Clouded Leopard

In News 

• Recently, a team of researchers recorded photographic evidence of clouded leopards at an elevation of 3,700 metres in a community-owned forest along the Indo-Myanmar border in Nagaland.

Image Courtesy: IE

About Clouded Leopard

• Scientific Name : Neofelis nebulosa
• Description :
  • It is a medium-sized cat, 60 to 110 cm long and weighing between 11 and 20kg.
  • It is named after the distinctive ‘clouds’ on its coat – ellipses partially edged in black, with the insides a darker colour than the background colour of the pelt.
  • It has a stocky build and, proportionately, the longest canine teeth of any living feline.

• Habitat: It spends most of the time in the tropical evergreen rainforests but can also be found in dry tropical forests and mangrove swamps.
  •  It has been found at relatively high altitudes in the Himalayas.
• Distribution: It is found across Southeast Asia and the Himalayas in the following countries: southern China, Bhutan, Nepal, northeast India, Burma, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, and Bangladesh. 
  • It is believed to be extinct in Taiwan, China.
• Threats: They are believed to be in decline due to habitat loss and poaching.
• Protection Status: It is categorised as ‘Vulnerable’ under the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

Source: IE