A female Amur Leopard that was killed by a hunter in Russia
is seen in a handout photo from the World Wildlife Fund.
Hunters in Russia's Far East have shot and killed one of
the last seven surviving female Amur leopards living in the
wild, WWF said on Monday, driving the species even closer
to extinction. RUSSIA/World Wildlife Fund/Handout (Reuters)
Hunters kill
one of last Amur Leopards
Mon
Apr 23, 12:13 PM ET
MOSCOW
(Reuters) - Hunters in Russia's Far East have shot and
killed one of the last seven surviving female Amur leopards
living in the wild, WWF said on Monday, driving the species
even closer to extinction.
Last week environmentalists said there were only between 25
and 34 Amur leopards -- described as one of the most
graceful cats in the world -- still living in the wild.
At least 100 are needed to guarantee the species' survival
which depends upon female leopards breeding. There are more
male leopards in the wild than female because cats tend to
breed males when under stress, WWF said.
"Leopard murder can only be provoked by cowardice or
stupidity, in this case most likely by both," Pavel
Fomenko, WWF's biodiversity coordinator in Russia's Far
East said in a statement.
A hunter shot the leopard through the tail bone. It tumbled
over and was then beaten over the head with a heavy object,
WWF said. Amur leopards have not been know to attack
humans.
Environmentalists have urged the Russian government to
introduce tighter controls on its national parks in the Far
East to crack down on leopard hunting.
They also want more done to protect the animal's natural
environment and food supply, which they say is being
destroyed by human development.
A local wildlife watchdog received an anonymous tip-off
that a leopard had been killed. State wildlife officers
found the dead animal after a day of searching. The leopard
died on either April 15 or April 16, WWF said.