LEOPARD
(Panthera Pardus)
Afrikaans
Zulu
Zulu
: Luiperd
: Ngwe, Ingwe.
: Ngwe, Ingwe.
Shoulder Height
Mass
Gestation
Mating season
Life span
Mass
Gestation
Mating season
Life span
: 80 cm
: Male 60 kg - Female 55 kg
: about 14 weeks - 1 to 3 cups, weighing approx 570 g
: Anytime of the year
: Up to 20 years
: Male 60 kg - Female 55 kg
: about 14 weeks - 1 to 3 cups, weighing approx 570 g
: Anytime of the year
: Up to 20 years
Leopard cubs suckles for 3 months. After 3 months, cub will accompany mother on hunting forays. They become sexually mature at about 3 years of age.
After 22 months, they leave and find their own territory. Females rarely manage to rear more than one cub of litter because of scarcity of food, and predators such as Lion, Hyaena and Wild Dog.
Leopards live in woods and forest, and often seen in riverine trees.
They will eat any animal they can catch, like antelope, rodents, monkey, fish, birds, snakes, domestic animals, and carrion.
They are known to be excellent climbers and swimmers and they can travel 25km in one night, and when disturbed, as 3 times as much.
They will eat any animal they can catch, like antelope, rodents, monkey, fish, birds, snakes, domestic animals, and carrion.
They are known to be excellent climbers and swimmers and they can travel 25km in one night, and when disturbed, as 3 times as much.
Leopard rarely kills more than ones a week, when female has cubs, twice a week.
Territory covers rarely more than 20 sq km.
Territory covers rarely more than 20 sq km.
It is believed that before hunting, the Leopard rub their body's in a fever bush to disguise their scent, to be able to approach their prey undetected.
The Leopard is a very adaptable hunter, and it is been recorded that a Leopard caught on an Island, managed to teach himself to catch fish.
It is as well a very silent hunter, and can approach a prey as close as a few meter without being noticed.
It is as well a very silent hunter, and can approach a prey as close as a few meter without being noticed.
It is been said that on one occasion a human baby was snatched out of a room where the parents were sleeping, without being noticed by those same parents.
One of the reasons a Leopard is a quiet hunter is the fact it hunts most of the time alone, and can not chase away other predators after killing a prey like Lions, as the Lions will hunt as a pride.
