Amur Leopard | Panthera pardus orientalis

The Amur Leopard is the rarest big cat on Earth! It used to be widespread: you could find it in eastern Siberia between North Korea and the Russian Tundra. Nowadays, it can only be found along the Amur River. Under 50 animals live there, remaining the only free-living Amur leopards worldwide! The World Conservation Union, IUCN, has classified the Amur leopard as critically endangered! Today, about 200 of these rare animals live in zoos. This is for several reasons. This cat is heavily hunted due to its very dense warm coat. In addition, his internal organs are used in East Asian medicine. Strict protective measures in the wild and international breeding programs should help to preserve these animals. This big cat can weigh as much as 50-70 kilograms, can live up to 20 years and have 3-6 pups per litter.