Wildlife and conservation new, wild travel information and links for booking
Javan rhino are on the brink of extinction! Currently, the number of surviving rhino is thought to be around 70. This depleted population is largely to do with poaching, as these animals do not do badly in the wild.
Continue reading “One gang of poachers have killed 10% of Javan rhino in 5 years”This is a post origially put out 2 years ago, however, I found the video had not worked, so here it is again.
There are still sizable areas of protected land in Java, and in 2017 a warden took the below photo.
Now I am unsure about this picture but would be pleasantly pleased to be proved wrong.
If not, the Javan tiger is very similar to the Sumatran tiger. As such, with a recovery in the wild Sumatran population if a reserve is not suffering poaching, it would be possible to bring the tiger back to Java.
There has been no more sightings of this animal, which suggests that this sighting cannot have been real, but who knows.
It should be noted, that while rangers decided that it must be showing a leopard, this is still exciting. This is because, while a leopard is not a species declared extinct 48 years ago, the Javan Leopard is a species that is highly threatened. The current estimate of the population of this leopard species is between 188-571, most likely around 250 leopards is an accurate figure.
The video below is a clip filmed of the Javan leopard
The fishing cat has been classed as vulnerable since 2016.
It is a midsized cat he fishing cat lives foremost in the vicinity of wetlands, along rivers, streams, oxbow lakes, in swamps and mangroves. One of the alarming things to look at, is that the majority of this range is likely to be hit hard if sea levels do rise significantly over the last few decades.
There is an impressive wealth of cats living in India. From the Indian tiger (known throughout the...
Leopards are one of the so called big 5 of Africa (big game hunting) and are often an animal that people are really keen to see).Looking beautiful when we manage to spot it, its look is specifically such that allows it to blend into the shadows, making it as hard to see in the dappled light that is filtering through the leaves of a tree. Leopard populations have declined by at least 25% in Africa over the last 30 years.
Leopards were once found from western Turkey all the way to the far East of Russia, and are still found from the southern tip of Africa to the frozen lands of northern Siberia. What is incredible, is that its yellow and black coat is a good camouflage through an incredibly wide range of habitats, from snow, desert, rainforest and Savannah. It should be noted, that in the rainforests of the Malaysian Peninsular as much as 50% of the population is made up by black or melanistic leopards, seemingly because in the deep shadow of the rainforest there is a large example of this. As well as covering leopards, we will cover the subspecies (there are nine recognized subspecies of leopards including African, Indian, Javan, Arabian, Amur, North Chinese, Caucasian (also called Persian), Indochinese and Sri Lankan). Given the huge area of the planet where Leopards live, it is not surprising that there are this many subspecies.
Given the wide range of leopard habitats they differ in size very dramatically. It is also obviously true that their conservation status is that a variety of different levels. As search I will try to cover as many of these different habitats and subspecies as possible (over time).
Due to their habit of staying in cover, it is far harder to get an accurate idea of how many leopards are left, but below I will attempt to do that.
Kruger, the Serengeti, south Luangwa all have around 1000 leopards. Indeed it is even thought that the population of cape leopards, scattered across the western cape is around this number of 1000.
It is certainly true that Leopards are a far harder thing to see when you are in the bush, however with perseverance and some night drives, you should get at least a couple leopard sightings on a safari holiday.
Below we will list the currently recognized subspecies of leopard. We hope in the future to have links to places where you can see each of these. Each of these will appear within its page, access them by clicking on the tabs
50 years ago, Africa was estimated to have 700,000 the current number is nearer to 50,000 (the 700,000 figure came from a study in 1988, estimates vary widely, when I have written all my African leopard pages, I will give an estimate based on all the country estimates (it should be noted, however that this may be no more accurate). This is not evenly spread, such that while 34 countries are thought to still host them. It should be noted, that the so called Barbary leopard is included in this subspecies. While there is still much debate (not least the suggestion that the Sahara might have stopped gene from from the Barbary region to the rest of Africa. In a similar way, there is discussion on a variety of different populations of leopards, but these will not get their own tab, until they are declared as recognized subspecies (there was, at one time as many as 37 claimed different subspecies of leopard spread across Africa and Asia, many were lost, when the genetic differences were found to be so small).
