Once (cat)

(Jrt)

Once (cat)
The Irbis Once or Panther or snow or snow leopard (Uncia uncia) is a sort of feline high mountains. It occurs in isolated mountain valleys of Central Asia, where it climbs to over 4 000 m.

Earlier this case was classified in the genus Panthera under the name Panthera uncia. It has since been moved into a kind hand, Uncia, which it is the sole representative.

Characters distinctive
The ounces has a beautiful coat very long and thick, ranging from light gray to silvery-cream. On the underside his coat is white, while the dorsal side is dotted with dark spots in the forms of rings (broken or not). The once a large paws and ears short and rounded. The weight an ounce adult is between 25 and 50 kg. His body measuring 1 m by 1.30 m. The length of his tail ranges from 90 cm to 1 m

Distribution
Mongolia, west and southern China, Nepal, the Himalayas, Tibet, Afghanistan, Pakistan, extreme east of Central Asia (ex-USSR).

Habitat
The ounces lives in the mountains. It is usually held below the limit of snow. In summer, between 2 700 and 6 000 metres. In winter, locally until it falls below 1 000 metres.

Scientists follow the trail of cats on their territory. After captured and tattooed, they pose a collar transmitter.

Behavior
Little is known about the habits of these cats who live cloistered in the Himalayas. We know that an ounce is a very solitary animal which occupies a vast territory. It is said that a couple of ounces lives in a valley full. It is a cat exceedingly rare and difficult to observe in the wild because of the inaccessibility of its habitat. For food, she hunting ibex, thars, markhor and gazelles of Tibet. It also addresses a smaller prey such as marmots, hares and pikas. Each day, an ounce travel great distances to seek its prey and follows seasonal movements of flocks ruminants. It is his cottage in a rock crevice and seems to remain true to its usual shelter.

Unlike the leopard, once a day instead of morals and hunting sight as the cheetah. Despite its large size and the fact that zoologists relate to panthérinés ounce, it purrs like the small cats, which makes an exception. Some experts are of the opinion that the cheetah ounce and have a distant common strain and would be both originating in West Asia.

The ounces is the best jumper among the felines. It can jump up to six to ten meters. It hunting on the lookout and then rushes in a single leap on its prey.

Reproduction
Females can save the world 2 to 4 small a scope, after a period of gestation of 90 to 103 days. The young are born blind, they open their eyes from 7 to 9 days. At birth, they weigh between 300 and 700 g. The ounces reach sexual maturity at the age of 1-2 years. It can live up to 12 years.

Protection
The snow leopard is one of the ten most threatened species, it would still more than 2000. It is still hunted for its fur, and because it happens to attack domestic animals. This species is on the list of species in Appendix I of CITES.

Read also Cheetah

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