Save the Amur Leopards!
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Facts
Scientific Name:Panthera Pardus OrientalisStatus:Critically Endangered |  |
Habitat
The Amur Leopard’s habitat once extended across far eastern Russia and Manchuria. They straddled along the Amur river. They usually lived in the northern temperate and broad-leaf forests, but now they inhabit around 5,000 km² of land. One of the last remaining patches of amur leopards (20-25) are found in a small area in the Russian Province of Primorsky Krai, between Vladivostok and the Chinese border. In China, around 7-15 are thought to remain.
Type
The Amur Leopard demonstrates a type I survivorship curve with their few number of offspring, and energy devoted to rearing the young, and is K-selected as most mammals are.
Food and Importance
The main prey species are roe deer and sika deers, small wild boars, along with hares, badgers and raccoon dogs. The niche of the Amur Leopard is that of an opportunistic hunter. They usually eat roe various deers and boars, but are willing to eat other prey. They usually drag the prey to trees to store and consume later. The Amur Leopard does not hibernate in winter, and it preys on starved deer and sleeping carnivores. As there are few Amur Leopards left, many deer carcasses are left to be maggot infested. They are important as they keep animals in check, or would if there were a substantial amount of them.
Adaptations
Population Over Time
The Amur Leopard once extended throughout Manchuria, the Korean peninsula, and northern Russia. Now, they are believed to be extinct/almost extinct (unknown) in Asia, and isolated in a small part of Russia, having lost 80% of its former range. An estimate 20-25 individuals are believed to remain in Russia (the wild).
Causes of Endangerment
The Amur Leopard is endangered due to a variety of reasons, both anthropocentric and natural reasons. Some anthropocentric reasons for the leopard's endangerment would include poaching, prey scarcity (due to excessive hunting), and habitat destruction/development of infrastructure. For example, the leopard’s pelt is highly valued, going from around 500 to 1000 dollars. The habitats where the leopards used to live weren't managed as well and that made poaching relatively easy. This lack of management also contributed to the second reason, prey scarcity. As poachers would come to hunt the animal for its pelt, they would also hunt the various deer species as well. Not enough food for the leopards meant that they wouldn't be able to thrive. It is also estimated that the Amur leopard lost around 80% of its former territory due to indiscriminate logging, forest fires, and land conversion.
Some natural factors for endangerment would include close competition with tigers for prey,and the harshness of the winter (scarcity of prey). The Amur Leopard would also be highly vulnerable to “catastrophes” such as fire and disease with its small population. Father-daughter and sibling mating might also lead to genetic problems as well.
Help
The Amur Leopard is being helped under various ways; some of which including protection laws, habitat protection, and work to increase prey population. For example, the leopard is listed on the CITES Appendix I which prohibits all commercial trade of the species. The world-wildlife-fund is working to stop the illegal trade of the leopard with TRAFFIC (the wildlife trade monitoring network), and is also trying to get governments to enforce domestic and international restrictions on Amur Leopard products. The Amur leopard’s habitats in Russia and China are both receiving increasing protection which reduces illegal poaching, and logging. In particular, the Amur leopards received a safe haven called Land of the Leopard National Park in Russia. This 650,000 acre plot of land includes all of the leopard’s breeding areas and 60% of the remaining leopard’s habitat.
There have also been efforts to save the leopard by various NGOs such as Phoenix, AMUR, the Zoological Society of London, and The Tigris Foundation. These NGOs carry out anti-poaching patrols, educational programmes, provide compensation funds for local livestock,employ captive breeding programs, and conduct conservation projects and research.
Additional methods that would help the Amur leopard's current situation could also include the protection of prey species, raising public awareness of this species, or imposing stricter punishments on illegal poaching.