Now, obviously, the decline from 700,000 leopards to just 50,000 has been substantial, which suggests a potential for recovery, however the majority of these would have roamed outside protected lands, and with an increased population (the human population has tripled in the last 50 years, from just over 400 million to over 1.2 billion in the same time. As such, much wilderness has been lost to human habitation and crop growing. As you can see, Leopards have declined a great deal more, around the edge of the Sahara, than anywhere else. It should be noted, that many range maps cover the majority of sub-Saharan Africa as Leopard range, when this is clearly not the case.
It is listed as Vulnerable by CITES with a current population of estimated 50,000. Its decline and future threats come down to a number of issues:
The largest leopard populations include:
South Luangwa and the Southern KAZA tranfrontier park are both areas of Zambia, that are particularly good for wild Leopards;
Despite the continuing loss of lions, large parts of Kenya still have impressively high densities of leopards (as high as 1 every 3 square miles), though the fact that in many of these areas, there are no lions, it is perhaps not surprising that the leopard is more common.
Other protected areas with leopard populations include: Taï National Park (Ivory coast), Etosha National Park (Namibia), Virunga National Park (democratic republic of the Congo, and Kruger National Park (South Africa).
That gets us to a very generous estimate of 4000. Official population estimates range between 2813-11632 (hard to give credibility to the upper estimate). However, it would suggest that there is a great deal of space for this population to recover.
Despite the fact that over time I'm many zoos have accidentally or intentionally interbred African and Asian leopards they are actually significantly different.
A lioness has been spotted in a reserve in Chad, which has not recorded one since 2004!
There is an impressive wealth of cats living in India. From the Indian tiger (known throughout the...
Pangolins are bizarre animals!
How many of you knew about a pangolin? How many of you...
Image source Burrard-Lucas Photography Before 1992, as well as the Lions and Cheetah, there were huge packs of African Wild Dog (also called African Hunting Dogs) that would follow the...The current best estimate of the Leopard population found in Botswana is thought to be around 4295, though this estimates suggests as high as 6700 and as low as 1893.
In 2019 they estimated 11,733 though this was down from 14154 in just 2011. There are a variety of both reserves and national parks to visit in this country. We would love to list some, do get in touch.
Reserves, known to be good for Leopard in Namibia, include:
Leopards in Zimbabwe are thought to be doing relatively well with a population of 1200-2000. Zimbabwe is relatively lucky in its placement, as it has protected land connected to both the Limpopo transfrontier park (Gonarhezou national park) and the KAZA transfrontier park (Hwange National Park), which means that even if all leopards in Zimbabwe were to be killed, they would likely continue to enter.
Other destinations include
Leopards are scattered throughout Mozambique, but they are locally extinct in areas with a lot of development. In 1988 a study estimated the size of the leopard population at over 37000. If this was accurate, it has not stayed this high. The fact that there is so little information about surveys is particularly suspicious, as much leopard hunting goes on within the country – it is quite possible that the hunting quotas are still being calculated on the basis of numbers vastly greater than they should be
Good places to see the leopard in Mozambique include:
Leopards are not uncommon in Malawi, though outside protected areas, they are less common. I have not found good video of the Leopard in Malawi, I may add one in the future.
While the overall number of leopards are not clear (and there do not appear to be widely available population estimates, the places listed below are thought to still have good numbers of leopards.
Places in Tanzania which are recognized as having decent leopard populations include:
All studies suggest that leopards are common throughout the forests and savannahs of the DRC, though accurate estimates for how big this population is, are not easy to come by (and would likely have very wide error bars). Leopards, are very hard to view when in a rainforest ecosystem, which means that while there is likely a large and healthy leopard population, it is hard to actually view them as a tourist. The above video is taken from a camera trap, placed in the Okapi national park, a highly forested area.
