Page 28 - Animals of the Wild April 2017(1)_Neat

Leopards normally don’t attack humans but it is possible when the leopard is struggling, sickly or
injured. It can also happen when prey is scarce. This is a very rare phenomenon.

Leopards depend on their sense of hearing and vision while hunting. They will stalk their prey and
approach it by crawling close to the ground until they are 5 metres from the prey. They will then
pounce onto the prey with their forepaws. The smaller animals will be killed with a single bite on the
back of the neck. The bigger prey will be held strongly by the neck while they suffocate (the smaller
prey will be eaten immediately). Leopards kill Black-backed jackals, African wildcat and the cubs of
lions, cheetahs, hyenas and wild dogs. Leopards can kill adult cheetahs. Leopards and tigers have the
same diet. Where there are a big population of tigers the leopard, population will be small. Where
these two species co-exist, leopards change their diet to smaller prey and change their habitat.

Leopards keep the white part of their tail over their back as a sign that they are not hunting.

Depending on the region, mating is all year. In Manchuria and Syria, mating is preferred in January
and February. The female leopards are in heat for 6 to 7 days. When the leopardess is ready to mate,
she will give off a scent or rub her body against trees leaving her scent on the trees. The males will
smell her and hear her cries. The pregnancy lasts for 90 to 105 days. The leopardess gives birth in a
cave, hollow tree, thicket or among boulders to a litter of 2 to 4 cubs. The cubs are born with closed
eyes which will only open after 4 to 9 days.

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