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Home / IAS Preparation / Indian Leopard

Indian Leopard - Characteristics, Physical Features, Habitat & IUCN Status

Last Updated on Nov 17, 2023
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The Indian Leopard is a subspecies of the Leopard family found in the Indian Subcontinent. The IUCN Red List categorizes the species Panthera pardus as Vulnerable because populations have decreased due to habitat loss and fragmentation, poaching for the illicit trade in skins and other body parts, and persecution due to conflict situations. Along with the Bengal tiger, snow leopard, clouded leopard, and Asiatic lion, the Indian leopard is one of the large cats found on the Indian subcontinent. In all of India, excluding the northeast, a national census of leopards near tiger habitats was conducted in 2014. 7,910 people were estimated in the survey locations, with an estimated 12,000–14,000 people nationwide.

This topic of the Indian Leopard is important from the perspective of the UPSC IAS Examination, which falls under General Studies 1(Preliminary) and General Studies Paper 3, particularly in the Indian Ecology and Environment section.

In this article, we shall discuss the Indian Leopard while focussing on some important facts regarding the Indian Leopard. We will also discuss the significant features, its habitat, the IUCN status of the Indian Leopard, and the steps required to conserve the Indian leopard.

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About Indian Leopard

The Indian leopard, scientifically known as Panthera pardus fusca, is a subspecies of leopard found in India and neighbouring countries. It is known for its adaptability and can thrive in various habitats, such as forests, grasslands, and urban areas. Indian leopards have a yellow or tawny coat with rosette patterns, providing effective camouflage. They are skilled climbers and can even drag their prey up trees to keep it safe from other predators. Their diet primarily consists of deer, wild boar, monkeys, and smaller mammals. Indian leopards are solitary animals, with males having larger territories than females. Human-leopard conflicts have been reported due to habitat loss and encroachment, leading to occasional leopard attacks. Conservation efforts are being undertaken to protect their habitats and promote coexistence between humans and leopards.

Fig: Indian Leopard

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Quick Overview of Indian Leopard

Some facts about the Indian Leopard have been mentioned in the below table.

Title

Description

Leopard IUCN Status

Vulnerable

Status as per Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972

Schedule 1

Water requirement

Leopards don’t require a lot of water. They frequently depend more on the blood of their victims. They are able to survive even in desert and hilly areas because of this.

Speed

With a top speed of 58 km/h, leopards are swift cats.

Food

They consume deer, antelope, fish, rodents, monkeys, and bugs. Basically, any prey that is readily available.

Solitary nature
  • Leopards spend most of their time alone and are very solitary animals.
  • They each have their own territory, and to warn other leopards to stay away, they leave excrement, scratches on trees, and urine scent markings. Only to mate, the males and females will leave their own areas.

Adept Climbers

Leopards are adept climbers and enjoy taking naps in the daytime on the branches of trees. They are powerful animals that can lift their hefty food into the trees and away from the reach of obtrusive scavengers like hyenas.

Communication with other leopards

Unique calls are used by leopards to communicate with one another. An example of this is the scratchy, raspy cough that a male leopard will make to alert another leopard to his presence. Like domestic cats, they purr in happiness and relaxation and growl when they’re upset.

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Characteristics of the Indian Leopard

The characteristics of the Indian Leopard are given as follows:

Physical Characteristics of the Indian Leopard

Weight
  • Male: 50 to 77 Kg
  • Female: 29 to 34 Kg

Height
  • Male: 127 cm to 142 cm
  • Female: 104 cm to 117 cm

Tail Length
  • Male: 76 cm to 91 cm
  • Female: 76 cm to 87.6 cm
  • The Indian leopard has strong legs, a well-developed tail, and short ears. With light grey ocular bulbs, their eyes are a yellowish-grey colour. Its spots vanish as it gets closer to its abdomen and lower legs.
  • A white tail’s length ranges from 60 to 100 cm. Its rosettes are the most noticeable of all the Asian leopard subspecies. Geographic differences affect the colour of its fur. In desert areas, they are paler; in colder climates, they are grey; and in rainforests, they are golden.
  • Except for the melanistic varieties, its coat is rosette and spotted, with the spots fading toward the white underside and the insides and lower portions of the legs. The spots range in colour from pale yellow to yellowish-brown or golden.
  • The back, flanks, and hindquarters have the most rosette development. Each individual has a different rosette pattern. Due to their densely spaced markings, young animals have fuzzy fur and a black appearance.
  • The colour of the fur is more likely to be cream-colored and pale in desert habitats, grey in colder climes, and darker golden in rainforest ecosystems.
  • Indian leopard prints are rounded and have five tiny dots all around them. As long as they are walking on terrestrial terrain, one can identify a leopard’s footsteps since its legs are smaller than those of tigers and lions. Leopards cannot be located in the alpine regions using footprints; instead, you must use binoculars or other tracking equipment.

