Arabian leopard

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Arabian leopard
PikiWiki Israel 14861 judean desert leopard cropped.JPG
Leopard at Ein Gedi, Israel
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Suborder: Feliformia
Family: Felidae
Subfamily: Pantherinae
Genus: Panthera
Species:
Subspecies:
P. p. nimr
Trinomial name
Panthera pardus nimr
(Hemprich and Ehrenberg), 1833
Distribution of Arabian leopard.png
Distribution of the Arabian leopard
Synonyms

P. p. jarvisl Pocock, 1932

The Arabian leopard (Panthera pardus nimr) is the smallest leopard subspecies. It was described in 1830 and is native to the Arabian Peninsula, where it was widely distributed in rugged hilly and montane terrain until the late 1970s. Today, the population is severely fragmented and thought to decline continuously. Previously in 2008, an estimated 45–200 individuals in three isolated subpopulations were restricted to western Saudi Arabia, Oman and Yemen. However, as of 2023, it is estimated that 100–120 in total remains, with 70-84 mature individuals, in Oman and Yemen, and it is possibly extinct in Saudi Arabia. The current population trend is suspected to be decreasing. [1]

Contents

Taxonomic history

Felis pardus nimr was the scientific name proposed by Wilhelm Hemprich and Christian Gottfried Ehrenberg in 1830 for a leopard from Arabia. [2] Panthera pardus jarvisi, proposed by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1932, was based on a leopard skin from the Sinai Peninsula. [3]

In the early 1990s, a phylogeographic analysis was carried out based on tissue samples from Asian and African leopards. P. p. jarvisi was provisionally grouped with Panthera pardus tulliana , as tissue samples were not available. [4] Genetic analysis of a single wild leopard from South Arabia appeared most closely related to the African leopard, and Molecular biologists tentatively proposed in 2001 to group the Sinai leopard with the Arabian leopard, as again tissue samples were not available. [5]

Characteristics

The Arabian leopard's fur varies from pale yellow to deep golden, tawny or grey and is patterned with rosettes. [6] Males have a total length of 182–203 cm (72–80 in) including 77–85 cm (30–33 in) long tails and weigh about 30 kg (66 lb); females are 160–192 cm (63–76 in) long including 67–79 cm (26–31 in) long tails and weigh around 20 kg (44 lb). [7] It is the smallest leopard subspecies. [8] It is however the largest cat in the Arabian Peninsula. [9] [10]

Distribution and habitat

Captive leopard in the Breeding Centre for Endangered Wildlife, Sharjah nmr.JPG
Captive leopard in the Breeding Centre for Endangered Wildlife, Sharjah

The geographic range of the Arabian leopard is poorly understood but generally considered to be limited to the Arabian Peninsula, including Egypt's Sinai Peninsula. [11] It lives in mountainous uplands and hilly steppes, but seldom moves to open plains, desert or coastal lowlands. [10] Since the late 1990s, leopards were not recorded in Egypt. [7] One individual was killed in the Elba Protected Area in 2014. [12]

Until the late 1960s, the Arabian leopard was widely distributed in the mountains along both the coasts of the Red Sea and Arabian Sea. [9] In Saudi Arabia, leopard habitat is estimated to have decreased by around 90% since the beginning of the 19th century. Of 19 reports obtained from informants between 1998 and 2003, only four are confirmed including sightings in one location in the Hijaz Mountains and three locations in the Asir Mountains, with the most recent record in 2002 south of Biljurashi. No leopard was recorded during a camera trapping survey conducted from 2002 to 2003. Although the leopard is officially protected in the country, its remaining range is not encompassed by protected areas. [13]

In the United Arab Emirates, the Arabian leopard was first sighted in 1949 by Wilfred Thesiger in Jebel Hafeet. [14] The exact status of the leopard in the country is unclear. It is either extinct or very rare in the eastern region, with occasional sightings being reported in places like Wadi Wurayah. [15] Before the end of the 20th century, sightings were reported in the areas of Jebel Hafeet and Al-Hajar Mountains. [7] [16]

In Oman, leopards were reported to have occurred in the Hajar Mountains until the late 1970s. [7] The largest confirmed sub-population inhabits the Dhofar Mountains in the country's southeast. In the Jabal Samhan Nature Reserve, 17 individual adult leopards were identified between 1997 and 2000 using camera traps. [17] Leopards were also sighted in the Musandam Peninsula, [7] particularly Ras Musandam. [9] The home range of Arabian leopards in this reserve is roughly estimated at 350 km2 (140 sq mi) for males and 250 km2 (97 sq mi) for females. [16] The Dhofar mountain range is considered the best habitat for leopards in the country. This rugged terrain provides shelters, shade and trapped water, and harbors a wide variety of prey species, in particular in escarpments and narrow wadis. [18]

