IUCN / SSC Cat Specialist Group - Digital Cat Library |
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| Mann, G. | |
| Aspects of the ecology of leopards (_Panthera pardus_) in the Little Karoo, South Africa | |
| 2014 Full Book | |
Predation has a profound structuring influence on ecosystems (Terborgh 1988; Miller et al. 2001; Estes et al. 2011), and the loss of top predators such as leopards (Panthera pardus, Linnaeus 1758) can have important consequences for ecosystem structure and the survival of other species within the predator's habitat (Terborgh 1992; Ripple & Beschta 2004; Creel & Christianson 2009). However, apex predators are often among the most vulnerable elements of biodiversity, particularly due to anthropogenic factors such as habitat fragmentation (Terborgh 1992) and human persecution (Balme & Hunter 2004; Ray et al. 2005). Throughout many parts of southern Africa, leopards are the sole surviving large predator species outside of protected areas as they can persist in fragmented habitats and areas close to human settlements better than other large African felids (Ray et al. 2005; Swanepoel et al. 2013). Leopards have the widest habitat tolerance of any African felid, occupying habitats ranging from tropical rainforests to deserts (Ray et al. 2005), and can live wherever there is sufficient prey and cover to allow them to ambush prey (Stander et al. 1997; Hayward et al. 2006). Leopards are also cryptic, solitary predators (Bailey 1993; Stander et al. 1997), characteristics which may contribute to their ability to survive in human-disturbed areas. In arid areas, leopards generally prefer rugged, broken terrain to more open areas, as these areas typically provide better cover for hunting and refuge from humans and other predators (Khorozyan & Malkhasyan 2002; McCarthy et al. 2005; Gavashelishvili & Lukarevskiy 2008). Together, these adaptations have allowed leopards to have the widest distribution of all large carnivores in Africa, being present throughout sub-Saharan Africa, as well as in the Middle East, southern Asia and the Russian Far East (Henschel et al. 2009). |
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