The most reliable estimate is from 1987, when it was predicted that there was 4000 individuals. It is likely to have reduced since then, but how many there actually are is a big question, though more recent submissions, by hunting groups wanting a quota for leopards, suggested 2700, a significant fall of roughly 33% (though over the 37 years, this is lower than declines in other populations).
The above video, is a short documentary by a local man, both showing leopards in Uganda and giving information on where they are found.
Leopards are hard to see in Rwanda. Akagera national park is a savannah park, which hosts the big 5. It is estimated that just 15-20 leopards live within this park. Given that the park is a little over 1000 square km (400 square miles) leopards are by no means common even here.
Browsing around many pages about Rwanda, an alarming number claim that the leopard is extinct in the rest of the country. Given the fact that leopards are just as at home within rainforest as savannah (many suggest that leopard densities are the same across each habitat), and the fact that there are a variety of transfrontier conservations like the Virungas (and the Volcanoes national park across the border in Rwanda) exist, and that leopards are common in many of these reserves across the border, it seems hard to believe that there are not leopards living in the Rwanda forests. Never-the-less, it is also true, that humans are the apex predator, and that lions and other big cats like leopards, are well aware of this, and so generally steer clear of humans on foot (oddly, in many national parks, leopards can become very relaxed about people in cars, allowing (on occasion) a car to sit within mere meters)).
However, this clearly means that while leopards are found in forests, they will quite naturally not regularly be seen – the sound of humans walking carries far and wide, and gives the leopard time to disappear (and after all, leopards are the king of camouflage and therefore often only have to go a few meters into the undergrowth and freeze.
So what is the situation with leopard conservation in Rwanda? I will look out for news, and we hope to list articles that are relevant in the future, on these pages
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Leopards are found in a variety of habitats, including rainforests, savannas, deserts, and mountainous areas. They are one of the most adaptable wild cat species, but their distribution has decreased due to poaching and habitat loss.
A leopard was reportedly seen pursuing a large western lowland gorilla in the Dzanga-Sangha Complex of Protected Areas, but was unable to catch it. Gorilla parts were found in leopard scat, which suggests that the leopard either killed or scavenged on the gorilla.
There are few videos of leopards in the republic of the Congo , so the video below is the only one I have been found. Click on the watch on youtube to be able to see it, before coming back here.
Leopards are found in rainforests living at densities similar to the highest in savannah ecosystems. Having said this, they are generally hard to view, as they hear humans long before humans can see, and are scared of humans (it is not natural behaviour for leopards to hunt humans though in places we are invading their spaces too much and changing this).
All three of these national parks have sizable populations of wild leopards, that are seen from time to time. However, the same rules apply as elsewhere – leopards are not apex predators, humans are which means that generally a leopards natural reaction to hearing leopards approaching, is to flee. Having said this, each of these national parks have areas of open land, either Bai or beaches (loango) which allows you to watch forest leopards out in the open (with luck, and forest leopards like all leopards are very wary).
Spotting leopards within equatorial guinea is very hard. This is because, despite there being a large number (they have even left the wild and started to live in suburbs in various places). Never-the-less, they are encountered, and more often than one might think.
Leopards are found throughout much of Cameroon, but as with other forest countries are rarely seen.
Leopards are thought to survive in all of south sudans reserves and national parks, however, they are shy and rarely see.
Leopards are thought to live in many of the countries reserves, though are little seen
Leopards are thought to still exist in the south of the country, in reserves which are close to reserves across the border. Whether these leopards are being left alone, or are regularly hunted is a different matter. It is likely that they are not encountered very regularly
Leopards are found in Ethiopia in a variety of habitats, including montane forests, semi-arid areas, and the Awash and Aledeghi regions:
Leopards in the highlands depend on the Afroalpine ecosystem’s montane forests.
Leopards can be found in the Harenna Forest, which is also home to melanistic leopards (black). They can also frequently seen in the Awash and Aledeghi regions.
The number of Indian leopards in the wild is a worryingly low number. Some places suggest around 9500, while others suggest 12,000-14,000 (remember that the area of India is 10% of Africa, so this is far better by area.
