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Size Shoulder height 70–80 cm.
Weight 1 7– 9 0 k g.
Habitat and Behaviour Leopards live in a wide range of habitats,
avoiding only open desert country, but mostly remain in rugged hill
and mountain areas in the region. They have survived where other big
cats no longer occur due largely to their catholic diet. This ranges from
insects, reptiles and fish to birds, but the bulk of their prey is made up
of small to medium-sized hoofed mammals, especially antelopes. In
some areas Wild Pigs are important in their diet. Hyraxes and hares
are also preyed upon in parts of the region, as are goats, sheep, young
camels and horses where natural prey has been depleted; they will
also readily scavenge.
The Leopard is a solitary cat, with the exception of a mating pair
that comes together only for a short period, or females accompanied
by cubs. Because of disturbance and hunting pressure, Leopards tend
to be nocturnal, secretive and seldom seen. Adult males mark and
defend a territory against other males, and a male range may overlap
the ranges of several females. Territories are marked with urine
scrapes, droppings, tree scratching and the distinctive deep ‘sawing’
or grunting call. Home range size is influenced by prey abundance and
availability. The cubs weigh about 500 g and usually number 2–3 in a
litter. They may be born at any time of year after a gestation of about
100 days.