The Cape leopard (Panthera pardus pardus) is the same species as the savanna/bushveld leopard, despite the differences noted below. The southern African leopard population is comprised of a number of geographically isolated groups, with slight genetic differences caused by distance isolation. These differences are not enough to classify each group as a separate sub-species;
Cape leopards are about half the mass of savanna leopards. On average males weigh in at around 35kg (savanna leopard 60-70kg), whereas females weigh around 20kg (savanna leopard 35-40kg);
Home ranges are far larger than those of savanna leopards. While male leopards in the Kruger National Park have a home range of 25 to 50km², the range of a male Cape leopard is between 200 and 1,000km²;
Contrary to popular belief, Cape leopards do not commonly target livestock, unless food is scarce and there is an easy opportunity;
Females give birth to two to three cubs in a litter, but conditions are very harsh in the Cape mountains and there is a high mortality rate in the first six months of a cub’s life;
Leopards in Africa are classified as ‘Vulnerable’, but Cape leopards are more threatened than other leopards because of urbanisation and limited suitable habitat;
Although one should obviously always be very cautious when encountering any predator, Cape leopards are generally extremely wary of people and will readily retreat – except when threatened or cornered. A Cape leopard sighting is normally only very brief – the leopard will appear as if from nowhere, stand still for a few seconds, and then disappear into the fynbos once more. There are no reports of unprovoked attacks on people in the Western Cape. However, if one were to corner a Cape leopard, or threaten a female’s cubs, they could be extremely dangerous;
There is no definitive total for leopard numbers in the Western Cape, however data from recent studies in three distinct mountain areas suggest the number to be fewer than 1,000;
Leopards are opportunistic and adaptive hunters. Cape leopards mainly target rock rabbits (dassies), klipspringers, Cape grysbok and porcupines. Baboons do not form a major part of their diet.