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Indian Leopard Habitat & Behaviour

The leopard is extremely adaptive and can live in various habitats with various environmental factors and habitat types. It can be found everywhere, from tropical rainforest to temperate deciduous and alpine regions to high mountain slopes. Savannahs, bushland, dry scrub, grasslands, and deserts are among the places where it can be found. Pine forests and Mediterranean scrub are suitable habitats in the Caucasus, Iran, and northwest Africa.

  • In Africa, woodland, grassland savannah, and forests are the environments that support the highest populations, although leopards also live in mountainous regions, coastal scrub, swampy areas, semi-deserts, and deserts.
  • Indian leopards, like other leopard subspecies, are lone predators that stay well-camouflaged at night but descend from trees to hunt during the day. The Himalayas, mangroves, and even the desert areas of Rajasthan are home to Indian leopards.
  • Due to their agility and diminutive size, they typically seek refuge on the branches of tall trees to protect their prey and their kill from scavengers.
  • They have taken refuge in the granite hills of Jawai (Rajasthan) and forged peaceful ties with others.
  • Most of the Indian Leopard’s food consists of chital, sambar, and langur species, but they are also known to prey on spotted deer, nilgai, wild pig, cattle, hare, dogs, and porcupines.

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Indian Leopard Population

The number of leopards in India is thought to be between 12,000 and 14,000, although it has been badly impacted by poaching for their skins and other body parts for the illicit drug trade. For example, from 1994 to 2015, more than 3,500 leopards were killed for their skins in India.

  • The most recent IUCN report, which classifies all leopard subspecies as Vulnerable, includes a thorough analysis of the Indian Leopard population because there may only be less than 10,000 adults left today.
  • The Shivalik Hills, Gangetic plains, Eastern Ghats, Western Ghats, the Brahmaputra River basin, and hills in Northeast India were among the surveyed landscapes because of their heights below 2,600 m (8,500 ft). Madhya Pradesh has been estimated to be home to the most leopards (3,421), followed by Karnataka (1,783) and Maharashtra (1,690).

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Threats to Indian Leopard

Due to the following factors, their population has been declining:

  • Poaching
  • Lack of Habitat
  • The conflict between humans and leopards

Poaching is the biggest significant danger to the population of Indian leopards. Likely, leopard skins will also be found in a haul of illegal tiger skins if it is discovered. Most Indian Leopards are found in Madhya Pradesh, with 3241 of them.

The leopard population in India is still being protected despite these influences. Plans call for expanding the number of rescue and rehabilitation facilities. However, according to authorities on wildlife protection, this might not be sufficient.

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Conservation of Indian Leopard

Various measures have been undertaken to conserve the population of Indian Leopard:

  • They are classified under Schedule I of The Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972. This provides a statutory framework for conserving Indian leopards in India.
  • Professional management, like preventing poaching, is driven by active investigations.
  • Ensuring prey availability to maintain the dwindling population and prevent animal-human conflict.
  • Use of biological fences to prevent leopards from sneaking into croplands.
  • Public awareness programmes to disseminate the need to conserve the Indian Leopard.

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Wildlife Sanctuaries and National Parks Associated

Some of the Wildlife Sanctuaries and National parks where Indian leopards can be spotted are as follows:

  • Kabini Wildlife Sanctuary, Karnataka
  • Bandipur National Park, Karnataka
  • Satpura National Park, Madhya Pradesh
  • Pench National Park, Madhya Pradesh
  • Jhalana Leopard Safari Park, Rajasthan
  • Sasan Gir Wildlife Sanctuary, Gujarat
  • Bandhavgarh National Park, Madhya Pradesh
  • Corbett National Park,
  • Kaziranga National Park
  • Sariska Wildlife Sanctuary
  • Jawai Leopard Hill
  • Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary
  • Tadoba Tiger Reserve

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Conclusion

The government has been successful in bringing about an increase in the population of Indian leopards. This has been made possible due to the consistent efforts on the part of government authorities and NGOs. While the results are something to rejoice upon, much more needs to be done to protect this invaluable species.

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We hope all your doubts regarding the Indian Leopard are addressed after going through this article. Testbook provides comprehensive notes for different competitive examinations. It has always assured the quality of its products like content pages, live tests, Gk and current affairs, mocks, and so on. Ace your UPSC preparation with the Testbook App!

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Indian Leopard FAQs

The Indian leopards have yet not extinct from the Indian Subcontinent, however, their population is dwindling which has prompted IUCN to change their conservation status from Near Threatened to Vulnerable.

In order to determine the necessity for and the scope of launching Project Snow Leopard, the Nature Conservation Foundation (NCF) launched a consultative process in all five Himalayan states (Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh) in 2004.

Most of these spotted cats, 3,421, are found in Madhya Pradesh. According to the Wildlife Institute of India's report Status of Leopards, Co-Predators, and Megaherbivores in India, 2018, there are 12,852 leopards spread out throughout the tiger reserves.

Madhya Pradesh which was initially a "tiger state," has become a "leopard state" too in 2020. The biggest number of spotted cats in the nation—3,421—can be found in MP. Its closest competitor is Karnataka, which has 1,783 leopards, or about half the number of leopards in Madhya Pradesh.

Panthera pardus fusca is the scientific name of the Indian Leopard.
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