Usually this animal is called a snow leopard or snow leopard. Russian merchants took the name “irbis” from the Turkic language, slightly changing it (in the Turkic language this cat is called “irbiz”).
In Tuva it is called irbish, in Semirechye - ilbers, to the east of Alma-Ata in the areas bordering China - irviz, i.e. his numerous titles in the languages of different nations they sound almost the same.
For a long time, the snow leopard was considered a relative of the leopard, but when genetic studies were carried out, it turned out that the snow leopard is most closely related to the tiger.
Appearance
Relatively large cat. The body is very elongated and squat, slightly raised in the sacrum area. The length of the body with the head is 103-130 cm, the length of the tail itself is 90-105 cm. Height at the shoulders is about 60 cm. Males are slightly larger than females. The body weight of males reaches 45-55 kg, females - 22-40 kg.
The coat is tall, very thick and soft. It provides protection from cold, harsh environmental conditions. In terms of the thickness of its fur, the snow leopard differs from all big cats and is more similar to small ones.
The general background color of the fur is brownish-gray without any admixtures of yellow and red. The main color of the coat on the back and upper parts of the sides is light gray or grayish, almost white, with a smoky coating. Scattered across the general light gray background are rare large ring-shaped spots in the shape of rosettes, inside of which there may be an even smaller spot, as well as small solid spots of black or dark gray. The general color of the main background of winter fur is very light, grayish, almost white, with a smoky coating, more noticeable along the back and along the top of the sides. This coloring perfectly camouflages the animal in natural environment his habitat is among dark rocks, stones, white snow and ice. The general background of summer fur is characterized by a lighter, almost white color and sharp outlines of dark spots. The smoky coating of fur is less pronounced in summer than in winter.
Snow Leopard, unlike other big cats, cannot growl. “Purring” occurs both during inhalation and exhalation - just like in small cats.
Snow leopard habitat
The snow leopard's habitat covers the territory of 13 countries: Russia, Kazakhstan, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Mongolia, China, Kyrgyzstan, India, Burma, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan. Animals prefer life on the slopes of gorges, high in the mountains up to 5 thousand above sea level. Therefore, snow leopards are considered exclusively mountain predators.
Previously, a family of snow leopards occupied an area of 8-12 square meters. km., today it has quadrupled due to a catastrophic decrease in the number of animals.
It would seem that the area is large enough - live and reproduce, but... the numbers show the opposite. For example: in Khakassia there are only five to seven individuals; the same amount - on the Ukok plateau; At the junction of Altai and the Western Sayans (Mongun-Taiga), only four snow leopards live.
The largest and least studied group snow leopards lives on the North and South Chuysky ridges - there scientists counted about thirty to forty individuals.
The most stable group lives in Sayano-Shushenskoye biosphere reserve- There are about fifteen individuals there. In general, on Russian territory There are a hundred and fifty snow leopards left, or a maximum of two hundred. Moreover, the number decreases every year.
Food, hunting
The main time for snow leopard hunting is twilight. Snow leopards feed on artiodactyls (rams, goats, wild sheep, etc.), as well as mice and hares. Despite its attachment to home, the snow leopard can wander quite far in the process of searching for prey. At one time, an adult snow leopard can eat 2-3 kg of meat.
But snow leopards never attack people, even when wounded. The snow leopard is very calm about being close to people. He can live side by side with hunters or herders, and they will not even suspect his presence.
A conflict between a snow leopard and a person arises only if the snow leopard begins to lack food, then it can easily switch to livestock.
Social behavior
Adult snow leopards are territorial animals, leading a predominantly solitary lifestyle (but family groups are also found), although females raise kittens for quite a long period of time. Each snow leopard lives within the boundaries of a strictly defined individual territory. However, it does not aggressively defend its territory from other members of its species. The habitat of an adult male can be overlapped by individual habitats of one to three females.
Reproduction
Mating season in March-April. The birth of cubs occurs once every two years. The pregnancy of a female snow leopard is about 100 days. From 1 to 5 cubs are born. Newborns weigh about 500g and are born with closed ear canals and blind. Until 4 months, kittens feed on their mother's milk. Complementary feeding with meat begins at 2 months of age, and at six months the babies go hunting with their mother. By the age of three, snow leopards reach sexual maturity.
