I could only have appeared here,
on this planet.
This is my territory, my world.
It turns only because I walk on it.
I have an innate sense of taste
and no wish to be any different.
I became independent early on
and I don’t answer to anyone.
I alone decide where to go and where to be.
I know everything
and need no one’s help.
There are few like me around.
Until today, they thought there were only 79 of us...
But they just didn’t know about me.
LEO 80 THE STORY OF A LEOPARD
My life is in my paws and no one else’s.
My sense of smell and hearing are sharp,
just like my deadly claws.
I can see a bug on a stone 100 m away.
I can walk right up to my prey without it knowing.
I am strength, I am agility, I am...
...tomorrow Primorye will see temps of 20°C ,
partly cloudy skies and rain.
In other news: the story of the leopard
found by border guards continues...
Sergei, why’d you turn the radio off? They’re talking about you
It’s old news now, everyone’s already heard about it.
I haven’t. Tell me.
Basically, it went like this...
SERGEI PETCHANIN OFFICER OF THE BORDER SERVICE
OF THE FEDERAL SECURITY SERVICE OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION, PRIMORSKY KRAI
An ordinary day, an ordinary border inspection...
Everything routine... Ruslan was up ahead with our dog John.
RUSLAN CHUZHOV OFFICER OF THE BORDER SERVICE
The dog suddenly stopped and pricked its ears.
It felt something.
Then, 15 m away I see a leopard lying in the grass.
Without the dog, we would have never seen it,
just walked right by.
He tried to jump up at us,
but he didn’t have the strength.
He stumbled, foaming at the mouth.
We alerted our superior.
Our orders are to report anything unusual.
But we also care about leopards.
They’re endangered, there are few left.
It was an ordinary day.
Hello?
Where?
What state is it in?
I’m on my way!
The border men said that at Siny Utes there was a leopard,
and it was in bad shape.
It was clear that the animal was sick.
Something was wrong with it.
Until people came from Land of the Leopard,
we kept watch over the animal,
so that it wouldn’t go anywhere.
VICTOR STOROZHUK RESEARCH ENGINEER AT THE LAND OF THE LEOPARD
It was very strange behavior for an animal.
They usually hide, keep out of sight.
This one clearly needed to be taken out of the wild.
It needed help.
After the call, we moved quickly.
Any delay would be bad for the leopard.
Saving it was the main thing at that stage.
We just acted reflexively.
We quickly grabbed our guns
and went to the forest.
It didn’t take long to find the leopard.
Back off, back off!
He lay between two fallen logs
without moving,
not even its eyes.
When I saw him, I thought he was going to die.
That’s all I could think.
I’ve seen them before,
but never so close.
They have always smelled like danger,
like death.
So I decided...
But I lacked the strength.
But I have my fury.
I knew they were going to kill me...
There they are again,
so close I could bite anyone of them!
Like this one, for example!
But I couldn’t move, I felt nothing.
I couldn’t understand...
ELENA TOLOKONNIKOVA VETERINARIAN AT THE NIKA CLINICS IN VLADIVOSTOK
It was something new, because we had never operated on a leopard before.
His right forefoot was severely wounded:
all his claw phalanges were missing on three digits,
and the first digit lacked a middle phalanx.
On the second digit, the middle phalanx was exposed,
and the third lacked a claw phalax and the pad was scraped off.
At that time, the paw wasn’t the worst thing.
It was a question of the leopard surviving or not,
because it was severely weakened.
We first surgically treated the wound with antiseptic,
removed the necrosis,
and then stitched it.
FELINE PAW ANATOMY
A wild leopard’s paw, like a housecat’s,
is a truly unique tool found in all felines.
It is a hunting weapon, defense against enemies,
and ideal for climbing trees.
Thanks to their special ligaments, muscles, and tendons,
felines can retract their claws into special hollows inside their paws.
Nature ensured this sharp weapon
would avoid constant contact with soil,
so the claws do not wear out.
ELENA TKALICH HEAD VETERINARIAN OF THE NIKA CLINIC IN VLADIVOSTOK
Wild animals have a strong immune system.
When we decided to leave the middle phalanx
and cover it with soft tissues,
we expected it to recover quickly.
We hoped it would survive,
and if there was no amputation,
it had a chance to go back to the wild.
I wasn’t afraid of them,
or their pointy things they tried to scare me with.
Then I realized:
I am one but there are so many of them,
because they are afraid of me!
Afraid...
QUARANTINE CAGE
THE CENTER FOR REHABILITATION AND REINTRODUCING
OF TIGERS AND OTHER RARE ANIMALS
EKATERINA BLIDCHENKO
SENIOR RESEARCHER OF THE NATIONAL PARK LAND OF THE LEOPARD, ZOOLOGIST
When the leopard arrived, it was in bad shape.
Not everyone thought it would survive.
The first 3 days, no one would leave its side.
Everyone slept here and kept watch over it.
It wouldn’t react to human beings,
food, or new conditions.
