We need to help save the Amur Leopard from extinction.

Ecology and behavior[edit]
Amur leopards are crepuscular and usually start hunting shortly before sunset. They are active again in the early mornings. During the day, they rest and hide in caves or dense thickets, but rarely hunt. They are solitary, unless females have offspring.[7]

They are extremely conservative in their choice of territory. An individual's territory is usually located in a river basin which generally extends to the natural topographical borders of the area. The territory of two individuals may sometimes overlap, but only slightly. Depending on sex, age, and family size, the size of an individual's territory can vary from 5,000–30,000 ha (19–116 sq mi). They may use the same hunting trails, routes of constant migration, and even places for extended rest constantly over the course of many years.[13] At places where wild animals are abundant, leopards live permanently or perform only vertical migrations, trailing herds of ungulates and avoiding snow. In the Ussuri region the main prey of leopards are roe and sika deer, Manchurian wapiti, musk deer, moose, and wild pig. More rarely they catch hare, badger, fowl, and mice. In Kedrovaya Pad Nature Reserve roe deer is their main prey year-round, but they also prey on young Eurasian black bears less than two years old.[7]

 
Amur Leopard At the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans
When density of ungulates is low, leopards have large home ranges that can be up to 100 km2(39 sq mi).[14]

During a study of radio-collared Amur leopards in the early 1990s, a territorial dispute between two males at a deer farm was documented, suggesting that deer farms are favoured habitats.[15] Female leopards with cubs are relatively often found in the proximity of deer farms. The large number of domestic deer is a reliable food source that may help to survive difficult times.[16]

They can run at 37 mi (60 km) per hour, and can leap more than 19 ft (5.8 m) horizontally and up to 10 ft (3.0 m) vertically.[17]

Reproduction[edit]
Sexual maturity sets in at the age of 2–3 years and ability to reproduce continues up to 10–15 years of age. Estrus lasts 12–18 days, and in exceptional cases up to 25 days. Gestation requires 90–105 days, but usually 92–95 days. The weight of a newborn cub is 500–700 g (1.1–1.5 lb). The young open their eyes on the 7th–10th day and begin to crawl on the 12th–15th day. By the second month they emerge from their dens and also begin to eat meat. Cubs begin to be weaned at three months and taught to hunt. Lactation continues for five or six months. Cubs reach independence at approximately two to three years old. They stay with their mother until they are around eighteen months to two years in age.[18] Juveniles sometimes stay with their mother until she comes into estrus again. Until the 1970s, cubs were seen in Kedrovaya Pad Nature Reserve, Primorsky Krai, and in northeastern China most often from the end of March through May; litters comprised two to three cubs. In captivity some individuals have lived for 21 years.[7]

Amur leopards breed in spring and early summer. The breeding season is in the late winter months, usually around January or February. The gestation period for the mother is 90–105 days. So their cubs are usually born April through June. One to four cubs are born. They are weaned at the age of 3 months. The young usually leave their mothers at the age of one and a half to two years.[19] During a population census in 1997, four females found with young had only one cub each. Results of radio telemetry studies confirmed that young stay with their mother for two years. In Kedrovaya Pad Nature Reserve the young of two different litters were observed with their mothers at the same time.[13]

Breeding can take place year round, and average litter size is 2-3 cubs. Amur leopards can live up to 20 years in captivity, but the average lifespan in the wild is unknown. A male leopard radio-collared at 2–3 years of age by WCS scientists in 1994 was photographed during camera trapping surveys in 2003, proving that leopards can live more than 10 years in their natural habitat. However, results of WCS camera-trapping research indicate that mortality rates in the wild may be very high.[20]

Threats[edit]
Amur leopards are threatened by poaching, encroaching civilisation, new roads, poaching of prey, forest fires, inbreeding, possible coexisting with disease carriers and transmitters, and exploitation of forests.[1][21]

Due to the small number of reproducing Amur leopards in the wild, the gene pool is so reduced that the population is at risk from inbreeding depression.[4]

Tigers can eliminate leopards if densities of large and medium-sized prey species are low. Competition between these predators supposedly decreases in summer, when small prey species are more available. In winter, conditions are less favorable for tigers and the extent of trophic niche overlap with that of Amur leopards probably reaches its peak.[14]

Poaching[edit]
Poaching of leopards is a main threat to their survival. There are rumours but no evidence that Chinese traders buy leopard skins; no skins were confiscated at borders to China. In 14 months from February 2002 to April 2003, seven skins or part of skins were confiscated, six in Russia and one in China. Leopards are most often killed by local Russians from small villages in and around the leopard habitat. Most of these villagers hunt entirely illegally; they have no licenses for hunting nor for their guns, and they are not members of one of the local hunting leases.[16]

In 1999, skins of poached Amur leopards were offered for $500–1,000 near a protected area in Russia.[22]

