Close-up of two Clouded Leppard Cub during an animal encounter at The Rare Species Conservation Centre, Sandwich, Kent.
The clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa) is a cat found from the Himalayan foothills through mainland Southeast Asia into China, and has been classified as Vulnerable in 2008 by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Its total population size is suspected to be fewer than 10,000 mature individuals, with a decreasing population trend, and no single population numbering more than 1,000 adults. The clouded leopard is considered to form an evolutionary link between the big cats and the small cats. It represents the smallest of the big cats, but is not closely related to the Sunda clouded leopard (Neofelis diardi) found on Sumatra and Borneo is genetically distinct and has been considered a separate species since 2006. The fur of clouded leopards is of a dark grey or ochreous ground-colour, often largely obliterated by black and dark dusky-grey blotched pattern. There are black spots on the head, and the ears are black. Partly fused or broken-up stripes run from the corner of the eyes over the cheek, from the corner of the mouth to the neck, and along the nape to the shoulders. Elongated blotches continue down the spine and form a single median stripe on the loins. Two large blotches of dark dusky-grey hair on the side of the shoulders are each emphasized posteriorly by a dark stripe, which passes on to the foreleg and breaks up into irregular spots. The flanks are marked by dark dusky-grey irregular blotches bordered behind by long, oblique, irregularly curved or looped stripes. These blotches yielding the clouded pattern suggest the English name of the cat. The underparts and legs are spotted, and the tail is marked by large, irregular, paired spots. Females are slightly smaller than males. Their irises are usually either greyish-green or brownish-yellow in color. Their legs are short and stout, with broad paws.
Size: 5055px × 3744px
Location: Rare Species Conservation Centre, Bellars Bush, A256 Dover Road Roundabout, CT13 0DG Sandwich, Kent
Photo credit: © John Gaffen / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: animal, beautiful, cat, centre, close-, clouded, conservation, cub, cubs, cute, encounter, gardens, keeper, kent, leopard, mammal, nebulosi, neofelis, rare, sandwich, species, trust, zoological
