The clouded leopard is a very rare cat from China, Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia (Sumatra and Borneo), India and Nepal that lives in the forest and has a powerful long body (2 ft to 42 inches (62 – 106 cm)) with short legs and a long tail. It is a medium-sized cat and weighs around 40 pounds (18 kg) and is mostly nocturnal. The coat of the cat is beautifully patched with cloud-shaped spots, with black lining on the “clouds”. It often has black spots on the head, black rings on the tail and stripes on the neck while the rest of the coat ranges from yellowish to light gray.

The clouded leopard is a good climber and is often waiting in the trees, watching for prey. When it spots prey passing below, it jumps down from the tree to attack. But it can also hunt well on the ground. It can inflict serious damage with its bite as it has long, strong canine teeth (the longest of all cats proportional to its size). Its stalks a number of prey including pigs, birds, small deer and cattle.

Deforestation and poaching have depleted the leopard’s numbers and there are an estimated 10,000 in the wild.