Snow Leopards are pretty Amazing !
The snow leopard is a large cat native to the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia. It is listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species because as of 2003, the size of the global population was estimated at 4,080–6,590 adults, of which fewer than 2,500 individuals may reproduce in the wild.The snow leopard was first described by Schreber in 1775 on the basis of an illustration. Schreber named the cat Felis unciaand assumed that it ranges in Barbary, Persia, East India, and China.
- Snow leopards are between 86-125cm long – and that’s not including the tail! They weigh between 22-52kg, but males will be around a third larger than females.
2. Snow leopards have wide, fur-covered feet that act as natural snowshoes. These help to distribute their weight over soft snow and protect the soles from the freezing cold.
3. Snow leopard’s tails are thought to help them balance, but they also wrap them around themselves to keep warm.
4. Unlike other big cats – like lions and tigers – snow leopards can’t roar.
5. Some snow leopards have been known to leap up to nine metres – that’s six times their body length.
6. Snow leopards first reproduce at around two and a half years old. Usually two or three cubs are born in spring or early summer in a well-concealed den lined with the mother’s fur.
7. Cubs are born blind and don’t gain their sight until they’re nine days old. They are fully active by two months old and stay with their mother until they’re two years old. By this time they’re fully independent.
8. Snow leopards are sparsely distributed across 12 countries from southern Siberia to the Tibetan Plateau.
9. Snow leopards live at high altitudes, usually at elevations of 3,000 to 4,500 metres – but they’ve been seen above 5,500 metres in the Himalayas!
10. Snow leopards can kill prey weighing as much as three times their own body weight. Snow leopards’ main prey are the ibex, blue sheep and Himalayan tahr. One blue sheep will provide a snow leopard with food for one week.
11. Snow leopard tails are between 80 to 105 centimetres long.
12. Adults are solitary and only interact with other leopards during the breeding season.
13. A snow leopard’s nose is well adapted to deal with the cold – a short but wide nasal cavity heats the freezing air prior to it reaching the lungs.