leopards - range & habitat
Data from 1996 found that the leopard has the largest distribution of any wild cat, occurring most in certain parts of southern
Asia and widely in eastern and central Africa, although populations before and since have shown a declining trend and are fragmented
outside of subsaharan Africa. The IUCN notes that within sub-Saharan Africa the species is "still numerous and even thriving in
marginal habitats" where other large cats have disappeared, but that populations in North Africa may be extinct. In Asia, data on
distribution is not consistent: populations in Southwest and Central Asia are small and fragmented; in the northeast portion of the
range, they are critically endangered; but in the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, and China, the leopard is still relatively abundant.
Leopards live mainly in grasslands, woodlands and riverside forests. The animal has primarily been studied in open savannah habitats,
which may have biased common descriptions. It is generally considered nocturnal, for instance, but radio-tracking and scat analysis
in West Africa has found that rainforest leopards are more likely to be diurnal and crepuscular. Forest leopards are also more
specialized in prey selection and exhibit seasonal differences in activity patterns. While associated with the savanna and rainforest,
the leopard is exceptionally adaptable: in the Russian Far East, the animal inhabits temperate forests where winter temperatures
reach a low of -25 °C.
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