In Yemen, leopards formerly ranged in all mountainous areas of the country, including the western and southern highlands eastwards to the border with Oman. Since the early 1990s, leopards are considered rare and close to extinction due to direct persecution by local people and depletion of wild prey. [19]

There was a small population in Israel's Negev desert, estimated at 20 individuals in the late 1970s. [20] Leopards were hunted until the early 1960s. By 2002, fewer than 11 isolated individuals were estimated to survive. Six males, three females and two unsexed individuals were identified in the country, based on genetic analysis of 268 scats collected. About five individuals were thought to survive in the Judaean Desert as of 2005. [21] The last wild leopard in the Negev desert was sighted near Sde Boker in 2007, which was in a poor and weak shape; and the last leopard in the northern Arabah Valley was sighted in 2010–11. [22]

In Jordan, the last confirmed sighting of a leopard dates to 1987. [23]

Ecology and behaviour

A South Arabian relief from the 5th century BC, in Walters Art Museum South Arabian - A Lion and a Leopard Attacking Animals - Walters 2171.jpg
A South Arabian relief from the 5th century BC, in Walters Art Museum

Arabian leopards are predominantly nocturnal, but are sometimes also seen in daylight. [10] They seem to concentrate on small to medium prey species, and usually store carcasses of large prey in caves or lairs but not in trees. [24] Scat analyses revealed that the main prey species comprise Arabian gazelle, Nubian ibex, Cape hare, rock hyrax, porcupine, Ethiopian hedgehog, small rodents, birds, and insects. Since local people reduced ungulates to small populations, leopards are forced to alter their diet to smaller prey and livestock such as goats, sheep, donkeys and young camels. [13]

Information about ecology and behaviour of Arabian leopards in the wild is very limited. [16] A leopard from the Judean desert is reported to have come into heat in March. After a gestation period of 13 weeks, females give birth to two to four cubs in a cave amidst boulders or in a burrow. [10]

Leopard cubs are born with closed eyes that open four to nine days later. [25] Captive-born Arabian leopard cubs emerged from their den for the first time at the age of one month. [26] Cubs are weaned at the age of about three months, and remain with their mother for up to two years. [25]

Threats

Stuffed leopard from the Sinai Peninsula in the Giza Zoological Museum, Egypt Sinai Leopard in Giza Zoological Museum.jpg
Stuffed leopard from the Sinai Peninsula in the Giza Zoological Museum, Egypt
Taxidermied Arabian leopard at the Oman Natural History Museum in Muscat Arabian Leopard at Natural History Museum Muscat Oman Photo by Prof Dr Norman Ali Khalaf.jpg
Taxidermied Arabian leopard at the Oman Natural History Museum in Muscat

Three confirmed separate subpopulations remain on the Arabian Peninsula with fewer than an estimated 200 leopards. [27] [28] The Arabian leopard is threatened by habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation; prey depletion caused by unregulated hunting; trapping for the illegal wildlife trade and retaliatory killing in defense of livestock. [7] [13]

The leopard population has decreased drastically in Arabia as shepherds and villagers kill leopards in retaliation for attacks on livestock. In addition, hunting of leopard prey species such as hyrax and ibex by local people and habitat fragmentation, especially in the Sarawat Mountains, made the continued survival of the leopard population uncertain. Other reasons for killing leopards are for personal satisfaction and pride, traditional medicine and hides. Some leopards are killed accidentally when eating poisoned carcasses intended for Arabian wolf and striped hyena. [29] Among the products sold in the tent city of Mina, Saudi Arabia after the Hajj of 2010, skins of Arabian leopards that were poached in Yemen were offered. [30]

The leopard population in Saudi Arabia is affected by the decrease of natural prey species so that leopards increasingly prey on livestock. Local people therefore consider leopards a threat and kill them either by using poison or snares. The leopard population is close to extinction in the country. [31]

The Israeli West Bank Barrier, built by the Israeli government in the mid 2000s disrupts the migration of all terrestrial land animals between Israel and Palestine, therefore reducing animals' natural habitats and causing gene pools to be significantly shallower, which results in inbreeding and infertility. [32]

In the 1950s, the Arabian leopard population was already decreasing drastically due to habitat degradation and fragmentation, and killing of leopards and prey species. [33]