VICTOR KUZMENKO EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE CENTER
FOR REHABILITATION AND REINTRODUCING OF TIGERS AND OTHER RARE ANIMALS
Everyone was worried about the animal.
Me, Katya, Peter, and Land of the Leopard staff.
The phone kept ringing, calls every five minutes.
PETR SONIN
SENIOR RESEARCHER OF THE SCIENCE DEPARTMENT OF THE LAND OF THE LEOPARD
The hardest bit was the first day it arrived.
It had severe convulsions.
We thought it would die.
Convulsions are a painful process,
all the animal’s muscles contract.
It is an unusual behavior and it shook us all.
They again indicated we should give him an injection.
We gave him a shot.
It worked and he started feeling a little better.
But next day his condition was still very bad.
Log: Entry 1.
Leopard’s condition is depressed.
Refuses food and water.
It started to have convulsions in the morning,
a series of 5–6 repeated seizures.
Frequent contractions of the lower jaw with release of saliva.
Etiology is unclear.
No response to humans or surroundings.
Impaired coordination.
The leopard is being monitored around the clock.
I don’t want to sleep,
fearing my eyes will never open again.
But sometimes I feel I am already sleeping,
I dream I am a ladybug
hunted by a big, black spider.
The pain sapped all my strength.
I never thought about how long I would live.
Does anyone know when the rain will end?
The rain comes until it doesn’t...
Just like life.
Entry 2.
The leopard’s state remains depressed.
Its reaction to humans is abnormal for wild animals:
no fear, it doesn’t try to avoid contact,
though it looks right at you.
It continues to refuse food and water.
It reacts normally to light with narrowing of pupils.
The leopard is being monitored around the clock.
Entry 3:
Good news! Noticeable improvement.
In this morning’s visit, we observed a defensive reaction to humans.
Coordination is almost recovered.
It actively paces its cage and shows exploratory behavior.
One kg of beef liver was offered and it began to eat.
We now had hopes it would survive.
Everyone felt relieved but still kept an eye on him.
Everything on this earth is food.
And if I don’t move fast enough, I’ll be food, too.
Everything was simple, but I never thought about it.
I was alive and should have rejoiced.
But I was in a cage, and should have lamented.
Everything lasted until I felt hungry.
After that, hunger was my main enemy.
I needed strength...
As for these, I’ll deal with them later...
Animals’ drive to get food is strong.
Any food left by humans can be eaten by animals in the wild.
As for his feelings about the human who feeds him, it’s hard to say.
Leopards’ energy expenditure is optimized:
better to prey on one big animal than many smaller ones.
In the wild, some 50% of its diet
is deer.
Around 25% is badgers and raccoon dogs.
The rest is other vertebrates:
frogs, rodents, and spawning fish
In autumn it eats more than any other season.
As the cold nears,
it builds up reserves for winter
and gets its winter fur.
We started a course of antibiotics and medication.
They got him back to normal.
And after that, he quickly got better.
We were incredibly thrilled.
When we found this leopard, it wasn’t in our filesю
We gave it a new name, Leo-80-M.
The name has three parts:
“Leo” is the species,
“80” the number assigned after finding it,
and “M” means it is a male.
First he was just an unknown leopard.
Land of the Leopard staff later found a photo of him with his mother,
on Russian territory.
It turned out he was born in Russia,
but at 6 months he went with his mother to China,
and then he had come back, alone.
Once, when I was small,
I lived with my mom in a place without beginning or end.
Run all you like, you’d never reach its limits.
I know these hills, paths, rocks.
As a cub I’d visit icy streams
with the best water in the world,
here, right behind this forest.
Spring brings a dizzying smell,
in summer the trees whisper.
I love this sky, even when it is gray.
At night it looks at me with its big eye.
I can wander until dawn,
because I love these places.
This is my homeland, the Land of the Leopard.
When the leopard’s state stabilized, we had to plan what to do next.
It would be valuable in the wild,
because there are few left, or in a a zoo.
We decided that we could always put him in a zoo,
but only now could it be returned to the wild,
if we made special conditions for it.
Things were difficult,
because our enclosure was meant for tigers, not leopards.
A tiger can’t climb trees or nets.
Leopards are cats that climb well.
It could quietly climb out of such a normal enclosure
and head off.
While the leopard was in quarantine,
we adapted the enclosure under the leopard.
We made additional protection from a metal sheet.
For a month there were huge works going on.
Thank God it all worked out, nothing escaped.
The leopard’s rehabilitation was a first for us,
as the animal came from the wild and we didn’t know its back story.
When reintroducing animals to the wild, we know the cat’s history from birth.
So, a part of its life was a mystery to us.
We assumed it was around 1.5 years old.
We assumed that at that age, it would already know how to hunt,
because it was a male.
So, we started offering him deer,
to evaluate its hunting habits.
With the first deer, he behaved like a kitten.
He started chasing the deer without any special hunting skills.
So, clearly he was young and lacked experience for big prey.
I didn’t know how to hunt, that’s true.
I was stubborn, headstrong,
and left my mom too early.
She showed me how to get such food,
but it was the first time I tried.
