In the wild, there are a huge number of beautiful, but very dangerous animals. Indeed, many of us only know that she was one of the main teachers of Mowgli in the eponymous short story by Rudyard Kipling.
Panther Description
Panther - refers to the genus of large predatory animals from the cat family. This genus is represented by four living by all known predators: tiger, leopard, lion and jaguar. Panther is none other than a representative of the leopard (read our article: the biggest cats in the world) Although there is still a debate about who the panther belongs to, to jaguars or leopards. Panthers are distinguished because of their color, because many of them have a uniform color, most often black.
Interesting fact: for its magnificent appearance, the panther was used on the emblem of the English kings. Now she is present on the coat of arms of the African country of Gabon.
Panther appearance
These wild animals have a muscular body, which reaches a length of 95-180 cm, tail - 70-115 cm. The mass of panthers usually ranges from 40-55 kg, but some individuals can reach 100 kg. The tail accounts for up to half the length of the body, sometimes more, thanks to such an assistant, they perfectly balance and feel comfortable even at great heights. Panthers are very graceful animals, but behind the external beauty and grace there is a real ruthless predator that can easily attack a person.
Wool
The coat of these animals is tough, it covers the whole body and most often has a black color, but if you look closely, you can notice spots of dark shades of various kinds.
The panther moves on four powerful limbs, easily climbs trees and jumps well. At the ends of her paws there are sharp claws that can completely hide, being pulled into the fingers. The height of the animal at the withers reaches 50-70 cm.
Head
The head of the predator is large and has a somewhat elongated shape. On the top of the head are small-sized ears. The eyes are medium sized with round pupils. Panther's jaws are powerful with a complete dental system. Fangs are not large compared to other wild cats, but they are quite powerful and have a wide main part. A predator can easily climb a tree, holding the body of its prey in its mouth.
It should be noted that the main feature of panthers is the structure of their larynx. They have an incompletely ossified sublingual apparatus in which there is a flexible ligament, thanks to it the larynx is able to swell and the panther can emit a kind of roar. In addition to this feature, the animal also does not separate the vocal cords, but form a tubular structure. Thanks to this structure, the roar is very loud and deep.
Range, Panther Habitat
The range of the genus includes tropical countries - Africa, Asia, in addition to its northern part, Central and South America and the southernmost part of North America, as well as the extreme southeast of Europe. Many panthers live on the island of Java.
Panther ration
What do panthers eat
Panther is a carnivorous predator, so any animals can be found in its diet. The wild cat gives preference to artiodactyls, while the size of the victim does not matter: among them there are zebras, antelopes, buffalos, roe deer, etc. It can also attack livestock; cows, sheep, goats can become victims.
Despite the fact that the panther preys mainly on the ground, while resting on a tree, a monkey may be interested in it as a potential victim. This predator can do without food for 5-6 days, but in this case, the feeling of hunger takes hold of the cat so much that it begins to pose a great danger to the person whom she is ready to attack without hesitation.
These predators usually look out for and prey on them, waiting for the right moment. When the game comes closer, the panther can overtake her in several jumps, and, if necessary, can rush to catch up, developing at the same time speed up to 60 km / h. It is difficult to escape from this predator or escape from its tenacious paws.
Character and lifestyle
This predator does not live in a pack, but roams on its own. Prefers to hunt large animals. Mostly ungulate mammals prevail in his diet: antelopes, buffalos, zebras. Sometimes a wild cat does not mind eating a monkey.
Why does a panther drag prey to a tree?
A panther can attack an animal that will be larger in size - in strength and dexterity, few can compete with this predator. She can easily drag any caught prey to a tree and spend her meal there. This manner of hiding their food is also related to the fact that in a similar way the panther protects its prey from encroachments by hyenas and lions that roam the earth. This is another distinguishing feature of leopards, because only they drag their prey onto the trees.
Leopards, which include the panther, like to rest on trees, where they even sleep. They stretch out on branches and hang their careless paws down. Panthers can jump on trees up to 5.5 meters high, none of the predators can no longer boast such jumping ability.
It is curious that a wild cat kills only when it feels hunger, if the predator is full, then even if there is a small kid in front of his nose - the panther will not touch him. But when a predator is hungry, it can even attack a person. Panthers are not infrequently settled near a human dwelling and can enter its territory without problems. They like to hunt at night, so there are cases of attacks on a person in a dream.