Security
Currently, the number of snow leopards is catastrophically low.
In all countries where the range is located, the snow leopard is under state protection, but poaching still threatens it. The snow leopard is a rare, small and endangered species. Listed on the IUCN Red List (2000) as “endangered” (highest conservation category EN C2A). In the Red Book of Mongolia (1997), the species was given the status of “very rare”; in the Red Book Russian Federation(2001) - “endangered species at the limit of its range” (category 1).
Snow Leopard is an amazing inhabitant of mountainous areas, a predatory, dexterous, and very graceful animal. The animal is not called snow for nothing. This is the only representative of the family that lives in the mountains, where all year round there is snow. The predator is also called the snow leopard, the lord of the mountains or the snow leopard.
In ancient times, due to the similarity appearance they were called snow leopards, and were even considered representatives of the same species. However, snow leopards are not related to leopards. They are much stronger and faster, although they are inferior in size. Unfortunately, today this incredibly beautiful predator is on the verge of complete extinction.
Origin of the species and description
Snow leopards are representatives of predatory mammals. They belong to the cat family, separated into the genus and species of snow leopards. The theory of the origin of this amazing and very graceful predator has not yet been formed.
Back at the end of the 16th century, Russian fur traders and artisans heard from Turkic hunters about a mysterious handsome man, whom they called “irbiz”. For the first time, European residents were able to see the strange cat in 1761. Researcher Georges Buffon showed European nobility pictures that depicted a very beautiful wild cat. He supplemented his pictures with information that they are trained and raised to participate in hunting in Persia.
Video: Irbis
Since then, many scientific researchers and zoologists have been interested in this amazing beast. In 1775, the German zoologist-naturalist Johann Schreber wrote an entire scientific work that was devoted to the origin and evolution of animals, as well as a description of their appearance and lifestyle. Subsequently, the Russian scientist Nikolai Przhevalsky also studied the life activity of the snow leopard. A number of scientific, including genetic, examinations were carried out, according to which it was possible to establish that the approximate existence of the feline predator is about one and a half million years.
The first remains of the animal, which by all indications belonged to the snow leopard, were discovered on the western border of Mongolia, in Altai. They are dated to the late Pleistocene period. The next significant find is the remains of an animal in the northern region of Pakistan. Their approximate age is one and a half million years. Initially, snow leopards were classified as panthers. A little later, studies showed that the snow leopard and the panther do not have direct common characteristics.
This representative of the cat family has features, which are not inherent in other representatives of this family. This gives grounds to distinguish them into a separate genus and species. Although today there is no exact information about the origin of the snow leopard genus, scientists are inclined to believe that the snow leopard and the panther did not have common ancestors. The results of genetic testing give reason to believe that they separated into a separate branch a little more than a million years ago.
Appearance and features
The snow leopard is an animal of incredible beauty and grace. Body length one adult– 1-1.4 meters. The animals have a very long tail, the length of which is equal to the length of the body. Tail length is 0.8-1 meter. The tail plays a very important role. Animals use it to maintain balance in mountainous areas and to warm their front and hind paws in snow and frost. The weight of one adult individual is 30-50 kilograms.
Sexual dimorphism is not expressed, but males are slightly larger than females. Predators have large front paws with round pads measuring 1*1 cm. Long hind feet ensure fast movement among mountain peaks and deft, graceful jumps. The limbs are not very long, but the paws are thick and powerful. The paws have retractable claws. Thanks to this, there are no traces of claws left in the snow where the graceful predator passed.
The feline predator has round shape head, but with small, triangular-shaped ears. In winter, in thick, long fur, they are practically invisible. Animals have very expressive, round eyes. The snow leopard has long, thin whiskers. Their length reaches just over ten centimeters.
Interesting fact. The snow leopard has very long and thick fur, which keeps it warm in harsh conditions. climatic conditions. The length of the coat reaches 50-60 centimeters.
The area of the spinal column and the lateral surface of the body are gray, close to white color. The abdominal area, inner surface of the limbs and lower abdomen have a lighter tone. The unique color is provided by ring-shaped dark, almost black rings. Inside these rings are smaller rings. The smallest circles are located in the head area. Gradually, from the head, along the neck and body to the tail, the size increases.
