Assignment 1 Amur Leopard PDF

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Amur Leopard (Panthera Pardus Orientalis) BIOLOGY AND ECOLOGY Amur leopard also known as Far East leopard, Manchurian leopard, Korean leopard is one of the many critically endangered species on our planet. According to WorldWildLife (n.d.), the scientific name for the Amur leopard is Panthera Pardus Orientalis. The population of Amur leopard is just more than 84 individuals today. Amur leopard are very rare species that has adapted to life in the temperate forests due to their thick fur which grows up to 7.5 cm long in winter. The main habitats for Amur leopards are in temperate, broadleaf and mixed forests (WorldWildLife, n.d.). Currently, they only reside near the boarders in the cold forests between China and Russia, and are only a few animals that can survive harsh winters. Amur Leopards are considered top predators in their settings. They are crucial for keeping the right balance of species in the area. This also affects the health of the forest and wider environment, which provides local wildlife and people with food, water and other resources (WorldCats, 2021)) The main prey species for the Amur Leopard are Roe Deer, Sika Deer, small wild boars along with hares, badgers and also racoon dogs. To avoid any competition for prey, the Amur Leopards will normally hunt at night and would silently watch their prey and wait to ambush them using their burst of energy. They can run at speeds up to 37 miles per hours and leap up to more than 19 feet horizontally and up to 10 feet vertically (WildLifeVets, n.d.). After, they would go ahead and carry and hide unfinished kills, sometimes even up in the trees so they are not taken by other predators (WildLifeVets, n.d.) The breeding cycle is low, the females first breed at the age of 3-4 years, and after a gestation period of around 12 weeks the cubs are born in litters of 1-4 individuals (WorldCats, 2021). In addition, the cubs will usually stay with their mother for up to two years before becoming independent as the fathers some will stay after mating and help with raising the young. The Amur Leopard attains sexual maturity at three years and is known to live up to 10-15 years. (WorldCats, 2021). The distribution of the Amur Leopard once existed throughout Northeastern China, including Jilin and Heilongjiang Provinces and throughout the Korean Peninsula. In Russia, the species range intensely reduced during the seventies losing about 80% of its former range due primarily to habitat loss and hunting (Cordova, 2018). According to Qi, J. et al, (2020) the Amur Leopards today inhabit about 5000 square foot of land and are found in Southwest Primorye in the Russian Far East and along the Russian border with Heilongjiang Province in Northeast China. The Amur-Heilong is one of the most biologically diverse temperate forests in the world. Due to the woodland-grassland landscape the Amur Leopard will reside there as well as Amur Tigers. The landscape also includes the 380-million-acre watershed of the Amur River. The Amur River is the longest undammed river in the Eastern Hemisphere (Qi, J. et al. 2020). Due to deforestation and infrastructure development, this land now faces threat to the local wildlife and environment.

THREATS 1. Poaching Due to being at the top of the food chain, the Amur Leopard lack natural predators. However, humans yet threaten the leopard’s existence by actively poaching, or illegally hunting the Amur Leopard’s for the past 60-70 years. Although in today’s world, most people do not support or condone the fur trade, it was once a booming industry (Uphykina, O. et al., 2018) Pelts from animals currently endangered were all the range and the Amur Leopard fur was high in demands. It is considered illegal to go hunt an Amur Leopard and the consequences for doing so is met with a hefty fine. In Russia, the fine for poaching the Amur Leopard increased to about $15,000 USD (Uphykina, O. et al, 2018). According to WorldWildLife (n.d.), an investigation team recovered a female and male Amur Leopard skin which was being sold in a village in Russia. It is very accessible as the villages are surrounded by forests which the Amur Leopards live in making it easy for them to be hunted. 2. Climate Change Climate change is caused by global warming, or a rise in global temperature. Changes in climate and habitat occur faster than the species can adapt which eventually results in extinction. Climate change is causing more glacial melting, which disrupts the Amur leopard’s snowy habitat in the north (Miller, C. et al. 2014). 3. Habitat Destruction While the population of human is growing, the leopard population is on the decline. With more human comes the necessity for other things in life such as need for space, food and water. According to Miller, C. (2014), the habitat is suffering from the impact of logging, forest fires and encroaching development. As well as, many new railways, gas and oil pipelines and ports were constructed alongside the orders of Russia and China. In 2005 and 2006 an international campaign was held against a plan to build an oil pipeline in the range of both the Amur leopard and tiger. 4. Inbreeding Amur Leopard has a tremendously small population size, which makes them vulnerable to forest fires, or disease. Diseases such Canine Distemper Virus (CDV), are threatening the defenceless Amur leopard population (Cordova, M. 2018). CDV infects the respiratory system and causes serious health problems and even if the species survive they often have painful lifelong side effects (Cordova, M. 2018).