Interesting fact: According to statistics, the panther can not be called cannibals. Other predators, such as tigers or lions, are seen in attacks on humans much more often.
Unlike other representatives of this species, panthers are difficult to trainhave a wayward character. They are very brave animals and do not feel the slightest fear of humans. They prefer to live alone, occasionally male + female can walk in pairs.
This is a territorial predator that does not tolerate strangers on its site. They mark their territory with a specific smell and leave special marks from the claws on the trees. If there is a lot of food in the selected territory, the panther can narrow its possessions somewhat, but in the case of meager animals in this area, on the contrary, it can mark and conquer a larger area.
How many panthers live?
Like all representatives of this animal species, panthers are not centenarians. Their age ranges from 10-12 years. Even under favorable conditions, they rarely live up to 15 years.
Panthers remain active for the first 8 years, then there comes a period when they become inactive and no longer attack large animals. Predators can no longer cope with hardy and strong animals. They seek easy prey and do not disdain carrion in the last years of their lives.
Interesting fact: There are recorded cases of the panther's twenty-year life.
Breeding and offspring
Panthers are loners, but to get offspring they are combined in pairs. During the mating season, animals begin to hunt together and spend a lot of time next to each other.
Interesting fact: Panther males are significantly larger than females, almost twice.
- These wild cats reach maturity by 2.5-3 years of life. Being in a warm climate helps predators reproduce year-round.
- They have 3-3.5 months of gestation.
- The panther prepares for childbirth in advance, choosing a secluded place for this.
- A wild cat makes a supply of food for the first time after giving birth, because it does not leave them for the first 10 days after the kittens are born.
- Usually one or two kittens are born, but there are cases when three or four small predators are born.
Panthers are caring parents, so mothers stay with their cubs even after their eyes open. During the first 10 days of life, the mother does not depart from her offspring; in practice, there are even cases of starvation of the female during this period.
Interesting fact: a caring mother, a panther, is so kind to her offspring that she doesn’t even let her father get close to kittens at first.
They teach their offspring all the wisdom of hunting and the basic rules of survival in the wild. When it comes time to include meat in the kittens ’diet, their mother simply lays her prey in front of them, not helping them tear the meat from the bone. Thus, little panthers learn to wield their claws and teeth from childhood.
Panthers selflessly rush to protect their offspring and are ready to sacrifice their lives for it without hesitation.
In one year, the cubs become adult formed predators and most often go into an independent life in the wild.
Natural enemies
In the wild, this predator has virtually no enemies.. A panther can enter into a fight for prey with another large predator, but it can always soberly assess its capabilities and step aside, losing its trophy to another beast.
The wild cat has high intelligence, so it can always avoid unnecessary skirmishes with other predators. For a panther, a man remains in the hands of a man who can hold firearms in his hands - no claws and teeth can compete against him.
Black Panther
Many believe that the panther should be black, this is not entirely true. This beast has a spotty color, but thanks to a peculiar gene mutation, a genetic version of the color appeared - black. This phenomenon is called melanism.
Most often, melanism is manifested in animals living in dark dense forests, where there is an acute lack of lighting. Dark predators are less noticeable here, which facilitates their existence and makes hunting even more successful, because feline vision allows you to see well in the dark. Panthers move silently, which allows them to come very close to the victim.
The skin of a black panther does not have a perfect black color, if you look closely, you can distinguish characteristic spots of a dark color. Black and spotted individuals are no differentexcept for color, they can mate with each other, giving offspring both black and spotted kittens.
Interesting fact: the black gene is a recessive trait, therefore, it is most often suppressed by the spotting gene.
Population and species status
No source can absolutely accurately and reliably tell us how many panthers are in the wild. This predator is either leopards or jaguars, so it is very difficult to assess their population. Many zoologists are inclined to think that very soon panthers can be distinguished in a separate form. This is due to the fact that recently, they breed only between black individuals.
At the moment, panthers are not listed in the Red Book and their numbers are not on the verge of extinction, so there are no significant reasons for excitement.
We just opened the curtain on the vast world of wildlife, where the panther is a small part of it. How many more secrets and mysteries does this completely unknown life of wild animals hide from us. The Panther is a vivid representative among feline predators, and it will never cease to interest humans, because it has long been credited with magical properties and associated with the other world.
