Panthera uncia (Snow Leopard)
Adult Snow Leopard
Description: They have s well-developed chest, short forelimbs and a thick, long tail.
They have a large nasal cavity that warms the air passing into the body and the coat is long and dense.
Coat: Long and thick, coloured smoky-grey tinged with yellow, patterned with dark grey rosettes and black spots. The ears are black edges and the tail tip is often black and the paws devoid of black marks. The chin and lips are white as are the whiskers and their eyes are grey-brown.
Size: Head and body length up to 130cm, tail length 80-100cm, shoulder height 60cm.
Weight: Male: 45-55kg, female: 35-40kg.
Senses: Thwe woolly underfur is about 12 cm thick and keeps them warm in extreme cold, however they tolerate temperatures of up to 40 degrees centegrade in summer and about -40 in winter.
Habitat: Alpine steppe, grassland, scrub and open coniferous forest from 1,800-5,500m, but as low as 900m. They avoid dense montane forests.
Adult Snow Leopard
Range: Home ranges vary in size from about 20-40km (12-25mi) in good habitat to 1,000sq km (400sq mi) in prey-sparse areas. Male and females overlap their home ranges extensively. The aniamls tend to stay about 1 km appart at all times other than when mating by usuing different areas at different times.
Common travel lines are marked by scrapes, feces and pungent scent-sprays, disclosing the informants sex and reproductive status.
Distribution: The distribution is patchy, occuring across the high mountains of C Asia, from the Himalayas to S and W Mongolia and S Russia. Occurs in 12 countries.
Status: Snow leopards have become extremely rare in many parts of their range. The total wild population is estimated to be about 4,500-7,500. The primary threats to this population are hunting for coats and bones and body parts. All protected areas are too small to surport more than a few animals.
Daily Rhythm:
Voice: During the breeding season the long-drawn-out calls can be heard as aniamls call mates to themselves. Females also use the call to keep contact with their dependant offspring.
Enemies:
Prey: Blue sheep, ibex, subadult yak, sheep, goats, horses, marmots and hares.
Food and Feeding: Blue sheep and ibex are their most widespread prey, they will feed on a wide variety of ungulates, including goats, deer and domestic stock such as subadult yak, sheep and horses up to three times their weight. Marmots and hares are mostly taken in summer. Snow leopards must stalk their prey, getting within 30-40m of their prey before making their final rush.
Grouping: They are solitary, except during the mating season.
Breeding: The breeding season takes place in January to March. Females only breed once every 2 years.
Gestation:
Litter Size: 1-4.
Young Description: Initially the youngs spots are almsot entirely black, their eyes do not open until they are 7-8 days old.
Nest: The nest is a well concealed rocky den.
Young Care: The young are born in spring or early summer. The young become quite active when they reach 3 months and remain with their mother for about 18-22 months.
Sexual Maturity:
Longevity: Up to 21 years in captivity.
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