CONSERVATION PLAN Seeing as there remains a small number of Amur leopard species and the reproduction cycle being slow the plan should have multiple parts in help saving the individual specimens and saving the overall population and maintaining a suitable habitat. Zoos have progressed drastically over the years, as one time it was recognized as an entertainment attraction compared to modern day zoos where they play an integral role in conservation and education. This allows visitors an understanding of wild animals and conservation of their ecosystem (Faulk et al., 2007). Zoos can be considered one crucial way of saving the critically endangered species Amur leopard due to proper care and they would be able to reproduce and slowly grow their population. According to WildLife Vets International (n.d.), they have been working of different aspects in an effort to save the Amur leopard. In 2015 Russia approved a plan to reintroduce captive bred Amur leopards to the wild, in 2019 the first leopards were released. WVI has been involved for many years in saving the Amur leopard, they have provided both theoretical and practical training in wildlife medicine for the local Russian wildlife vets and veterinary students who can help the critically endangered species (WildLife Vets International, n.d.) Lastly the construction of a national park for tiger and leopard conversation can help aim to restore the population of these two species and the whole ecosystem. This would require a huge investment of money and natural and human resources (Qi J., 2020). With the investment they can secure forest land which can be used as a habitat area and so research to find out which areas are suitable and consider the climate. This can help ensure the survival of the Amur leopards, as well as human disturbance should be kept under control which consists of construction such as oil pipelines, railways that disrupt the land. (Qi J., 2020)

References Cordova, M. G. (2018). Critically Endangered Amur leopard faces new threat. Cornell Chronicle, 1–2. https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2018/01/critically-endangered-amurleopard-faces-new-threat Falk, J.H.; Reinhard, E.M.; Vernon, C.L.; Bronnenkant, K.; Deans, N.L.; Heimlich, J.E., (2007). Why Zoos & Aquariums Matter: Assessing the Impact of a Visit. Association of Zoos & Aquariums. Silver Spring, MD. Miller, C., Hebblewhite, M., Petrunenko, Y., Seryodkin, I., Goodrich, J., & Miquelle, D. (2014). Amur tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) energetic requirements: Implications for conserving wild tigers. Biological Conservation, 170, 120–129. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2013.12.012 Programmierung: Netboot Internet Solutions, www.netboot.ch. (n.d.). CatSG: Conservation Planning. Cat Specialist Group. Retrieved June 13, 2021, from http://www.catsg.org/index.php?id=58 Qi, J., Holyoak, M., Ning, Y., & Jiang, G. (2020). Ecological thresholds and large carnivores conservation: Implications for the Amur tiger and leopard in China. Global Ecology and Conservation, 21, 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2019.e00837 Uphyrkina, O. (2002). Conservation Genetics of the Far Eastern Leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis). Journal of Heredity, 93(5), 303–311. https://doi.org/10.1093/jhered/93.5.303 Vitkalova, A. V., Feng, L., Rybin, A. N., Gerber, B. D., Miquelle, D. G., Wang, T., Yang, H., Shevtsova, E. I., Aramilev, V. V., & Ge, J. (2018). Transboundary cooperation improves endangered species monitoring and conservation actions: A case study of the global population of Amur leopards. Conservation Letters, 11(5). https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.12574 WildCats Conservation Alliance. (2021, March 16). Amur Leopard Facts. https://conservewildcats.org/resources/amur-leopard-facts/

WildLife Vets International. (n.d.). Saving the Amur Leopard, the World’s Most Endangered Big Cat. Https://Www.Wildlifevetsinternational.Org/Projects/Reintroduction-ofAmur-Leopard. Retrieved June 13, 2021, from https://www.wildlifevetsinternational.org/projects/reintroduction-of-amur-leopard WorldWideLife. (n.d.). Amur leopard. WWF. Retrieved June 13, 2021, from https://wwf.panda.org/discover/knowledge_hub/endangered_species/amur_leopard2/ WorldWildLife. (n.d.). Amur Leopard | Species | WWF. World Wildlife Fund. Retrieved June 13, 2021, from https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/amur-leopard...