{"id":13775,"date":"2025-08-08T11:21:14","date_gmt":"2025-08-08T05:51:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=13775"},"modified":"2025-08-08T13:37:53","modified_gmt":"2025-08-08T08:07:53","slug":"clouded-leopard","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/clouded-leopard\/","title":{"rendered":"Clouded Leopard"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><b>Clouded Leopard Latest News<\/b><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Retired Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer Susanta Nanda recently shared an old video featuring a rare sighting of a family of clouded leopards in a now-viral post on X.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>About Clouded Leopard<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is a <\/span><b>wild cat<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> inhabiting dense forests of the <\/span><b>Himalayas through mainland Southeast Asia into South China.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They have a<\/span><b> stocky build<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and are <\/span><b>larger than small cat species<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and <\/span><b>smaller than the large cats.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are <\/span><b>two species <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">of clouded leopards: the <\/span><b>clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, found on the mainland of<\/span><b> southeastern Asia<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and the <\/span><b>Sunda clouded leopard (Neofelis <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">diardi), found on the islands of<\/span><b> Sumatra and Borneo.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They are one of the most<\/span><b> ancient cat species.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> However, they are neither a true great cat nor a true small cat, because <\/span><b>they cannot roar or purr.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Clouded Leopard <\/b><b>Distribution<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is found from <\/span><b>Nepal, Bangladesh,<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><b>India <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">through<\/span><b> Indochina to Sumatra<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><b>Borneo,<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and northeastward to <\/span><b>southern China <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">and formerly <\/span><b>Taiwan<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It has been found at relatively <\/span><b>high altitudes in the Himalayas.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In India, it is found in <\/span><b>Sikkim<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, northern <\/span><b>West Bengal, Meghalaya, Tripura, Mizoram, Manipur, Assam, Nagaland,<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><b>Arunachal Pradesh.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is the<\/span><b> State animal of Meghalaya.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Clouded Leopard <\/b><b>Habitat<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They <\/span><b>prefer <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">to live in <\/span><b>lowland tropical rainforests<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, they can <\/span><b>also be found in dry woodlands<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><b>secondary forest<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">s, and in Borneo, they are reported to live in <\/span><b>mangrove swamps.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Clouded Leopard <\/b><b>Features<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is a<\/span><b> medium-sized cat<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, 60 to 110 cm long and weighing between 11 and 20 kg.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is named after the <\/span><b>distinctive \u2018clouds\u2019 on its coat <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2013 ellipses <\/span><b>partially edged in blac<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">k, with the<\/span><b> insides a darker colour<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> than the background colour of the pelt.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The<\/span><b> base of the fur is a pale yellow to rich brown<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, making the darker cloud-like markings look even more distinctive.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It has an <\/span><b>exceptionally long tail for balancing,<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> which can be as long as the body itself, thick with black ring markings.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Their <\/span><b>long canine teeth <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">are the <\/span><b>same size as those of a tiger<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, even though a tiger is 10 times larger in body size!<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It has <\/span><b>relatively short legs and broad paws<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which make it excellent at climbing trees and creeping through thick forest.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They are <\/span><b>arboreal <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">and <\/span><b>nocturnal <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">inhabitants.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They are<\/span><b> one of the only cats <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">in the world that can<\/span><b> climb down, hang upside down from, and hunt in trees.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is a <\/span><b>shy <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">and <\/span><b>elusive wildcat<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. It is a <\/span><b>solitary <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">animal.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They have a <\/span><b>lifespan <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">of around <\/span><b>13-17 years.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Clouded Leopard <\/b><b>Conservation Status<\/b><\/h2>\n<p>It is classified as \u2018<strong>Vulnerable<\/strong>\u2019 under the <strong>IUCN Red List.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><b>Source<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ndtv.com\/offbeat\/stunning-video-reveals-the-secret-life-of-endangered-clouded-leopards-in-northeast-india-9022868\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">NDTV<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Clouded Leopard is a wild cat inhabiting dense forests of the Himalayas through mainland Southeast Asia into South China. Read more about Clouded Leopard, Distribution, Habitat, Conservation Status, Latest News<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":58665,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2082,21,22,23],"class_list":{"0":"post-13775","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-upsc-prelims-current-affairs","8":"tag-clouded-leopard","9":"tag-prelims-pointers","10":"tag-upsc-current-affairs","11":"tag-upsc-prelims-current-affairs","12":"no-featured-image-padding"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13775","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13775"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13775\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58665"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13775"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13775"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13775"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}