has tended to suggest that the leopard is most closely related to the lion and/or the jaguar. As recently as 2001, it was held to have split along with the lion in a phylogenetic analysis of chemical secretions amongst cats.[12]
Panthera is believed to have emerged in Asia, with ancestors of the leopard and other cats subsequently migrating into Africa.[8] Fossil evidence of leopard ancestors has been found from 2 to 3.5 Ma. These Pleistocene specimens resemble primitive jaguars. The modern leopard type is suggested to have evolved in Africa 470,000–825,000 years ago and radiated across Asia 170,000–300,000 years ago.[13]
Subspecies
As many as 27 leopard subspecies were once suggested, the number growing from the time of Linnaeus in the 18th century to that of Reginald Pocock in the early 20th. In 1996, Miththapala et al. revised this downward to just eight subspecies based on DNA analysis.[14] Uphyrina et al. would concur in 2001, but split out a ninth separately, the Arabian leopard (P. pardus nimr). The latter researchers note the number might be an underestimation because of limited sampling of African leopards. Their list is as follows:[13]
- African leopard (P. pardus pardus), Sub-Saharan Africa.
- Amur leopard (P. pardus orientalis), Russian Far East, Korean Peninsula, and Northeast China.
- Arabian leopard (P. pardus nimr), Arabian Peninsula.
- Indian leopard (P. pardus fusca), Indian Subcontinent.
- Indo-Chinese leopard (P. pardus delacouri), Mainland Southeast Asia.
- Javan leopard (P. pardus melas), Java, Indonesia.
- North Chinese leopard (P. pardus japonensis), Northern China.
- Persian leopard (P. pardus saxicolor), Central Asia.
- Sri Lankan leopard (P. pardus kotiya), Sri Lanka.
Older Taxonomic Divisions
Included in the African leopard (P. pardus pardus):[14]
- P. pardus adersi
- P. pardus adusta
- P. pardus leopardus
- P. pardus melanotica
- P. pardus nanopardus
- P. pardus panthera
- P. pardus suahelica
- P. pardus reichenowi
- P. pardus ruwenzorli
Included in the Persian leopard (P. pardus saxicolor):[14]
- P. pardus ciscaucasia
- P. pardus dathei
- P. pardus jarvisi
- P. pardus sindica
- P. pardus tulliana
Included in the Indian leopard (P. pardus fusca):[14]
- P. pardus millardi
- P. pardus pernigra
Physical characteristics
The leopard is an agile and stealthy predator. Although smaller than the other members of the Panthera genus, the leopard is still able to take large prey given a massive skull that well utilizes powerful jaw muscles.[16] Its body is comparatively long for a cat and its legs are short.[17] Head and body length is between 125 and 165 cm (49 and 65 in) and the tail reaches 60 to 110 cm (24 to 43 in). Shoulder height is 45 to 80 cm (18 to 31 in). Males are about 30% larger than females,[18] weighing 37 to 91 kg (82 to 200 lb) compared to 28 to 60 kg (62 to 130 lb) for females. The larger-bodied populations of leopard are generally found in areas isolated from competing large predators, especially from dominant big cats like lions and tigers.