The largest rings are located in the neck and limbs. On the area of the back and tail, the rings merge, forming transverse stripes. The tip of the tail is always black. The color of winter fur is smoky gray with an orange tint. This color allows them to remain unnoticed by steep rocks and snowdrifts. By summer, the coat becomes light, almost white.
Where does the snow leopard live?
Animals live only in mountainous areas. The average altitude of its permanent habitat is 3000 meters above sea level. However, in search of food, they can easily climb to a height twice as high as this figure. In general, the snow leopard's habitat is very diverse. Largest quantity animals are concentrated in the countries of Central Asia.
Geographical regions of snow leopard habitat:
- Mongolia;
- Afghanistan;
- Kyrgyzstan;
- Uzbekistan;
- Tajikistan;
- China;
- India;
- Kazakhstan;
- Russia.
In our country, the population of the feline predator is small. They are located mainly in Khakassia, Altai Territory, Tyva, and Krasnoyarsk Territory. The animal lives in mountains such as the Himalayas, Pamirs, Kun-Lun, Sayan Mountains, Hindu Kush, the mountains of Tibet, and many others. Animals also live in protected and protected areas. These include the territory of the Altushinsky and Sayano-Shushensky national parks.
Most often, the predator chooses the territory of steep rock cliffs, deep gorges and bushes as its habitat. Snow leopards prefer regions with low snow cover. In search of food it can go down to forest areas However, it spends most of its time in mountainous areas. In some regions, snow leopards live at an altitude not exceeding a thousand kilometers above sea level. In regions such as the Turkestan Range, it mainly lives at an altitude of 2.5 thousand meters, and in the Himalayas it climbs to a height of six and a half thousand meters. In winter, they can change their locations depending on the regions where the ungulates live.
The territory of Russia accounts for no more than 2% of the entire habitat of predators. Each adult occupies a special territory, which is prohibited for others.
What does a snow leopard eat?
By nature, the snow leopard is a predator. It feeds exclusively on food of meat origin. It can hunt both birds and large ungulates.
What is the food supply:
- Rams;
- Argali;
- Serau;
- Chukars;
- Feathered;
- Mountain goats.
For one meal, an animal needs 3-4 kilograms of meat to be completely satisfied.
Interesting fact. The snow leopard eats only at home. After a successful hunt, the leopard carries its prey to its den and only eats it there.
The snow leopard is a unique hunter and can kill several victims in one hunt. In summer it can eat berries or various types of vegetation, young shoots. For a successful hunt, the leopard chooses the most convenient position for an ambush. Mainly chooses places near waterfalls where animals come to drink, as well as near paths. Attacks with a sharp, lightning-fast jump from an ambush. The startled animal does not have time to react and becomes the prey of a predator. The leopard usually attacks from a distance of several tens of meters.
It attacks an especially large animal by jumping on its back and immediately biting into the throat, trying to bite or break its neck. The snow leopard, as a rule, has no competitors. He eats fresh meat, and leaves everything not eaten to other predators or birds.
During times of famine, he can come down from the mountains and hunt livestock - sheep, sheep, pigs, etc. Birds, rodents and smaller animals are a source of food only when there is an acute shortage of larger animals in the region where predators live.
Features of character and lifestyle
Snow leopards prefer a solitary lifestyle. Each adult individual chooses a specific habitat, which is prohibited for other representatives of the species. If other individuals of a given family enter the habitat, regardless of gender, they do not show pronounced aggression. The habitat of one individual ranges from 20 to 150 square kilometers.
Each individual marks its territory with marks with a specific smell, as well as claw marks on trees. In conditions of existence in national parks or reserves, where animals are limited in territory, they try to stay at a distance of at least two kilometers from each other. In rare exceptions, snow leopards exist in pairs.
Shows the greatest activity in dark time days. It goes hunting at dawn or after dark. Most often, he develops a specific route and moves only along it in search of food. The route consists of watering places and ungulate pastures. In the process of covering its route, it does not miss the opportunity to catch smaller food.
The snow leopard has landmarks on each route. These may include waterfalls, rivers, streams, high mountain peaks or rocks. Completing the chosen route takes from one to several days. During this period of time, the predator covers from ten to thirty kilometers.