Conservation

The 4,500 km2 (1,700 sq mi) Jabal Samhan Nature Reserve was established in 1997 after camera trap records of leopards were obtained; in the following decade, 17 individual adult leopards and one cub were identified. [17] Leopards were also radio-collared and tracked in this Nature Reserve. [34]

At least ten wild leopards were live-captured in Yemen since the early 1990s and sold to zoos; some have been placed in conservation breeding centers in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. [19]

A detailed study of leopard distribution and habitat requirement is needed for the management of the species. The ecological information needed include data on feeding behavior, range use and reproduction. This information is of great importance to the survival of the species. There are many sites already surveyed and considered to be suitable for preservation for leopards in the plan adopted by the national commission for wildlife conservation and development. These areas include Jebel Fayfa, Jebel Al-Qahar, Jebel Shada, which has already been gazetted as a protected area, Jebel Nees, Jebel Wergan, Jebel Radwa and Harrat Uwayrid. The formal establishment of some of these areas is now urgent. [1]

A successful conservation strategy must promote the awareness of the importance of leopard conservation, employing the media and perhaps other sources for basic education programs. The support and involvement of people living close to leopard habitats are vital in such efforts. This is true not only because they might affect the conservation of the leopard in one way or another, but also because they depend on their livestock which could be killed occasionally by leopards. Although it is not always practical, compensation for lost livestock from leopard predation should be considered. [35]

Revenue from sources such as hunting rights and ecotourism, services such as roads and school employment in protected areas would encourage local residents to participate in leopard conservation. Furthermore, well-managed protected areas will ensure the continued survival of the species until other factors enhancing its survival become effective. Public awareness, fruitful consideration of the needs of local people and ecological studies may take years to be useful. [36]

In Yemen, efforts are underway to conserve leopards at two sites, including Hawf Protected Area. [37] In Saudi Arabia, authorities have undertaken efforts to create Sharaan Nature Reserve, a wildlife sanctuary for the leopard in the area of Al-`Ula. [38] [39]

In captivity

Leopard at the former Arabia's Wildlife Centre in Sharjah, the UAE Arabian Leopard Panthera pardus nimr in Sharjah photo by Prof Dr Norman Ali Khalaf 2016.jpg
Leopard at the former Arabia's Wildlife Centre in Sharjah, the UAE

The first Arabian leopards were captured in southern Oman and registered in the studbook in 1985. Captive breeding was initiated in 1995 at the Oman Mammal Breeding Centre and is operated at a regional level on the Arabian Peninsula. Since 1999, the regional studbook is coordinated and managed by personnel of the Breeding Centre for Endangered Arabian Wildlife, Sharjah. [40] As of 2010, nine institutions participated in the breeding programme and kept 42 males, 32 females, and three unsexed leopards, of which 19 were wild caught. This captive population comprised 14 founders that have an unequal number of descendants. [41] In 2016, the leopards and other fauna were transferred from the breeding centre in Sharjah to Al Hefaiyah Conservation Centre in the eastern area of Kalba. [42]

In Yemen, leopards were kept at Ta'izz and Sana'a Zoos. [43] Two cubs were born on 26 April 2019 at the Prince Saud Al-Faisal Wildlife Research Center in Ta'if. [44]

Arabian Leopard Day

Arabian Leopard Day Logo Arabian Leopard Day Logo.svg
Arabian Leopard Day Logo

On February 2022, Saudi Council of Ministers declared February 10 as the "Arabian Leopard Day" in an effort to protect the species and raise awareness of their conservation status. [45] On June 2023, The United Nations voted to adopt a resolution to officially designate February 10 as an international day for Arabian Leopards. [46]

On the second Arabian Leopard Day, which took place on February 2023, The Royal Commission of Al Ula created a $25 million fund to promote conservation efforts and signed a 10-year deal with Panthera worth $20 million. [47]

See also

Leopard subspecies: African leopard  · Amur leopard  · Anatolian leopard  · Indian leopard  · Indochinese leopard  · Javan leopard  · Persian leopard  · Sri Lankan leopard

Related Research Articles

A black panther is the melanistic colour variant of the leopard and the jaguar. Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical rosettes are also present. They have been documented mostly in tropical forests, with black leopards in Africa and Asia, and black jaguars in South America. Melanism is caused by a recessive allele in the leopard, and by a dominant allele in the jaguar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leopard</span> Large spotted cat native to Africa and Asia

The leopard is one of the five extant species in the genus Panthera. It has a pale yellowish to dark golden fur with dark spots grouped in rosettes. Its body is slender and muscular reaching a length of 92–183 cm (36–72 in) with a 66–102 cm (26–40 in) long tail and a shoulder height of 60–70 cm (24–28 in). Males typically weigh 30.9–72 kg (68–159 lb), and females 20.5–43 kg (45–95 lb).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blanford's fox</span> Species of carnivore