The Indian leopard is considered Vulnerable in India, Bhutan, and Nepal but Critically Endangered in Pakistan. The map to the right shows its current range.
We currently have no places listed to see this subspecies, but we hope to add some soon. Do list your site, if you run one (click here, or at the top of the page).
Below here, you will find any news that mention this species. Below that is a video of this species in the wild, and below that you will find any destinations that we have added, to help you plan your trip.
They have an estimated population of 13,874 within the huge country of India, though around 2/3 of these leopards live outside protected reserves, leaving them vulnerable to changes in attitudes, and often unavailable for tourists to see (though we hope in the long run, to change this with the use of “in the shadow of mankind” our section aimed at tourism for these animals) aiming to give them a financial value and therefore make it more likely that they will survive.
Protected areas within India, known to be good for leopards are listed below (we are eager to link with anyone working in these areas)
The documentary above comes from the national geographic channel though is fronted by Gordan Buchanan of BBC fame. It is unfortunately a fact that leopards can turn to eating humans, when there is not enough natural prey, or if they are given too little space (or indeed regularly meeting people as they invade its space). Unfortunately, all three is happening in many parts of India, and as such, there are places where leopards have started hunting humans. It is unfortunately, usually true, that once a big cat starts hunting humans, they will not stop. As such, what has often happened is either the animals in question are hunted down and killed (while a problem with small populations, if this does not happen, often the local human population will attempt to hunt and kill all of the population).
Leopards are thought to be widely spread in Nepal, though unfortunately, their population status and occupancy is poorly understood. I hope to add more destinations within the country, get in touch if you work in any.
Leopards can be found in deciduous and evergreen forests and as they are losing their habitats slowly due to human encroachment they can often be seen in conflict with humans in the fringe of their habitat.
They are more capable of surviving on small prey, given their solitary behaviour and their wildly varied size – meaning that studies have found that preys weight is generally between 10-15kg. This allows them to survive on small rodents and similar, and therefore to live in areas where larger predators like tigers, or pack hunters like wolves, which are also found within the country.
Perversely, while climate change is a large threat for snow leopards (as they generally need snow to survive) it is good for leopards, as it allows the leopard to expand its range further up the mountains, into what was once snow leopard territory.
The common leopard (so called, as it is not common in Pakistan) is thought to have a Pakistan population of between 100-200 within the countries boundaries. Thankfully, the leopard is part of a transboundary population, meaning that the whole leopard population is larger and therefore viable long-term.
The largest population of leopards in Pakistan is found in Ayubia National Park and adjoining areas of Galiyat and Abbotabad in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, located just north of the Margalla Hills (Galiyat also extends into parts of Punjab). These areas are close to the capital, and the leopard has been encountered in the suburbs of the large city.
Bangladesh does not have a viable leopard population, but there are occasional sightings in the forests of Sylhet, Chittagong Hill Tracts, and Cox’s Bazar. I hope to add this region the near future.
In southern Tibet, the Indian leopard was recorded in Qomolangma National Nature Preserve. It is unclear how many of this species lives in Southern Tibet, or the exact range of this animal within the country.
While they are known to be in the country, and are seen in various of the national parks and reserves from time to time, there is little known about the size of the population.
Black leopards are stunningly beautiful creatures, but phenomenally rare
Leopards are extremely secretive animals, often capable of living outside protected areas and in relatively close proximity with humans. The Indian...
Despite the fact that over time I'm many zoos have accidentally or intentionally interbred African and Asian leopards they are actually significantly different.
This website aims to make it easy for those living with wildlife, and those who...
The Indian cheetah was lost from India back in 1952. Hosting Tigers, Lions, Leopards, and Snow Leopards within its borders, it was a mark of pride when the cheetah reintroduction...
A lioness has been spotted in a reserve in Chad, which has not recorded one since 2004!
West African lions are heavily endangered with just 400 members remaining. While the west African population of the Asiatic lion is less at risk than the Gir forest population -...
Tigers once numbered 100,000 in India. My great great grandfather spent time in India, and I grew up hearing my great grandmother talking about the time that she went with...
