http://blindkat.hegewisch.net/zoo/nebulosa.html тут написано что дымпарды весят до 30 кг. Аналогичную инфу я встречал как минимум еще в одном источнике, кажется в кэтссёрвайвлтраст. Не знаю правда или нет, но я охотно верю что крупные самцы могут столько весить, учитывая их сложение.

Отредактировано Crazy Zoologist (26 September 2010 12:33:30)

а может ли дымчатый леопард загрызть собаку, крупной породы например овчарку?

Обычно матерый самец думаю вест 20 с копейками.

Неофелис диарди скорее всего отдельный вид. Более тёмный, более специализированный, по размером такой же.

Не знаю сколько, но немало.

Тёмноокрашенные особи это калимантанский дымчатый леопард - Neofelis diardi. А светлоокрашенные - Neofelis nebulosa. У меня в журнале есть статья про различия между ними.

Neofelis et Metailurus.

Где бы найти череп островгого вида?
Вот видео в природе - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vv2qYd0fF3k
Дымчатый леопард имел клыки как у парамахайрода, но при этом кусал сильнее.

Статьи хозяевов дымчатых леопардов?

Neofelis Nebulosa, the Ocelot of the Orient
While everyone knows the striking but conservative beauty of the ocelot, the clouded leopard’s markings surpass any designs, spots, stripes or shades familiar to cat fanciers, and have to be seen to be appreciated. The large, irregular, never alike marbled blotches are much more definite then in its smaller relative, the mysterious marbled cat. The thick, furry tail (in most instances noted on animals indigenous to high altitude areas) of unusually long proportions reminds one of the snow leopard and adds to a unique picture.

Extremely large males may reach 55 pounds the much smaller females will average slightly over 30 pounds. The conformation of the animals is also extremely odd. The front part of the body is low-sling, compact and powerful. The unusually large front paws, short, muscular legs and the pugnacious lower jaw are strongly reminiscent of another denison of the deep forest in this hemisphere – the jaguar. The canine teeth are relatively by far the longest among felines. They invariably astonish the non-initiated. Many scientists have ascertained direct relation in this respect between n. nebulosa and the now extinct but famed Smilodon or Saber-tooth tiger.

I began my feline career many decades ago as a professional trainer, in fact I was featured on Ed Sullivan show in 1961 with an act that consisted of trained greyhounds and monkeys. I advanced to create numerous Siberian tiger acts and was famous for my uncaged leopard acts. A specialty of mine featured one star feline, a male black leopard that regularly jumped 17 feet into my arms without ever causing injury, a feat never duplicated by any other trainer.

It was my great understanding of feline behavior and my intrigue of these wondrous species that lead me to center my energies on the captive breeding of rare and endangered felines. I was alarmed to learn that early zoo efforts to breed clouded leopards resulted in 16 deaths in just one year. These felines were suffering from excessive stress caused by public display, transfers of individuals to new zoos, inappropriate enclosure designs, the breakup of established pairs, or the post-adolescent pairing of adults. This species was never common in captivity and to loose them to such poor husbandry understanding was especially upsetting to me. This was an extremely rare feline. To put this in perspective from a financial aspect, in the late 1960’s ocelots could be regularly imported and purchased for about $150 dollars, while clouded leopards if available, commanded around $2,500.

I felt it was my duty to utilize my experience and knowledge to stop this massacre and help insure the future survival of this extraordinary feline by pioneering successful captive breeding programs. To this end I traveled to Viet Nam, a French-speaking nation, to work with that country and import this species. This was back in the early 1970’s, before the US Congress approved the Endangered Species Act, before the international treaty to regulate trade of endangered species was written. (CITES)

I studied the felines in their native countries, and then made a special trip to the Frankfort Zoo in Germany to see the director, Dr. Grzymek. This European facility was successfully breeding this species and I learned that they were feeding whole animals consisting of freshly killed rabbits, rats, pigeons and chickens and fresh blood.

I imported about a dozen clouded leopards from Viet Nam, Laos and Cambodia to form the basis of my breeding stock. All were supposed to be less then 6 months old, however the exporters were not honest about their ages and in fact none were that young and a couple of the females arrived pregnant.

At the Savage Kingdom we bred and raised rabbits for prey as well as purchased live rats for these cats. Based on my observations it is my opinion that clouded leopards cannot properly digest their food without the all-important pre-play. Typically a clouded leopard will kill its prey and then play with its lifeless body for an hour before consuming it. If given access to trees, a clouded leopard will climb a tree and consume the animal there. Another important consideration when raising clouded leopards for breeding is to address their psychological need to access height, a part of their arboreal makeup. Enclosures for clouded leopards should be designed at least 10 feet in height.

The Savage Kingdom facility is located in central Florida and our property is covered with stately and enormous live oaks. During an episode at my compound a large male made a b-line to one of my 100-foot tall oak trees in less then a second the specimen reached the very top where it disappeared completely. I sent a young helper with a short-range capture gun. When my man approached within 6 foot of the animal the clouded performed an unbelievable 45 degree jump towards the ground all legs spread out like a flying squirrel and hit the ground like a rubber cat and in three leaps was up another 70 foot tall tree where we finally tranquilized him with no damage at all. This story illustrates this feline species desire to inhabit the forest canopy and comfort they derive from gaining height.