In winter, when the thickness of the snow cover increases, the predator is forced to first trample its paths in order to be able to hunt. This can play a cruel joke on him, since the trails visible in the snow and the habit of not changing their route make them easy prey for poachers. Animals are capable of developing great speed and, thanks to their long feet, can jump 10-15 meters in length.
Interesting fact: Irbis- This is the only representative of the cat family that is unusual in growling. They often make long sounds. This is especially true for females during marriage. With this sound, which is formed by the passage of air masses through the nostrils, females notify males of their location.
This sound is also used as a greeting between individuals. Facial expressions and direct contact are also used as communication. In order to demonstrate strength, animals open their mouths wide, exposing long fangs. If predators are in good mood and are peaceful, they open their mouths slightly without showing fangs, and also wrinkle their nose.
Social structure and reproduction
Animals tend to lead a solitary lifestyle. Individuals of the opposite sex communicate with each other only during marriage. Females mate once every two years. Animals are naturally monogamous. When existing in captivity or in national parks and protected areas, they can be monogamous.
The period of marriage depends greatly on the time of year. It begins with the onset of winter and lasts until mid-spring. Females attract males by making a long, creaking sound. Males respond to the call. When individuals of different sexes are found in the same territory, they themselves behave more actively. She raises her tail like a pipe and walks around the male. During the mating process, the male holds the female in one position by grabbing the fur near the withers with his teeth. The female's pregnancy lasts 95-115 days. From mid-spring to mid-summer, small kittens appear. Most often, one female is able to reproduce no more than three kittens. In exceptional cases, five kittens may be born. The female leaves to give birth to her babies in the stone gorges.
Interesting fact. The female makes a kind of hole in the gorge, lining its bottom with fur from her belly.
The weight of each newborn kitten is 250-550 grams. Babies are born blind; after 7-10 days their eyes open. They leave the lair after two months. Upon reaching 4-5 months of age, they participate in hunting. Until six months, the mother feeds her babies with breast milk. Upon reaching the age of two months, kittens begin to gradually become familiar with solid, meat foods. Females reach sexual maturity at the age of three years, males at the age of four years. During the first year they maintain the closest possible connection with their mother.
Average duration life of predators - 13-15 years natural conditions. In captivity, life expectancy can increase to 27 years.
Natural enemies of snow leopards
The snow leopard is considered an animal that stands at the very top of the food pyramid and has practically no competitors or enemies. In some cases, interspecific hostility occurs, during which adult, strong individuals die. There is often enmity between snow leopards and. Adult, strong individuals pose a threat to young and immature snow leopards.
The greatest threat is posed by people who kill animals in pursuit of valuable fur. In Asian countries, medicinal products often use skeletal elements as an alternative to tiger bones for making medicines.
Population and species status
Today this amazing and very graceful predator is on the verge of complete extinction. This status of this animal species is due to a number of specific reasons.
Reasons for the extinction of the species:
- The habitats of individual groups of animals are very remote from each other;
- Slow reproduction rates;
- Depletion of food supply – reduction in the number of artiodactyls;
- Poaching;
- Very late puberty.
According to the World Animal Protection Organization, there are from 3 to 7 thousand individuals in the world. Another 1.5-2 thousand animals exist in zoos and national parks. According to rough statistics, the number of individuals in Russia has decreased by a third over the past decade. The extinction of the species was also facilitated by a sharp reduction in the number of sexually mature females.
Snow leopard conservation
For protection purposes, this species of predatory animals is listed in the International Book, as well as in the Red Book of Russia, as an endangered species. It was listed in the Red Book of Mongolia in 1997 and assigned the status of “very rare species”. Today, in order to preserve and increase the number of these amazing predators, national parks and protected areas are being created in which animals breed.
In 2000, the animal was included in the IUCN Red List under the highest protection category. In addition, the snow leopard is listed in the first Appendix of the Convention on International Trade in Various Species of Animals and Plants. In all countries in which the animal lives, officially, at the legislative level, hunting and destruction of the handsome animal is prohibited. Violation of this requirement is criminally punishable.
Snow Leopard is a mysterious and very graceful animal. He is a symbol of the greatness, power and fearlessness of many countries. It is unusual for him to attack a person. This can only happen in rare exceptions.
