Size comparisons

[johnny rex]

(04-01-2019, 12:15 PM)Luipaard Wrote: "Sri Lanken Leopards are smaller than their African cousins, I've heard this from numerous people who've seen both"

People think that just becouse they're weighted liked only once back in the 30's, with the heaviest weighing 77kg. That doesn't stop them from being one of the larger subspecies though. Meet Ivan, a Sri Lankan male leopard who BBC claims to weigh 100kg (link):

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

Although never weighed, he for sure weighs more than the so called largest Sri Lankan leopard of 77kg.

"Persian leopards are large, absolutely but that doesnt stop most of them from being under 80kg, especially verified weights. Again, the 115kg claim is hardly valid for the numerous reasons stated. Of the 21 persians measured and the additional LM1, now 22 individuals the average is less than 65kg with the heaviest weighing 91kg, there's also a 99kg ove seen as well but I believe he was weighed in his cage which leaves room for error, so yes, 80-100kg is a freak leopard regardless of sub species. And most importantly, a Persian leopard is a completely different sub species while we're talking about African Leopards that live in the rain forest."

Again, how can you call leopards weighing above 80kg freaks? There are 9 males weighing more than 75kg. I say they reach these weights quite frequently.

"Between the pantanal and Venezuela you have an average of 290mm length and 194mm width so using one that's an outlier doesnt change the fact that the largest leopard skull ever measured still doesnt exceed average sized pantanal and Venezuela skull size. Also, why are you using Amazon jaguars to compare to leopard skulls when were talking about pantanal jags?"

That was just to give everyone an idea of how large that particular would be. Also, that leopard isn't a one of a kind leopard. There are several males from different subspecies reaching those measurements. It's not just one large, it's several large males. But yes, this only applies to the larger males and not your average leopard. Doesn't mean large leopards overlap with South American jaguars. Here are some skull measurements of Persian leopards. Notice how several males have skull measurements 270mm length and 170mm width:

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Here's a list of the biggest skulls from scientific sources. Notice how Persian and Central African leopards dominate the list. Of the 20 huge skulls listed, 11 are from Central Africa (DR Congo, Gabon, and Sudan). Then, 7 are from Iran, the northern part of the country specifically. No Sri lankan males since there only about 10 measurements from scientific sources. Most of them are from from the Bilhulaya area (central highlands). Problem is that the larger leopards there are from Yala NP (Ivan is from there for example).

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So the largest for leopards so far is 297mm x 186mm, for jaguars this is a male from the Venezuelan Llanos with 312.5mm x 225mm as far as I'm aware. Another jaguar had 305mm x 222mm. 

Photograph of the biggest jaguar skull documented. (from Hoogesteijn and Mondolfi's 1993 book). Make sure you read the text next to the photo aswell!

*This image is copyright of its original author

"Sexual dimorphism is present amongst all cats"

It's more extreme with leopards than with jaguars. Pantanal males average 100kg and females 78kg if I remember correctly. That's like 20% larger? Meanwhile we have some leopard subspecies (like the Central African ones) where the males literally dwarf the females. Like I said before, when researchers discovered the leopards out there, they thought the males were another subspecie!

"You say you'd love to see the largest leopard vs largest jaguar, I Suggest you look up the 115kg,  pawless Persian leopard and compare him to some of the verified 110kg+ Jaguars and you will probably want to compare a different leopard."

I've seen the injured, pawless leopard. I'm not gonna use that specimen. I don't even have to use the largest leopard, I just have to use some fine mature males, regardless which subspecies.

A mature male from Aberdares, Kenya

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*This image is copyright of its original author

The famous Vind Diesel leopard (okay he's exceptional for a South African leopard, weighing over 90kg)

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Or this pitbull

*This image is copyright of its original author

See, I don't even have to use a mature male from Central Africa. Who knows what the largest leopard would look like. Definitely impressive, even next to the largest jaguar.


"I will say this, I absolutely think there are 100kg leopards throughout Africa and Asia but I also think those are extremely rare, it's as rare as a 150kg Pantanal Jaguar"

Yeah I disagree, it's easier to find a 100kg leopard than a 150kg jaguar becouse some subspecies are just that large. They just need more research for people to open their eyes. And that's exactly what I'm trying to do here on this forum.

Spectacular, those leopards look robust. Reply