There is an impressive wealth of cats living in India. From the Indian tiger (known throughout the...
There have been many catalogues issues with what has happened during the current virus Outbreak. Some of these have fascinated people, the the sudden re-emergence of wildlife back into spaces...
The Javan leopard is (unsurprisingly) a leopard subspecies that is restricted to the island of Java. Java has already lost the Javan tiger, and it is currently estimated to be between 188-571 (an incredibly wide range for an estimate). Unfortunately, Java is the most populous island in the world, and as such only 14% of the rainforest survive, which is where the leopard lives (habitat declined by 40% between 2000 and 2020 alone). As such, the future of this subspecies is not great – there is also little space for the population to increase.
Now, the sad fact, is that in being this fragmented, and the island having such a high population (largest human population for an island) even reserves that are close together may well be impossible to cross.
Should we be able to list any places to try to see this highly endangered species, they will be added lower down the page.
They can be found in the following national parks:
Gunung Halimun National Park
Ujung Kulon National Park
Gunung Gede Pangrango National Park
Ceremai National Park
Merbabu National Park
Merapi National Park
Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park
Meru Betiri National Park
Ijen Mountain
Baluran National Park
Alas Purwo National Park
There are only around 60 rhino left in the wild. They live in Ujung Kulon National Park. To put that in perspective, that is an increase of 3.3%.
In 2008, the size of this subspecies left in the wild was thought to be between 45 and 200. As such, it is perhaps not surprising that this subspecies has been critically endangered since 1996.
The Negev desert is thought to have lost its last leopard around 2007 and Saudi Arabia (supporting 200 recently) maybe extinct.
This unfortunately means that tourism around this species is not easy to come across. I will as always add it below if/when I find any. What is certainly true, is visiting areas which might still have a few of this rare leopard and making it clear you are interested in them, will give locals a reason to preserve what is left, though in many places it may well be too late.
Having said this, tourist looking for specific wild animals do encourage their preservation, so despite their rarity, should you be near a reserve within their range, it is well worth spending a day or two, searching for them with a camera, and supporting which tourism infrastructure exists in the area.
Caucasian (also called Persian) Leopard)
Restricted to the Iranian Plateau and surrounding areas encompassing Türkiye, the Caucasus, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia, Iraq, Iran, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan and possibly Pakistan.
Other names include Anatolian leopard, Persian leopard, Caucasian leopard, Balochistan leopard and Asia Minor leopard
Status: endangered (since the 1960s) and currently has a population of around 1000 individuals. If this species is mentioned on this blog, any articles will appear below. Below that, is a video of this rare species, and below that, I will add any links that might help you see this species in the wild (should you work in wildlife guiding or tourism where this leopard is found do get in touch – click here . As with other big cats, living in these animals shadow is not always easy, but I hope that over time, we can reach a point where the money coming in is good compensation for the complexities of living near animals like this.
The only place listed as good destinations to see this leopard subspecies is
It does also mention the Iranian plateau, though this basically includes much of their range, and is far to vague to be useful in trying to find this animal in the wild.
The Indo-Chinese leopard is found at latitudes similar to the Indian Leopard but is further east. They are rare outside protected
areas, but at the current time, there is enough protected land to not threaten their long-term survival. On the Malay peninsular, the frequency of black (or melanistic) leopards can be as high as 1 in 2, in comparison to Africa, where as little as 1 in 1000 is born black. Indeed, this has meant that while white tigers are all closely related, and their coat makes their survival hard, there are no pockets of them in the wild. Even with the Amur tiger, they live without snow for more of the year than they have with it, so even here it is not a big advantage to have white fur. On the other hand, a black leopard can fade into the shadows, which means that for most leopards it is an advantage. In Africa, most of the time leopards spend their days sleeping high in a tree which means that it is only at night when they need camouflage, so you would think that being black would be advantageous to give birth to a black leopard dynasty in Africa, but apparently not.
There are a good range of reserves across where they are found, which means that provided they are not hunted, they should be able to survive into the future.
