Leopard, dwelling in areas around the Amur River, are almost extinct animal species, says World Wilderness Fund’s representative during a briefing at Fund’s Moscow office.
      
      Population of leopards (Panthera pardus orientalis), inhabiting Russian Far East, amount to 25-34 giant cats, which is significantly under the minimum of 100 cats, required for species survival, report data of recent population survey, however, biologists claim cats have a chance to survive.
      
      Among reasons for such poor condition of leopards WWF experts mention forest clearance, civil engineering works, agricultural activities and other anthropogenic impacts. Ecologists say serious measures should be taken to save the species. A noticeable fact is that Russian government decided to move future oil pipeline away from cats’ dwelling sites.
      
      Source:Science News