This is the only large cat living high in the mountains, where the eternal snow rests silently. It is not for nothing that the semi-official title “Snow Leopard” was given to climbers who managed to conquer the five legendary seven-thousander mountains of the Soviet Union.
Description of the snow leopard
Uncia uncia, which lives in the highlands of Central Asia, is also called the snow leopard or snow leopard.. The last word Russian merchants borrowed the original transcription of “irbiz” from Turkic hunters back in the 17th century, but only a century later this beautiful animal was “introduced” to Europeans (so far only in the picture). This was done in 1761 by Georges Buffon, who accompanied the drawing with a remark that Once (the snow leopard) is trained for hunting and is found in Persia.
A scientific description from the German naturalist Johann Schreber appeared somewhat later, in 1775. Over the next centuries, the snow leopard was studied by many eminent zoologists and travelers, including our Nikolai Przhevalsky. Paleogeneticists, for example, have found that the snow leopard is an ancient species that appeared on the planet approximately 1.4 million years ago.
Appearance
This is an impressive cat, reminiscent of a leopard, but not as large and more squat. There are other signs that distinguish the snow leopard from the leopard: a long (3/4 of the body) thick tail and a peculiar pattern of rosettes and spots. An adult snow leopard grows up to 2–2.5 m (including the tail) with a height at the withers of about 0.6 m. Males are always larger than females and weigh 45–55 kg, while the weight of the latter varies in the range of 22–40 kg.
The snow leopard has a small, rounded head with short, rounded ears. They have no tassels, and in winter their ears are practically buried in thick fur. The snow leopard has expressive eyes (to match the coat) and 10-centimeter vibrissae. Relatively short limbs rest on wide, massive paws with retractable claws. Where the snow leopard has passed, round footprints remain without claw marks. Thanks to the dense and high fur, the tail looks thicker than it is, and is used by the snow leopard as a balancer when jumping.
This is interesting! The snow leopard has unusually thick and soft fur, which warms the animal in harsh winters. The length of the hair on the back reaches 55 mm. In terms of fur density, the snow leopard is close to small cats, rather than large ones.
The back and upper areas of the sides are painted in a light gray (tending to white) color, but the belly, the back of the limbs and the sides below are always lighter than the back. The unique pattern is created by a combination of large ring-shaped rosettes (within smaller spots sitting inside) and solid black/dark gray spots. The smallest spots adorn the snow leopard's head, while larger ones are distributed along the neck and legs. On the back of the back, spotting turns into striping when the spots merge with each other, forming longitudinal stripes. On the second half of the tail, the spots usually close into an incomplete ring, but the tip of the tail is black on top.
Winter fur is usually greyish, with a smoky tinge (more pronounced on the back and over the sides), sometimes mixed with a slight yellowish tint. This coloring is designed to camouflage the snow leopard among the ice, gray rocks and snow. By summer, the main background of the fur fades almost to white, on which dark spots appear more clearly. Young snow leopards are always more intensely colored than their older relatives.
Character and lifestyle
This is a territorial animal, prone to loneliness: only females with growing kittens form kin groups. Each snow leopard has a personal area, whose area (in different locations of its range) ranges from 12 km² to 200 km². Animals mark the boundaries of their personal territory with scent marks, but do not try to defend it in fights. The snow leopard usually hunts at dawn or before sunset, less often during the day. It is known that snow leopards living in the Himalayas go out hunting strictly at dusk.
During the day, the animals rest on the rocks, often using the same den for several years. The lair is most often set up in rock crevices and caves, among rocky placers, preferring to hide under overhanging slabs. Eyewitnesses said that they saw snow leopards in the Kyrgyz Alatau, reclining on low juniper trees in the nests of black vultures.
This is interesting! The snow leopard periodically walks around its personal territory, checking the camps/pastures of wild ungulates and sticking to familiar routes. Usually his path (when descending from the peaks to the plain) runs along a mountain ridge or along a stream/river.
Due to the considerable length of the route, the detour takes several days, which explains the rare appearances of the animal at one point. In addition, its movements are slowed down by deep and loose snow: in such places the snow leopard builds permanent paths.
How long do snow leopards live?
It has been established that in the wild, snow leopards live for about 13 years, and almost twice as long in zoological parks. The average life expectancy in captivity is 21 years, but there has been a recorded case where a female snow leopard lived to be 28 years old.