Some of the best places to see Indochinese leopards include:
Indochinese leopard has disappeared from 94% of its range They are now gone (extinct) in Singapore and functionally extinct (this means that while there may be a few leopards left, there are not enough to support the species long-term, and the last leopard will be gone in the next few years – whether this can be reversed by translocation is a possibility, though conservation in other parts of the range are probably more secure areas to do conservation work) in Laos and Vietnam. In Cambodia, the population is nearly extinct, and a 2021 study found no individuals.
The Indochinese leopard’s range has shrunk by more than 94%. They are now extinct in Singapore and functionally extinct in Laos and Vietnam. In Cambodia, the population is nearly extinct, and a 2021 study found no individuals.
Only described in 1956, they are relatively similar to the Indian Leopard, and were thought to be part of that subspecies until then. There are only 800 of this subspecies of leopard, and they were listed as vulnerable in 2020, and unfortunately it is thought to still be declining. It is thought, that as a result of being the apex predator on the island, they have got bigger.
Melanistic leopards are considered particularly rare. Indeed it was only 2019 that the first confirmed in the wild in the country.
Places that are good for looking for the Javan Leopard include
Perhaps one of the hardiest leopard subspecies, it is hard to remember that this animal is incredibly similar to its cousin that roams the hot areas of the Savannahs in Africa.
What a short period of time makes for the standing for a species. Back in 2001 when planet earth was first released, they had managed to film them in the wild
What is more impressive is that at the time there were only 30 in the wild. Setting out to find a secretive animal, when there are only 30 left is quite impressive.
Conservation has gone wonderfully in the time that has elapsed since, with an estimated population of at least 100. When I say at least, this is a likely low estimate. With a 2019 estimate of 46 of these cats in China, and a 2022 survey identifying 125 individuals. That gives an estimated combined population of 171, or almost 6 times increase in population over just 20 or so years. Russia set up the land of the leopard reserve, and the reserve below was set up by China, across the border.
The below video clip, is a video filmed in China which caught a female with 2 cubs in China, possibly the first cubs to be born in China in as long as 50 years.
There is an increasing quantity of ecotourism around this animal, and an increasing reliability of finding the cat in the wild, particularly as its population grows.
The Chinese government has introduced a carbon neutral policy, in an attempt to mitigate and reduce the impact of climate change. Under the expected model for what is going to...
Historically, scientists have treated Neanderthals and humans (homo sapiens) as separate species, but this has been called into doubt. Homo neanderthalensis (Neanderthals) and homo sapiens clearly share some links, as...
If you live in the UK, there is relatively little wildlife to watch (when compared to somewhere like South Africa), which is why zoos are often such popular places.
...
Records from before 1930 suggest that this species of Leopard used to live near Beijing and in the mountains to the North-west. The wild population is estimated at around 110, so is one of the more endangered leopard species in the world. It is thought that this population and the Amur Leopard species were connected until just a few hundred years ago. As such, it may well be possible to boost genetic variability if that were to become necessary.
As with some of the other subspecies of the leopard, there appears to be little tourism centred around this species, but should I find any, this will appear at the bottom of the page as well. Above that, you will find our regular list of any articles on this subject and a video of this species in the wild. Please do get in touch to help with people finding your reserve if it protects this rare leopard.
The Chinese government has introduced a carbon neutral policy, in an attempt to mitigate and reduce the impact of climate change. Under the expected model for what is going to...
Like many cats – both big and lesser cats, they have rare colourings. These are not separate species, instead they are either melanistic, or albino.
These are not common in most ecosystems (though it should be noted that in places where the colouring might be useful, it can be common – one example is the black leopard in Malaysia which has around 50% black)
There are only around 60 rhino left in the wild. They live in Ujung Kulon National Park. To put that in perspective, that is an increase of 3.3%.
The country of Indonesia consists of many islands. Due to their relative size, these islands have led to many subspecies of animals adapting.
In the past tigers existed on at least three of these islands. These animals once lived on Java and Bali, but now there is only a small population in Sumatra.
In Java this leaves the the largest predator population consisting of the leopard – this is why it is so concerning that these leopards are being poached.
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