SECTION 2
Natural History
Information on range, ecology and status in the wild.

SECTION 3
Further reading.

SECTION 1
Did you know?

• Leopards are thought to be 7 times stronger than a human being, pound for pound.

• People have observed leopards hauling a carcass 2-3 times their weight, 20 feet up a tree.

• Each leopard has its own spot pattern, just as people have different finger prints.

• There are three different species of cats called "leopard":  Leopard (Panthera pardus), Clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa) and the Snow leopard (Uncia uncia).

• There are many different subspecies of leopard from various parts of the world, such as the Persian (Panthera pardus saxicolor) or Amur leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis).  Just how many subspecies there are is still widely debated.
  
• Leopards are found in the wild from South Africa to the far East of Russia. They have the widest distribution of all the wild cats.

• Generally leopards are most active between sunset and sunrise, but sometimes they will hunt or travel in the daytime.

• Most leopard cubs stay with their mother for 13 to 18 months before becoming independent.

• The average life span for a leopard in the wild ranges from 10-15 years. In captivity they have been known to live 20 years.