Range, habitats
The snow leopard is recognized as an exclusively Asian species, whose range (total area of 1.23 million km²) extends across the mountainous regions of Central and South Asia. The zone of vital interests of the snow leopard includes the following countries:
- Russia and Mongolia;
- Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan;
- Uzbekistan and Tajikistan;
- Pakistan and Nepal;
- China and Afghanistan;
- India, Myanmar and Bhutan.
Geographically, the range extends from the Hindu Kush (in eastern Afghanistan) and the Syr Darya to Southern Siberia (where it covers the Altai, Tannu-Ola and Sayan Mountains), crossing the Pamirs, Tien Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, Kashmir and the Himalayas. In Mongolia, the snow leopard is found in the Mongolian/Gobi Altai and the Khangai Mountains, in Tibet - up to the north of Altun Shan.
Important! Russia accounts for only 2–3% of the world's range: this is the northern and northwestern habitat of the species. In our country, the total area inhabited by snow leopards is approaching 60 thousand km². The animal can be found in the Krasnoyarsk Territory, Tuva, Buryatia, Khakassia, the Altai Republic and in the Eastern Sayan Mountains (including the Munku-Sardyk and Tunkinskie Goltsy ranges).
The snow leopard is not afraid of high mountains and eternal snow, choosing open plateaus, gentle/steep slopes and small valleys with alpine vegetation, interspersed with rocky gorges and piles of stones. Sometimes animals stick to flatter areas with bushes and rocky screes that can hide them from prying eyes. Snow leopards mostly live above the forest line, but occasionally enter forests (usually in winter).
Snow leopard diet
The predator easily deals with prey that is three times its weight. Ungulates are of constant gastronomic interest to the snow leopard:
- horned and Siberian mountain goats;
- blue rams;
- takins and containers;
- argali and gorals;
- musk deer and deer;
- serow and
The snow leopard hunts alone, stalking ungulates near watering places, salt licks and trails: pouncing from above, from a cliff, or crawling from behind shelters. At the end of summer, autumn and with the onset of winter, snow leopards go hunting in groups consisting of a female and her litter. The predator jumps out from an ambush when the distance between it and the prey is reduced enough to reach it with several powerful jumps. If the object escapes, the snow leopard immediately loses interest in it or lags behind after running 300 meters.
The snow leopard usually grabs large ungulates by the throat and then strangles them or breaks their necks. The carcass is dragged under a rock or into a safe shelter where you can have lunch in peace. When full, it abandons its prey, but sometimes lies nearby, driving away scavengers, for example. On the territory of Russia, the diet of the snow leopard mainly consists of mountain goats, deer, argali, roe deer, etc.
The irbis or snow leopard is an endangered large-sized predator that belongs to the mammal class and the cat family. This animal is also called a snow leopard because of its external resemblance to these representatives. Snow leopards are very beautiful and graceful. Prefer a solitary lifestyle and rarely live in groups, choosing inaccessible mountain gorges as their home.
Snow leopards are an endangered and very rare species of animal. They are listed in the Red Book. Due to their great popularity among poachers, their numbers have decreased significantly and the animals are on the verge of extinction. There are no more than eight thousand representatives throughout the globe.
Hunting snow leopards is strictly prohibited and punishable by the legislation of the Russian Federation.
- Where do the snow leopard or snow leopard live?
- The history of the snow leopard.
- Body constitution and external features of the animal snow leopard.
- What do they eat and how do they hunt?
- Peculiarities of snow leopard reproduction and care of offspring.
- Keeping in captivity.
- Interesting to know: 10 interesting facts about the snow leopard.
Snow leopards prefer mountainous terrain and snow-capped mountain ranges. They live in the central parts of Asia. Representatives of the cat family can be found in the Himalayas, Tibet, Pamirs, Mongolia, etc.
Leopards prefer highlands (up to six kilometers).
On the territory of Russian vast expanses of snow leopards can be found in Siberia, the Altai mountain ranges, certain areas of Lake Baikal and the rocky gorges of the Caucasus mountains. The percentage of representatives is negligible - from 2 to 3 of the total.
China has the largest number of snow leopards - up to 5 thousand individuals.