Blanford's fox is a small fox native to the Middle East and Central Asia. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">African leopard</span> Leopard subspecies

The African leopard is the nominate subspecies of the leopard, native to many countries in Africa. It is widely distributed in most of sub-Saharan Africa, but the historical range has been fragmented in the course of habitat conversion. Leopards have also been recorded in North Africa as well.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arabian wolf</span> Subspecies of the gray wolf

The Arabian wolf is a subspecies of gray wolf native to the Arabian Peninsula—to the west of Bahrain, as well as Oman, southern Saudi Arabia, and Yemen. They are also found in Israel’s Negev and Arava Deserts, Jordan, Palestine, and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula. It is the smallest Gray wolf subspecies, and a specialized xerocole (arid-adapted) animal that normally lives in smaller familial packs. Arabian wolves are omnivorous and opportunistic eaters; they consume small to medium-sized prey, from insects, reptiles and birds to rodents and small ungulates, such as young Nubian ibex and several species of gazelle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sri Lankan leopard</span> Leopard subspecies

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indian leopard</span> Leopard subspecies

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arabian tahr</span> Species of mammal

The Arabian tahr is a species of tahr native to eastern Arabia. Until recently, it was placed in the genus Hemitragus, but genetic evidence supports its removal to a separate monotypic genus, Arabitragus.

<i>Panthera pardus tulliana</i> Leopard subspecies

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Javan leopard</span> Subspecies of leopard

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arabian Peninsula coastal fog desert</span> Ecoregion on the southern coasts of the Arabian Peninsula

The Arabian Peninsula coastal fog desert, also known as the Southwestern Arabian coastal xeric scrub, is desert ecoregion on the southern coasts of the Arabian Peninsula, which experiences thick fogs where visibility may be reduced to 10 metres (33 ft). It is classed as an Afrotropical fog desert

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gulf of Oman desert and semi-desert</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amur leopard</span> Leopard subspecies in Far East Asia

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indochinese leopard</span> Leopard subspecies

The Indochinese leopard is a leopard subspecies native to mainland Southeast Asia and southern China. In Indochina, leopards are rare outside protected areas and threatened by habitat loss due to deforestation as well as poaching for the illegal wildlife trade. In 2016, the population was previously thought to comprise 973–2,503 mature individuals, with only 409–1,051 breeding adults. The historical range had decreased by more than 90%. However, as of 2019, it is estimated that there are 77-766 mature Indochinese leopards and that their numbers are decreasing.

Jabal Samhan Nature Reserve is a nature reserve in the area of Jabal Samḥān in Dhofar, Oman. It has an area of 4,500 square kilometres (1,700 sq mi) and has no permanent population. Being in the region of the Dhofar Mountains, it is one of the last refuges for wild Arabian leopards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wildlife of Saudi Arabia</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wildlife of the United Arab Emirates</span>

The wildlife of the United Arab Emirates is the flora and fauna of the country on the eastern side of the Arabian Peninsula and the southern end of the Persian Gulf. The country offers a variety of habitats for wildlife including the coast, offshore islands, mangrove areas, mudflats, salt pans, sand and gravel plains, sand dunes, mountain slopes, wadis and rocky summits. Because the terrain is so varied, it supports a greater number of species of plants and animals than might have been expected in this relatively small country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wildlife of Oman</span>

The wildlife of Oman is the flora and fauna of this country in the southeastern corner of the Arabian Peninsula, with coasts on the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea. The climate is hot and dry, apart from the southeastern coast, and the country offers a variety of habitats for wildlife including mountains, valleys, deserts, coastal plains and sea coasts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dhofar Mountains</span> Mountain range in southern Oman

The Dhofar Mountains are a mountain range in the southeastern part of the Arabian Peninsula. In a broad sense, they extend from Dhofar Governorate in Oman to Hadhramaut Governorate in Yemen, and are located between the Hajar in the northern part of Oman, and the Sarawat in the western part of Yemen. Otherwise, the range in the eastern part of Yemen, particularly near Mukalla, is referred to as the Hadhramaut or "Mahrat".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southwestern Arabian foothills savanna</span>

The Southwestern Arabian foothills savanna, also known as the Southwestern Arabian Escarpment shrublands and woodlands, is a desert and xeric shrubland ecoregion of the southern Arabian Peninsula, covering portions of Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and Oman.

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