Forest degradation[edit]
Human induced fires are a main threat to the survival of the Amur leopard. Setting fire to fields is a habit of rural farmers who start them for a particular purpose such as improving fertility for livestock grazing, killing ticks and other insects, making scrap metals visible so that they can be easily collected, culling vegetation along train tracks, and stimulating fern growth. Young ferns are sold in shops, served in restaurants and also exported to China as a popular dish. Surveys using satellite images and GIS techniques revealed that on average 19% of south-west Primorye burns annually, and a total of 46% burned at least once in six years. Due to a long and frequent fire history, much of the land in south-west Primorye has been converted to permanent grasslands. These frequent fires cause degradation of suitable leopard habitat into unsuitable habitat. Repeated fires have created open "savannah" landscapes with grass, oak bushes and isolated trees that leopards seem to avoid, again probably because of low ungulate densities.[16]

Large deer farms extended over thousands of hectares in Amur leopard habitat. Deer farming used to be a large-scale business; the velvet of deer antlers was sold to Asian pharmacies.[15] The number of deer farms decreased considerably since the late 1990s.[16]

The Amur Leopard only exists in an area in the wild smaller than 2500 km2, smaller than Dorset. This border area is located between far east Russia and north east China.[21]

Conservation[edit]
 
Amur leopard Darla in the Tallinn Zoo
Panthera pardus is listed in CITES Appendix I.[26]

The Amur Leopard and Tiger Alliance (ALTA) is an initiative of Russian and western conservation organisations to conserve the Amur leopard and Amur tiger, and secure a future for both species in the Russian Far East and Northeast China. ALTA operates across Northeast Asia under the guiding principle that only co-operative, co-ordinated conservation actions from all interested parties can save these endangered species from extinction. ALTA works in close co-operation with local, regional, and federal governmental and non-governmental organisations to protect the region's biological wealth through conservation, sustainable development and local community involvement. The Phoenix Fund and the Wildlife Conservation Society provide a local framework for implementing ALTA projects, working closely with many Russian and Chinese agencies. In regards to conservation of Amur leopards, ALTA aims at retaining a leopard population of 35 adult females (100 total) in south-west Primorye and the Jilin-Heilongjiangborder region; and creating a second population of 20 adult females (60 total) in the former range of the Amur leopards. Conservation projects for the Amur leopard include:[16]

four antipoaching teams with a total of 15 members in the Amur leopard range
a special task force of local police and anti-poaching teams led by the Khasan prosecutor
monitoring of the Amur leopard population through snow track counts and camera trap counts
monitoring and analysis of the impact of fires on Amur leopard habitat and the effectiveness of fire-fighting
habitat assessment with geographic information system techniques: assessment of the role of habitat quality, land ownership, land use, protection status, settlements, deer farms, roads, and human settlements with use of monitoring data and satellite images
development of land-use plans that take in account future needs of Amur leopards
support for protected areas in the leopard range
compensation of livestock kills by leopards and tigers
a comprehensive education program for school children and students in the leopard range
support for hunting leases and ungulate recovery program
media campaign to create awareness about the Amur leopard's plight
support and technical assistance for the new Hunchun reserve in China that borders on the leopard range in Russia
An oil pipeline planned to be built through leopard habitat was rerouted, following a campaign by conservationists.[19]

Reintroduction into the wild[edit]
Since

Since 1996, the idea of reintroducing leopards in the south of Sikhote-Alin has been discussed by ALTA members. During a workshop in 2001, the outlines and principles of a plan for the development of a second population of Amur leopard in the Russian Far East was prepared. For reintroduction to be successful, one fundamental question needs to be answered: Why did leopards disappear from the southern Sikhote-Alin in the middle of the 20th century? It was recommended to assess reasons for localized extinctions, obtain support of local people, increase prey in areas proposed for reintroduction, ensure that conditions exist conducive for reintroduction in the selected area, and ensure survival of the existing population. There are two sources of leopards for reintroduction: leopards born and raised in zoos and leopards raised in a special reintroduction center passed through a rehabilitation program for life in the wild.[23]

If this reintroduction is to succeed, it is clear that the design of the breeding and release centre, and the management of the leopards in it, must focus strongly on overcoming the difficulties imposed by the captive origin of the cats. Three necessary behaviours should be acquired prior to release: hunting and killing of live natural prey; avoidance of humans and avoidance of tigers.[27]

In March 2009, the Minister of Natural Resources of Russia during his meeting with Vladimir Putin reassured that the ministry is planning to introduce new "imported" Amur leopards into the area and creating suitable and safe habitat for them. The government already allocated all required funds for the project.[28]

Contiguous patches of potential leopard habitat as potential reintroduction sites were identified in the southern Sikhote-Alin. Three coastal potential habitat patches could harbour approximately 72 adult leopards.[29]

Amur leopards are top predators which means they play a crucial role in maintaining a healthy balance of species within their habitat. This in turn influences the condition of the forest and overall ecosystem – which supplies both nature and people with food, freshwater and many other resources.

In captivity[edit]