The history of the snow leopard
Irbis is translated from Turkic as a cat that lives in the snow.
Georges Buffon (an outstanding French scientist) first depicted this predatory beast in 1761. The scientist believed that the animal's birthplace is Persia.
The remains of the animal were found in Altai and western Mongolian territory. Later finds were discovered in the territory of modern Pakistan. This is an ancient predator that was widespread more than one million years ago.
Uncia is the genus to which snow leopards belong. They are the first and last representatives of this genus. This is an intermediate species between the genus Panthers and small representatives of the cat family.
Body constitution and external features of the animal snow leopard
Appearance: Snow leopard has a number of similarities with a leopard. Average weight- 40 kg, body length - from one to one and a half meters. The tail of snow leopards is very long and fluffy. The animal is characterized by a light gray color and spotting.
The animal has luxurious thick fur, thanks to which the snow leopard is not afraid of even the most severe frosts. It is very long and soft. It is precisely because of the high value of its fur that the animal is on the verge of extinction. People hunted leopards for profit.
Snow leopard body constitution:
- Head small sizes proportional to the body, has a round shape.
- The eyes are very expressive, round, and large in size.
- The teeth are sharp and strong. Snow leopards have 30 teeth.
- The tail is long and fluffy.
- The body is powerful with well-developed muscles and a wide chest.
- The coat is very thick and soft.
Snow leopards They do not know how to growl like their relatives, but only slightly “purr”.
What do they eat and how do they hunt?
Snow leopard nutrition
It is a predator by nature, so it feeds on the meat of other animals. Likes to hunt at night or at dusk, as well as at dawn. Objects of their hunt:
Snow leopards love to diversify their diet plant products food, especially in summer. Green plants are a desirable delicacy for predatory animals. A snow leopard can eat 2 kg of meat in one sitting.
Features of hunting
Snow leopards are excellent hunters, having no competition. They can cope with animals that are five times larger and more massive than the snow leopard. Solitary hunting at night is typical for them. They love to hunt for fun, and not just for food, so they are ready to hunt down the right prey for hours. When the snow leopard is ready to attack, it makes a high jump from above onto the object of the hunt.
The snow leopard strangles cattle by attacking from behind and breaking their backbones to immobilize the victim. The snow leopard does not guard or hide leftover food, as it prefers only fresh meat and enjoys the process of tracking its prey.
The snow leopard has its own inviolable territory, into which it does not allow anyone, regularly making the rounds of its vast possessions.
Snow leopards They do not move well in deep snow, so they trample down paths and constantly move along them.
The only real threat to snow leopards is humans, since it is precisely because of poachers that the numbers of these animals are very small and they are on the verge of extinction. Leopards cannot attack people and behave quite friendly towards humans. This is actively used by people who kill snow leopards because of their valuable and rare fur.
Peculiarities of snow leopard reproduction and care of offspring
Snow leopard is ready to breed at the age of 3-4 years and it is at this age that it reaches sexual maturity. The mating season begins in February and ends in mid-spring. Attracts an individual of the opposite sex with the help of purring sounds. After the fertilization process, the male leaves his beloved.
The female approaches the process of giving birth to cubs very thoroughly: she meticulously chooses a secluded and comfortable place where she will produce her offspring; is engaged in insulating the place for birth, tearing out its wool and laying it for future cubs. The gestation period lasts no more than 3.5 months from the date of fertilization by the male.
The young mother herself raises her cubs and puts them on their feet, obtaining food and protecting her offspring. Educational process is completely entrusted to the mother's shoulders, so females have a hard time. The cub is born small (height no more than 30 cm and weight up to 500 grams) and defenseless, so it is quite difficult for him to survive. He is born blind, his eyes open only a week after birth.
The female feeds her offspring with milk for only a few months. And then the process of learning to hunt begins. The female attacks the victim, and small leopards carefully monitor her movements and listen to every gesture. Small snow leopards are very playful and prone to fights between each other. By the age of two, the young leopard becomes independent and independent, therefore most often he leaves his family at this age and switches to a solitary lifestyle.
The lifespan of the average leopard varies from 10 to 14 years. In captivity, snow leopards can live much longer - up to 21 years.
