Revered for their beauty and vitality, the five species of big cats
include tigers, lions, leopards, jaguars, and snow leopards. Despite the
cats’ reputation for ferocity, these majestic predators face more
danger than they pose: All are endangered, due mainly to habitat loss,
poaching, and dwindling populations of their prey. WCS conservationists
with the Great Cats program are working on the ground to protect the big
cats and safeguard their habitats from the Himalayas to the Horn of
Africa.
Featured Species
Leopards
are highly adaptable cats, and all nine subspecies of leopard were once common
throughout most of Africa and Asia. Today, however,
the
Amur leopard is considered the world’s rarest cat, with just 25 to 40 individuals remaining in a
sliver of habitat along the Russian-Chinese border.
The cheetah is the fastest land mammal on Earth, capable of
running 64 miles per hour. These cats range widely and need large areas of
undisturbed land with sufficient wild prey to survive. Suitable cheetah habitats, however, are becoming
increasingly scarce.
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