Amur leopards have longer legs than other leopards which makes it easier to walk on the snow. Amur leopards fur is also a little different and changes between summer and winter. The summer pelt are about 2,5 cm long and during the winter they are replaced by 7 cm long ones. During the winter Amur leopards fur is more light and in the summer time it is reddish-yellow. The rosettes (print in the leopards fur)are more widely spaced and the borders are ticker than other leopard species.
Male leopards weigh around 32-48 kg and the biggest males can even weigh 75 kg. Female leopards are usually 23-45 kg.
Similar to other leopard, Amur leopard can run up to 60 km/h and can leap more than 6 m horizontally and up to 4 m vertically.
Amur leopards breed in spring and early summer. Litter size ranges form 1 to 4 puppies. The puppies are weaned when they are three months old and they leave their mother when they are one and a half or two years old. Amur leopard is known to live for 10-15, and in capture even 20 years.
Amur leopards pray sika deers, roe deers, and small wild boars, along with hares, badgers and raccoon dogs.
The main threats of Amur leopards are habitat lost and fragmentation, prey scarcity, illegal trade and poaching, conflict with human, and vulnerable population size and inbreeding.
Previous population and distribution:
Amur leopards distribution has been reduced a lot from its original range. It once reached to northeastern China, including Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces, and throughout the Korean Peninsula. During the seventies the distribution range was dramatically reduced in Russia, losing about 80% of its original size.
Current population and distribution:
Today, the Amur leopard inhabits about 5 000 km². The last remaining viable wild population, an estimated 57 individuals, is found in small area in the Russian Province of Primorsky Krai, between Vladivostok and the Chinese border.
An estimated 7-12 scattered individuals are thought to remain in China.
Many organizations are helping and supporting Amur leopards, and trying to spread information of this beautiful and critically endangered specie.
References:
http://www.wcs.org/saving-wildlife/big-cats/amur-leopard.aspx
http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/endangered_species/amur_leopard2/
Amur leopards breed in spring and early summer. Litter size ranges form 1 to 4 puppies. The puppies are weaned when they are three months old and they leave their mother when they are one and a half or two years old. Amur leopard is known to live for 10-15, and in capture even 20 years.
The main threats of Amur leopards are habitat lost and fragmentation, prey scarcity, illegal trade and poaching, conflict with human, and vulnerable population size and inbreeding.
Previous population and distribution:
Amur leopards distribution has been reduced a lot from its original range. It once reached to northeastern China, including Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces, and throughout the Korean Peninsula. During the seventies the distribution range was dramatically reduced in Russia, losing about 80% of its original size.
Current population and distribution:
Today, the Amur leopard inhabits about 5 000 km². The last remaining viable wild population, an estimated 57 individuals, is found in small area in the Russian Province of Primorsky Krai, between Vladivostok and the Chinese border.
An estimated 7-12 scattered individuals are thought to remain in China.
References:
http://www.wcs.org/saving-wildlife/big-cats/amur-leopard.aspx
http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/endangered_species/amur_leopard2/
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