Leopard
Eddie Garcia Period 3 5/16/16
Habitat
The Leopard mostly live in the scorching Sahara, but some also live in the Asian lands, and a very minimal amount live in the Indonesian Islands. From Gale Research,"Leopards are found in much of Africa south of the Sahara and in parts of Asia from Israel to Korea and Indonesia. They are listed as threatened or endangered throughout their range, owing primarily to loss of their natural habitat and to illegal killing for Asian folk medicine."
Movement
Leopard's use there legs to move around. They have four legs, like any other cat. They are very solitary, which means that they live, hunt, and do most things lonely."Leopards are graceful, alert, and cunning", said World Book Online. So I do not think I will ever see a pack of Leopard's. Since they have four legs, I think it is kinda obvious that Leopard's live on land, so they can walk, run, do everything they do on land.
Body Covering
Like all cats, Leopard's are covered by a thick blanket of fur. They have a really fuzzy tail and good claws. The claws however, are more important to a Snow Leopard, because they need them to stick to the cold Ice. "It is commonly yellow, buff, or gray, patterned with black spots and rings. The rings, unlike those of the New World jaguar , never have spots inside them. Black leopards are commonly called panthers, a name sometimes used for all leopards. They are not a distinct species but merely a color variant caused by melanism, or excessive pigmentation. Close inspection reveals the typical spotting, which is obscured by the darkness of the background", said Gale Research.
Diet
Most Leopard's, when they are hungry, are more fiercer than any other cat in the world. From World Book Online,"These fierce animals eat meat and hunt their prey. They feed on such animals as monkeys, antelope, jackals, peacocks, snakes, sheep, goats, and dogs. In Africa, they even kill the big porcupines that have quills 1 foot (30 centimeters) or more in length.Leopards seldom attack human beings. However, once they discover that people are easy victims, leopards may become more dangerous than tigers or lions. Leopards are good climbers and spend part of their time in trees. They are remarkably strong. Carcasses of prey weighing 80 to 150 pounds (36 to 68 kilograms) have been found in trees 12 to 20 feet (4 to 6 meters) above the ground where a leopard had carried them." But the other slow quantity, go for the easy."They prey mostly on small animals such as monkeys, rodents, and birds" said Gale research.
Reproduction
There is not much information on how the Leopard's reproduce. From my thinking, I think that they reproduce sexually. When Male mates with a female, the male leaves the female to do the stuff. They usually have one child. To fight for a female, both fight to death. The winner get the women.
Adaptation
Like I said before, these animals are really solitary. When they are really hungry, they are really fierce. When they are tired or lazy, they go with the flow and eat small thing's as big as a monkey. They like living in hot or really warm places. They have no predators. From Sirs "Are they endangered?Leopards are not endangered. Their status is Near Threatened".
Fun Facts
- They have another name given by really smart scientists, it is "Panthera Pardus"
- They are mammals
- "There are at least seven subspecies of leopard, including the snow leopard and the Amur leopard." SIRS
- "Unlike the leopard, both the snow and clouded leopards do not roar."Gale
- "A Snow Leopard is sometimes called an Ounce" Gale
- "The snow and clouded leopards are endangered species."Gale
Works Cited
"leopard." The Columbia Electronic Encyclopediaâ„¢. New York: Columbia University Press, 2016. Research in Context. Web. 11 May 2016. : Gale
"Leopard." SIRS Discoverer: Animal Facts. 2015: n.p. SIRS Discoverer. Web. 11 May 2016: SIRS
Schlitter, Duane A. "Leopard." World Book Advanced. World Book, 2016. Web. 9 May 2016. : WB1
Hillard, Darla, and Rodney Jackson. "Snow leopard." World Book Advanced. World Book, 2016. Web. 11 May 2016. :WB 2