Anatolian leopard
| Anatolian Leopard | |
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| Subspecies: | P. p. tulliana
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| Panthera pardus tulliana (Schreber, 1777)
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The Anatolian leopard (Panthera pardus tulliana) was once described as a distinct subspecies of leopard native to Anatolia (Asia Minor), Turkey. However, modern taxonomic analyses have demonstrated that the leopards of Asia Minor genetically differ little from other west- and central Asian leopards and should therefore be included into the Persian leopard (Panthera pardus saxicolor) subspecies.[1][2]
It is unknown whether any leopards still exist in the wild in Anatolia.
Distribution/Physical Features
These animals once prowled the forest and hill habits of the Aegean, Mediterranean, and East Anatolian regions. Adults grow 50-100 centimeters long and may weigh up to 90 kg[citation needed]; their lifespan is approximately 20 years. In Israel, there were Anatolian leopards until the 1980s, there were also some unconfirmed reports of encounters with leopards in the Galilee, and the Golan Heights.
Diet
In the wild, the leopard's prey consists of wild ungulates, which include deer, chamois, mountain goats, and occasionally wild boar. The animal would also go after birds and domestic livestock, if needed.
Sightings
The last official sighting of the Anatolian leopard was in 1974. The animal was killed after an attack on a woman in Bağözü village, Beypazarı 5 km from Beypazarı. Although some scientists have suggested the subspecies has become extinct, others have suggested that there are still between 10-15 leopards in the wild. In 2001, the animal was spotted in the locality called "Dandi" near the town of Mut in the Taurus Mountains in Turkey's Mediterranean Region, and around Muskili Brook on the eastern Black Sea. In 2003 remote sensing cameras captured an adult male leopard in the Vashlovani National Park in Georgia [3]. Another sighting was reported in 2004 in Pokut Plateau. In 2002 the team at the Big Cat Rescue began an inventory expedition at an altitude of around 2000 meters. The expedition was started because photographer Cemal Gulas brought the team a photograph of a paw print which they determined to be that of a leopard. On the expedition, the team sighted a leopard but it evaded them before a photo could be taken. The next day, the team succeeded in photographing the leopard and confirmed its continued existence. It is, however, believed that there are only 10-15 members of this species left in the wild. Currently, the Anatolian Leopard Foundation is studying the animal's population on Mount Taurus using trap cameras. Researcher Selim Guray and his group found some tracks in the forest, which can be observed at [2]this site. [citation needed]
Cause for Decline
It was thought that extensive trophy hunting was the prime factor in the decline and possible extinction of the Anatolian leopard. One hunter named Mantolu Hasan, singlehandedly killed at least fifteen of these animals, possibly as many as fifty [citation needed].
The Kaplani of Samos Island in Greece
There are no recent reports of encounters with the animal in Greece, though at the end of the 18th century an Anatolian leopard from Asia Minor was forced, either by a flooding of the Maeander River or by wildfire, to swim over to the greek Samos Island, where, due to the lack of it’s wild prey, became the scourge of domestic animals.
The Kaplani (Template:Lang-el from Template:Lang-tr meaning Tiger) was hunted by farmers and shepherds and was forced to take refuge in a cave. The entrance was documented as being blocked with large stones so that the animal would die out of hunger and thirst. After some time, a villager named Gerasimos Gliarmis, opened a hole and climbed down the cave unarmed, to find the leopard’s corpse. But the animal had managed to survive eating the remains of its old prey and drinking the water which gathered in a cave’s hollow. The leopard tried to fight his way out, but the villager’s brother, Nikolaos Gliarmis, also climbed down the cave for help and managed to kill it. Gerasimos Gliarmis was injured by the wildcat in his chest and died a short time later from infection.
The dead leopard was embalmed and is today displayed at the Natural History Museum of the Aegean [4], on Samos Island. The story of the animal and the exhibit inspired distinguished greek author Alki Zei for her novel Wildcat under glass (Template:Lang-el, a.k.a The Tiger in the Shop Window, 1963)
See also
- Pardus, a Turkish Linux distribution named after the Anatolian leopard
- Ankaraspor A.Ş., Turkish football club which is nicknamed after the animal
Notes
- ^ Olga Uphyrkina et al. (November 2001). Phylogenetics, genome diversity and origin of modern leopard, Panthera pardus. Molecular Ecology, Volume 10, Issue 11, Page 2617. Abstract
- ^ Sriyanie Miththapala. (August 1996). Phylogeographic Subspecies Recognition in Leopards (Panthera pardus): Molecular Genetic Variation. Conservation Biology, Volume 10, Issue 4, Page 1115. Abstract
- ^ "Flora and Fauna". Retrieved 2007-04-25.
- ^ Natural History Museum of the Aegean
References
- Cat Specialist Group 1996. Panthera pardus ssp. tulliana. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006.
External links
