Persian Leopard by Moondawg

Persian Leopard

The Persian leopard (Panthera pardus saxicolor), or Iranian leopard, is one of the leopard subspecies native to western Asia. It is endangered throughout its range in the Middle East.

The Persian leopard is said to be the largest of all the subspecies of leopards in the world. It can grow to up to 1.5 to 2.7 feet tall at the shoulder, and weigh as much as 155 lbs. Before 1990, when Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russia, and Turkmenistan were the Soviet republics, the scientific names of the leopard used in these countries were P.p. tulliana and P.p. ciscaucasica, whereas the name P.p. saxicolor had been traditionally used by the western specialists for the cats in Iran and, partially, Afghanistan. There are currently a few hundred left in the world.

It is found in Iran, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and northwestern Afghanistan. Habitat varies from mountain steppe to grasslands, or anywhere having a reasonable amount of cover and a supply of prey. Unconfirmed reports of big cats in the far southeast of Turkey might also pertain to these animals; see the Caspian Tiger article for details.

Updated 2010-11-05

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