These measures are used to preserve and reproduce the animal, as well as to increase their lifespan. Snow leopards are tamed with great difficulty, because they are very freedom-loving by nature. However, representatives who were born in captivity are more amenable to the training process and have a sincere sympathy for humans.
In zoos in the Russian Federation There are only 27 representatives of these animals, and in the world’s zoos there are no more than 2 thousand.
The snow leopard requires free and well-lit space, so the height of the enclosure containing the snow leopard can reach 6 meters. We need to create as much as possible natural conditions to ensure a comfortable existence for these predators.
Leopards are fed once a day. The diet consists of meat products and live animals of small breeds (rats, mice, rabbits, chickens). They also enrich the diet with the help of vitamin and mineral complex supplements.
Interesting to know: 10 interesting facts about the snow leopard
The snow leopard, or snow leopard, or snow leopard is a large predatory mammal from the cat family that lives in the mountains of Central Asia. The snow leopard is thin, long, flexible body, relatively short legs, small head and very long tail. Reaching a length of 200-230 cm together with the tail, it weighs up to 55 kg. The fur color is light smoky gray with ring-shaped and solid dark spots. Due to the inaccessibility of the habitat and the low density of the species, many aspects of its biology still remain poorly studied. Currently, the number of snow leopards is catastrophically small; in the 20th century, it was included in the IUCN Red Book, the Red Book of Russia, as well as in the protection documents of other countries. As of 2012, hunting snow leopards is prohibited.
The general color of the main background of winter fur is very light, grayish, almost white, with a smoky coating, more noticeable along the back and along the top of the sides, while a slight light yellowish tint may be developed. This coloring perfectly camouflages the animal in its natural habitat - among dark rocks, stones, white snow and ice. The general background of summer fur is characterized by a lighter, almost white color and sharp outlines of dark spots. The smoky coating of fur is less pronounced in summer than in winter. There is information that requires further confirmation that with age, the spotted pattern on the skin fades, becoming even more vague and unclear. In young individuals, the spotted pattern is more pronounced, and the color of the spots is more intense than in adult individuals. There is no sexual dimorphism in coloration. Geographical variation in color in the snow leopard is not expressed or, if it exists, it is very insignificant. The lack of clearly defined geographic variability is determined by the relatively small range of the species. The snow leopard is an extremely stenotypic species and adheres to identical conditions and habitats throughout its entire range. The head, relative to the size of the body, is small and round in shape. The ears are short, bluntly rounded, without tufts at the ends, and are almost hidden in the fur in winter. The mane and sideburns are not developed. Vibrissae are white and black, up to 10.5 cm long. The eyes are large, with a round pupil. The skull is relatively powerful, with tubercles and ridges, strongly developed zygomatic arches, but less massive and heavy than those of other representatives of the Panther genus. The length of the male skulls is 18-19 cm, the condylo-basal length is 16.5-17.3 cm, the zygomatic width is 12-13.5 cm, the interorbital width is 4.3-4.7 cm, the width of the rostrum above the canines is 4.8-5 .3 cm, the length of the upper tooth row is 5.8-6.3 cm. An adult snow leopard, like most other cats, has 30 teeth. There are 6 incisors and 2 canines on the upper and lower jaws; on the upper jaw - 3 premolars and 1 molar; on the lower jaw - 2 premolars and 1 molar. The long and mobile tongue is equipped on the sides with special tubercles, which are covered with keratinized epithelium and allow the meat to be separated from the skeleton of the victim. These bumps also help with "washing". The tail is very long, exceeding three-quarters of the body length, covered long hair and therefore it seems very thick (visually its thickness is almost equal to the thickness of the snow leopard’s forearm). Serves as a balancer when jumping. The limbs are relatively short. The snow leopard's paws are wide and massive. The claws on the paws are retractable. The marks are large, round, without claw marks. The snow leopard, unlike other big cats, cannot roar, despite the incomplete ossification of the hyoid bone, which was thought to allow big cats to roar. New research suggests that the ability to growl in felids is determined by different morphological features of the larynx that are absent in the snow leopard. Despite the structure of the hyoid apparatus like that of big cats (Panthera), there is no calling “roar or growl”. "Purring" occurs both during inhalation and exhalation - as in small cats (Felis). The methods of tearing apart prey are similar to those of big cats, and the position when eating is similar to that of small cats.
