Where The Leopards Roar

Leopards, the embodiment of feline grace, beauty, power, and stealth. Indispensable to maintain a balanced population of wild herbivores in their habitats. Essential for the regeneration and growth of the forest.

Leopards are a carnivorous and nocturnal species; their personality is reserved and elusive. Leopard cubs are born blind and very vulnerable, making them dependent on their mothers. After ten days, their eyes begin to open, eyes remain bright blue during the first months of life, and then, when adults, the eyes see seven times better in the dark than humans.

Most of the leopards are light in color with dark spots that resemble the shape of a rose, which is why they are called rosettes. Black leopards are commonly called black panthers, usually having dots that are difficult to distinguish. The difference in color does not classify it into separate subspecies. The dark color is caused by having genes that result in excess melanin pigment in the skin.

Leopards live in many world places, from zoos to national parks to unprotected areas; most of their vast wild populations are in Africa and India. They can live in rainforests, mountains, forests, grassland savannas, woodlands, scrublands, and deserts. Leopards live in Sub-Saharan Africa, Northeast Asia, Russia, China, Malaysia, and beyond.

Image 1: Leopards have characteristic bodies and abilities.

Each leopard has a different pattern of spots on its skin; none are the same. So they can be easily monitored and identified through recordings, photographs, and computerized methods.

There are several sub-species of leopards throughout the world. To achieve coexistence, they have resorted to spatial avoidance; leopards use to avoid meeting among them and invading the other territories; usually, the competition for zone and food causes disputes and contentions.

Interaction with humans

By 2019, leopard habitat had lost up to 75 percent of its range in history. And currently, only 17% of the current distribution range is protected against illegal actions.

Leopards usually avoid the people as much as possible because of the fear that it instills in them. The invasion of the wild territories, loud sounds, among others, alter their daily activities and their peace. Human populations are encroaching on leopard habitats, and leopards have to compete for food and shelter.

The main threats to leopards are habitat fragmentation, damage to wildlife, the disappearance of their food, and conflict with humans, which have reduced their numbers, about 31% remaining worldwide in 22 years approximately.

The people hunt leopards for commercial purposes with their beautiful coats, used as decoration or as garments with a natural and aesthetic appeal. Various parts of Asia use the rest of the body as a cheaper substitute for tiger raw materials for traditional Chinese medicine.

Historically in India, between 1875 and 1912, there were 11,909 human deaths caused by leopards. Currently, the leopard-human conflict continues, with many constant encounters in urban and agricultural areas. "Almost 99 percent of their prey base is domestic cattle belonging to the Rabaris, who are Shiva believers. In the image of Shiva, there is even a leopard skin wrapped around it. So the locals don't harm leopards even when leopards kill their animals; they think of it as an offering to the gods. "Says Pratap Singh, a wildlife conservationist, and photographer.

Image 2: The map shows wild leopard habitat loss over time.

However, the damage of material objects and livestock is the principal reason for the rise in leopards' attacks on humans. Keeps the conflict alive; 653 deaths of leopards occur across the country in the 2020 year, according to the Wildlife Protection Society of India. Additionally, about 200 leopards are killed by poachers each year, according to figures from wildlife experts, activists, and government agencies.

Leopards are adventurous in urban areas due to the absence of food, habitat loss, and poaching. There it feeds on dogs, sheep, goats, and young cattle. For a long time, leopards attack people, especially children, and women. There has been no study of the leopard population in India. Unofficial estimates put their numbers at around 10,000 individuals. From 2018-19 to 2020-21, the government has captured 336 people, including 11 bands of hunters.

The leopard wildlife tourism industry means more and more people are paying to see these majestic animals in the wild, bringing money to local communities. Improve leopard problems. So they will be protected by the local population rather than being hunted; by providing an important new source of good income for the local population.

In Indonesia, leopard skins, stuffed animals, also live animals kept as pets often serve as status symbols. When a population takes such a belief causes poaching levels to skyrocket in Indonesia. Additionally, it is frequently sold for traditional medicine, as seen with tigers. "Law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, police, and even judges still think that this type of crime is not a big crime," said Iding Haider, a clouded leopard researcher and a specialist in forest ecosystems at Kerinci Seblat National of Indonesia.

Image 3: Humans have invaded their territories for agriculture and livestock purposes.

