Crepuscular or nocturnal typically
Territory size
Location
|
Habitat Type
|
Home Range (km2)
|
Study/Reference
|
|
Male
|
Female
|
|||
Thailand (HKKWS) | Forest | c. 46 | c. 26 | Simcharoen et al. 2008 |
Namibia * | Farmland, game-farms | c. 229 | c. 179 | Marker and Dickman 2005 |
Namibia (KGR) | Savannah woodland | c. 451 | c. 188 | Stander et al. 1997 |
South Africa (KGNP) | Kalahari desert margins | c. 2182 | c. 489 | Bothma et al. 1997 |
Home range estimates for select locations illustrate the high degree of variability that exists between populations. Studies conducted outside protected reserves denoted with *. |
Range overlap
Density
Solitary as adults (from Bailey 1993; Hunter et al. 2013; Stander et al. 1997 unless otherwise noted)
Demarkate territory using scent
Advertise through vocal calling (from Hunter et al. 2013 unless otherwise noted)
Avoid confrontation
Forms of aggression
Forms of play (from Muckenhirn and Eisenberg 1971)
Leopard vocalization audio provided by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology Macaulay Library.
Limited repertoire (from Hunter et al. 2013 unless otherwise noted)
Leopards most often communicate with scents (from Bailey 1993 unless otherwise noted)
Function of scent (from Bothma and Coertze 2004)
Scent qualities (from Bailey 1993)
Walk quadrupedally
Climb well
Strong swimmers, though typicaly avoid water (Guggisberg 1975)
Spring vertically (Guggisberg 1975)
Hunt, alone at night most often (Hunter et al. 2013; Stander et al. 1997)
Hunting strategy
Methods of killing prey
Carnivore competitors
Symbiotic relationships
Interactions with humans
Cubs often play with one another or with their mother by practicing skills they will later need to be proficient hunters.
Image credit: © San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. All rights reserved.
Leopards have a limited vocal repertoire. One form of short range communication is the chuff where air is pushed through the nose and lips. Click on image above for video.
Audio and video from © ARKive. Some rights reserved
African leopard hunting. Leopards may stalk their prey for long distances before initiating short chases; often talking down large animals with a bite to the neck. The carcass is often carried to another location and cached. Click on image above for video.
Audio and video from © ARKive. Some rights reserved
Bailey (1993)
Bothma and Bothma (2006)
Bothma and Coertze (2004)
Bothma and Le Riche (1989)
Bothma and le Riche (1995)
Bothma et al. (1997)
de Ruiter and Berger (2001)
Guggisberg (1975)
Harihar et al. (2011)
Hejna (2010)
Henschel and Ray (2003)
Henschel et al. (2011)
Hopwood (1947)
Houssaye and Budd (2009)
Hunter et al. (2013)
Jenny and Zuberbuhler (2005)
Kingdon (1977)
Kruuk and Turner (1967)
le Roux and Skinner (1989)
Lovari et al. (2013)
Marker and Dickman (2005)
Martins et al. (2011)
Muckenhirn and Eisenberg (1971)
Nabi et al. (2009)
O'Brien and Johnson (2007)
Odden et al. (2010)
Peters (2002)
Simcharoen et al. (2008)
Stander et al. (1997)
Stein et al. (2013)
Turnbull-Kemp (1967)
Turner and Anton (1997)
Vanak et al. (2013)