|
Rainforest Leopards
|
Leopard Predation on Elephant Calf in the Congo
The first observation of leopard predation on forest elephant: Quote:Forest elephants evolved in the dense forest habitats of central Africa, where leopards (P. pardus) are the largest extant predators. Lions were once common in savannah-gallery forest mosaics, but did not penetrate the forest interior. Forest leopards kill and eat large mammals such as okapi (Okapia johnstonii), forest buffalo (Syncerus caffer nanus), and gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) (250, 375, and 200 kg respectively) (Fay et al. 1995; Hart et al. 1996), but natural predation of forest elephants has never been documented and is generally assumed not to occur. However, a single observation made in the Nouabalé-Ndoki National Park(NNNP) of northern Congo in March 2000 suggests that infact forest elephants do face natural hunting pressure from leopards. Initial discovery of elephant kill. The elephant was estimated to be 8-10 months old. Quote:During an extensive ecological survey across the NNNP, a dead infant elephant was found in 25 cm deep water in a large forest clearing (called Bais by local Bayaka people). The carcass was estimated to be fresh (< 48 hours) and the infant 8-10 months old. Initial inspection of the carcass revealed a moderate quantity of blood in the trunk that ran out of the end as the trunk was moved. The rectum was slightly prolapsed. There were no scratches, wounds, or other obvious signs of injury or struggle indicating possible causes of death. The evidence of the Leopard kill. Quote:On closer observation two groups of small puncture wounds were found on the chest, left and right on the pectoral area between the front legs. The left and right groups comprised 3 and 4 punctures respectively. The size and arrangement of the puncture wounds, 7cm and 5.5 cm across the longest axis of each, indicated attack by a leopard. To determine whether the punctures had penetrated the thoracic cavity, incisions were made directly down through two of them. Both punctures clearly penetrated the chest muscles and entered lung tissue. It was concluded that the cause of death was directly related to the penetration of the thoracic cavity, lung laceration and associated bleeding. Description of various predators of young elephants, as well as how the leopard can ambush a forest elephant despite its parents presence. Quote:Predation of young elephants is generally rare in savannah elephants. Lions are the most important predator, and may take young up to 7 yearsold (Ruggiero 1991), however wild dogs (Lycaon pictus) and hyaenas (Crocuta crocuta) may also take small elephants (Bere 1966; Sikes 1971). Predation pressure may be high where predators occur in large groups (Sikes 1971). Young elephant calves begin wandering several metres from their mother’s side at c. 6 months of age (Ruggiero 1991a), and they are probably at their most vulnerable at this time. A leopard in the forest may be able to attack an infant elephant some metres from its mother with relatively little risk, since it will often be hidden in dense undergrowth. The elephant calf was healthy, and still killed by the leopard. The author states that the elephant calf is close to the size of a forest buffalo (375 kg). This indicates that the elephant calf might be one of the biggest kills made by a leopard. Quote:The infant appeared to be in good physical condition suggesting that it was not orphaned. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/249944124_Do_leopards_kill_forest_elephants_Evidence_from_northern_Congo |
| Users browsing this thread: |
| 3 Guest(s) |