Snow leopards and other cats

Snow leopards are the subspecies of snow-adapted leopards; they tend to live at significantly higher altitudes than common leopards. The snow leopards live in the Himalayas; in Bhutan, India, and Nepal.

Just over a century ago, approximately 100,000 tigers roamed Asia, but from persecution, habitat loss, and diminished food, today, 3,900 tigers survive in less than 5% of their historic range.

Competition has also become a predominant factor. About 40% of the forests and natural habitats that tigers called home have disappeared in the last decade alone, so they turn to look for other homes. In Nepal, the reports show tigers at altitudes of 3,165 meters, while in Bhutan, they are at altitudes above 4,200 meters. So they share the territory with the snow leopard, the tigers that are much larger and stronger easily defeat them.

In the mountains, climate change raises the temperatures and displaces the habitat areas to an upper limit of the forest, where both leopard species live. It means an increase in habitat for common leopards and a reduction in habitat for snow leopards; between the forest and rocky altitudes.

Domestic livestock in Mongolia has increased from 20 to 25 million to around 33 million in the past ten years, squeezing out wild sheep and goats, the main leopard prey species in this region. Wildlife trade.

Other cats, such as the Persian leopards, are believed to survive less than 1,200. In the 1980s, the forests were vast, covering large terrain zones and mountains where hunters used to see the leopard. But intensive illegal logging for crops and grazed by herds of goats has reduced their habitat to corners of forest and mountains.

However, in other regions, increases in animal populations are announced, as is the case in India. Regardless of the conflict and killings, there is a 60% increase in the leopard population. We must be careful that these increases in animals do not pose a risk to the human population; here is the benefit of creating protected areas and delimiting spaces.

Image 4: Snow leopard type of leopard so affected by man and climate change.

On the other hand, leopards in northern China were close to extinction, but the mountains near Beijing have been seen again after more than two decades, according to wildlife protection groups. As of 2008, its population had dropped to less than 500, while its living area had decreased by 80%. Since November 2012, the endangered species has been seen in its traditional habitats on Xiaowutai Mountain and Tuoliang, increasing in consecutive years thanks to conservation efforts in the region.

One strategy used by regions and organizations that seek to conserve this animal is to offer farmers compensation of money for each livestock killed by the leopard they produce to guarantee harmony between the communities and the common leopards. It reduces the chances that the population wants revenge against the leopard. However, it lends itself to make farmers commit malicious actions to claim the money. The solutions discussed above that seek to save leopards and their lands take a lot of the regional community to achieve and sustain.

References

• Lovari, Sandro & Ventimiglia, Maria & Minder, Isabelle. (2013). Food habits of two leopard species, competition, climate change, and upper treeline: A way to the decrease of an endangered species. Ethology Ecology and Evolution. 25. 10.1080/03949370.2013.806362. 

• The Guardian. Wil Crisp. Last chance for the Persian leopard: the fight to save Iraqi Kurdistan’s forests. Sat 20 Jun 2020 09.15 BST. Link https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jun/20/landmines-last-line-of-defence-for-kurdistan-endangered-persian-leopard-aoe.

• WWF. Rinjan Shrestha. No kingdom to rule: help us protect big cat habitats. April 6, 2021. Link https://wwf.ca/stories/no-kingdom-to-rule-help-us-protect-big-cat-habitats/. 

• WWF. Snow Leopards. Facts. Link https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/snow-leopard.

• Naha, Dipanjan & Dash, Suraj & Chettri, A. & Chaudhary, Pooja & Sonker, Gaurav & Heurich, Marco & Singh, Gopal & Sambandam, Sathyakumar. (2020). Landscape predictors of human-leopard conflicts within multi-use areas of the Himalayan region. Scientific Reports. 10. 10.1038/s41598-020-67980-w. 

• Xinhua Net. Xinhua. China Focus: Rare leopards reappear in habitats near Beijing as the eco-environment improves. 2020-09-18 16:23:13. Link http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2020-09/18/c_139378949.htm.

• Leopard. NatGeo. Facts. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/facts/leopard.

• All about leopards. Frontline. Vikar Ahmed. Link https://frontline.thehindu.com/environment/conservation/conservation-biologist-sanjay-gubbi-brings-out-a-definitive-book-on-leopards-based-on-years-of-fieldwork-in-karnatakas-forests/article34223276.ece/photo/1/.