I really wanted to get it, but fell short.
I vowed that next time it wouldn’t get away.
I would be the best!
LEOPARD ‒ WILD NATURE PREDATOR
A leopard’s sight and hearing, like all felines,
are more developed than ts sense of smell.
When hunting, it moves mainly along high rocks.
It uses heights and trees to watch and ambush.
The leopard is a sprinter: it can run fast, but not far.
Its main prey, deer,
can traverse great distances at high speed.
A leopard thus exploits the landscape to sneak up close,
then reach its prey in several leaps
and one precise blow.
Under normal conditions,
it preys on one big deer every 10–15 days.
We had a regimen of releasing deer.
We watched his skills improve with each hunt.
He had to learn to hide, to lie in wait.
Entry 156.
Hunt 11: a spotted deer was released.
- It’s sitting and waiting. - Where’s the deer?
It’s not reacting much. The deer is in the enclosure.
Hunting is always unpredictable.
Deer are clever creatures. They behave differently.
He saw the deer!
Yes, he reacted to the deer.
We made bets: would it get the deer the first time or not?
When you see close up how the leopard stalks through the bushes,
and the deer pricks up its ears,
you’re in suspense to see who will break first.
Watch, it has started to stalk it.
If I ever have a problem,
I have two options:
approach at maximum possible speed and resolve it.
Or run off and leave everything as it was.
But not this time.
This time everyone saw Leo the unsurpassed in action.
I know they’re watching.
They’re always watching.
He’s moving.
He’s closing the distance. He’s cutting it off!
Come on!
Yes! Well done!
A great leap!
Who’s the best? I am!
Who is the winner? I am!
- A short leap. - Great!
Congrats, comrades!
I’m going to write about this.
Great!
He has started to stalk his prey after previous experience.
Using the landscape, it went up to only a jump away,
a minimum distance.
The first strike was a success!
It could hold its prey and dealt a death blow.
Great hunting!
Striking prey from a short distance of 2–3 m is great acrobatics.
Only an experienced animal can do it.
Of course, it was great that its paw didn’t hinder his hunting.
To be honest, that's what we were worried about.
Could it kill its prey without claws?
But it turned out to be easy, nothing to it.
We knew it now had greater chances for going free than before.
From its behavior, we had no doubt it was ready.
We were only worried about its physical health.
To get a final word on releasing it,
we planned a final examination
and X-raying its paw.
Entry 197.
The occasional lameness seen earlier is more noticeable.
It tries to keep off its wounded paw when turning.
When resting, it keeps the paw elevated.
An examination must be made to find the cause.
We did an X-ray.
It showed everything fine in the paw,
the bones were fully preserved.
But we found swelling of soft tissues.
We turned over his paw and saw these bloody wounds.
A substantial surface was injured.
They were large wounds, 1 cm in diameter, on his paw.
It was clearly linked with ground changes,
i.e. snow or frost.
They of course decided not to risk it in that situation.
His fur couldn’t handle that season in Primorye,
the temperatures and precipitation.
Naturally we were upset,
because we planned to release it into the wild.
Due to its problems, it needed continual watching over.
They think they are watching me,
but really I am watching them.
They think they can’t be seen,
but I see and hear all.
Not everything about them is dangerous,
and they are not so scary.
One of them is not so bad at all.
She sometimes comes here, close up.
But even if she isn't close, I know she is watching me,
and thinking about me.
I can feel it.
We did right by ourselves and the leopard.
We did everything we could for it.
But as it turned out, fate had something different in store for it.
Katya and I did our best,
but the wound is a serious one.
It probably couldn’t survive in the wild with that.
An unexpected twist in the story of the leopard,
found one year ago on the Chinese border.
Leo-80, originally planned to return to the wild,
is headed for the Moscow Zoo.
It won’t be kept in the main park,
visitors won’t be able to see it.
Leo-80 will get a separate enclosure and live alone,
except when a female is brought in...
Clearly the wild
would be the best place for him.
Still, the choice between dying
or living in a zoo with a harem,
better the latter.
Zoos today are genetic banks for rare animals.
Many of them have disappeared in their natural habitats.
The case of the Amur leopard is special:
capturing these animals was banned in 1961.
Since then, their captive population has been isolated.
Leo-80 will help remedy this.
He will be a new blood in the history of his species!
He’s a good-natured guy.
There is no malice in him.
Animals can be different in temperament, character.
He’s good-natured,
funny.
He’s really trusting.
He is headstrong, like all young animals,
but very trusting.
I’m no longer afraid of them,
nor they of me.
It's time to say goodbye,
probably because I'm the best.
Will I miss them?
I got a chance to see them closer.
Here’s what I can tell you:
people would be bad leopards.
I am Leo-80, and that’s fine.
Not everyone has been as lucky as me.
I am going somewhere far away...
Well, let him just keep his chin up.
Perhaps I will never see again these forests and rocks,
the rivers the sun sets in.
But one day, my descendants will return,
because this is our land,
my land,
Land of the Leopard.