Monday, February 3, 2014

Creature Feature #108: Clouded Leopard



The  Clouded Leopard makes her home in the Himalayan foothills, favouring the forested areas. She leads a mostly arboreal existence, and is one of the most skillful climbers in the feline family and can climb downwards, head first and also crawl along underneath branches. She leads a relatively solitary life, coming together with the male for a brief, and quite brutal, mating. With their long fangs, the males have even been known to sever the female's vertebrae during courtship. The female is then left to raise her cubs alone. Once hunted for her pelt, she now enjoys full protection across her range, although she is still threatened by poaching.

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