Another aspect of clouded leopard behavior is their intense need to form pair bonds. In fact in order for clouded leopards to successfully mate they must be in love. When a compatible pair is introduced young they will breed. Once breeding is observed, I note the approximate date for the birth and then remove the male before the female is in labor. We never broke up any pairs, but kept breeding the same couples for their lifetime.

In our breeding career we produced 75 clouded leopard offspring and dispersed 67 of them to other zoos and facilities. These cats form the foundation stock of the American and European zoological collections of present day. Usually we kept the kittens with their mother for about 6 weeks and then pulled them for taming and to enable them to be paired up with others of the opposite sex. Initial diet for a 6-week-old kitten was freshly killed rabbit meat with KMR poured on it. Sometimes cubs were pulled at a younger age and bottle raised. This hand rearing produced extremely tame individuals.

Clouded leopards are extremely vocal and University of Florida students studied our population and their language. I have counted over 40 different sounds made by this species, including sounds that mimic other animals, such as various birdcalls and monkey calls.

My ongoing attempt to create a “natural habitat” for two clouded leopards

I have been enchanted with clouded leopards for what seems like forever. My acquisition of two clouded leopards just over a year ago sent me into a frenzy of habitat building. The two, 7 and 8 years of age had not been handled since they were cubs. They had formerly resided in a spotlessly clean but spartan cage, - so I set out in advance of their arrival to create “clouded heaven”. I drew and re-drew layouts and plans.

Finally I decided on an area away form all of my larger cats where they could enjoy some well deserved privacy. The basic blueprint of the enclosure is a 20 by 48 foot rectangle divided into three sections with doors connecting the sections. There are lock out double-doors on each end and an additional door allows entry to the middle section. All three sections have a view of a wide canal where many wading birds gather.

My concept was not really original – I was hoping that a hitherto non-breeding pair would be enticed to normal breeding behavior if they were content with their surrounds. At 7 and 8 years of age they had never bred. History was against me and the female’s multiple health problems, cataracts, low thyroid, chronic bladder infections and a wide variety of allergies further complicated things. Most of her conditions are now under control. She has bonded with me to the point that she will allow me to give her injections and clip her nails. She comes out to greet me when I enter the enclosure and call to her. Talk about an honor! He, on the other hand, is not yet very trusting.

Having read every piece of literature I could find on the habits and preferences of clouded leopards both in captivity and in the wild, I settled on a selection of amenities. I spoke with Rick Swartz at the Nashville Zoo. He has had phenomenal success breeding cloudeds and was wiling to share his knowledge of habitat design.

The enclosure walls are standard 8-foot tall, 9-gauge chain link. To accommodate aerial actives the roof is pitched to a height of 12 foot down the centerline. There is a “his” and “her” section and a “their’s” section in between. The center section replicates a jungle. Thick areca palm clusters several feet in diameter and 10 foot tall were added to an existing majesty palm that canopy high above the roof level. Logs, an 18-inch diameter, 6-foot long tube and a barrel to simulate a den are nestled among ferns, mulched paths and mondo grass. Alocasias, which look like elephant ears, seasonal flowers and a pre-cast rock water fountain, complete the feel. The bench for me was an afterthought, but I find that the female likes to lie on it to sun herself.

The his and hers sections are 12 by 16 foot decks, which hold two sets of double decker platforms with hanging log walkways in between. Each side has an igloo and a barrel up top for high level sleeping. I find it curious tha they often choose to nap on ground level hidden under the big ferns – I thought they would prefer the higher bunks.

I have the luxury of being able to observe my cats at all hours and they really do come alive just before dusk. I sometimes feed after dark, especially when the weather is very hot and I usually find them cruising around and mock hunting each other. They seem to do a lot of chasing each other – at least until the meals arrive. About food, I feed chicken thighs, necks, and beef chunks, Oasis vitamins every day and giblets several times a week. I also believe in “whole” foods so each day they also get a small rat, a chick or a mouse. Sunday is their favorite – a whole rabbit – and there is not so much as a toenail left.

So now, a year after their arrival, though it does not appear that they intend to breed, they are happier, fitter and friendlier then they have ever been. I feel that they are as content as any cloudies in captivity. And am honored that they accepted me. I remain ever hopeful that one day I will arrive in the morning to clean and find the miracle of new life in clouded heaven.

(c)http://exoticcatz.com

Что думаете про их родство с "саблезубым"? По энимал планет уверяли в одном из фильмов. Глядя на строение зубов...есть над чем подумать...

Во-во...именно так и уверяли учёные...я задумался.
А про жирафа то? просто интересно... Наверное он будет лежать на земле, связанный по рогам и копытам))) А "дымок" мучиться с расжёвыванием его шкурени (ведь известно, что у жирафа  приличная шкурень (как средство борьбы с шипами акации). Таким образом, я думаю и слона бы убила ласка...лежит слоник под действием СЛОНтворного...спит, а ласка в это время проедает в нём дырень в области сонной артерии... По-другому никак, даже во сне.
Правда в жизни, жизнь просто так не сдаётся и не отдаётся на откуп хищникам. А как шею может крутить жираф, даже белка не удержится.

Crazy Zoologist :

Тут дело в психологии, дымпард физически может убить жирафа, а ласка слона нет.

Если прогрызет глаз, закопается туда и доберется до мозга...

Но таким манером и бурозубка должна убивать человека.

Посмотрим на результаты исследований, если таковые будут.