Friday, December 19, 2014

Beautiful clouded leopard in Borneo rainforest



This video gets absolutely no views but I like it because there is a mysterious/ghost-like quality. It was taken with a camera trap. It shows the shape of the clouded leopard very well and particularly the extraordinarily long tail (and it is thick too). The tail is used for balance because this cat is arboreal - a tree dweller.

You probably know that the name is after the cloud-like shapes of the spots on this cat. This is a medium-sized wild cat species but at the top end of the medium-sized group.

Cat tails are used for balance. For the domestic cat it is also used for balance but also as a form of communication such as tail up for a friendly greeting and swishing side to side when the cat is indecisive.

2 comments:

  1. This is a beautiful cat.
    His coat looks, almost, like tile segments painted on.

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    1. I agree. An amazing cat and what a shame it is being killed for its coat and shipped to China.

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