A Bit About Amur Leopards.
The Amur leopard is solitary - Nimble-footed and strong, it carries and hides unfinished kills so that they are not taken by other predators.
A SAFE HAVEN FOR AMUR LEOPARDS
Amur leopards received a safe haven in 2012 when the government of Russia declared a new protected area. Called Land of the Leopard National Park, this marked a major effort to save the world’s rarest cat. Extending nearly 650,000 acres it includes all of the Amur leopard’s breeding areas and about 60 percent of the critically endangered cat’s remaining habitat. The park is also home to 10 endangered Amur tigers. WWF lobbied for the establishment of this park in the Russian Far East since 2001.
Similar to other leopards, the Amur leopard can run at speeds of up to 37 miles per hour.
This incredible animal has also been reported to leap more than 19 feet horizontally and up to 10 feet vertically!
WWF, SPECIES | AMUR LEOPARD
Threats.
Illegal Wildlife Trade
Climate Change
The Amur leopard is poached largely for its beautiful, spotted fur. In 1999, an undercover investigation team recovered a female and a male Amur leopard skin, which were being sold for $500 and $1,000 respectively in the village of Barabash, not far from the Kedrovaya Pad reserve in Russia. Agriculture and villages surround the forests where the leopards live. As a result the forests are relatively accessible, making poaching a problem—not only for the leopards themselves, but also for important prey species, such as roe deer, sika deer and hare, which are hunted by the villagers both for food and cash.
Changes in weather is causing the suitable habitat for Amur Leopards to shrink, due to a change in their forest habitat and a decrease in prey. This is leading to increased competition for food with Amur tigers, which are found in the same area.