Leopard Diet: Versatile Carnivore

Leopards (Panthera pardus) are obligate carnivores with the widest prey range of any big cat:

Primary Prey (Medium Ungulates)

• Impala, springbok, Thomson's gazelle, reedbuck, duiker, warthog, young wildebeest/kudu.

Secondary & Opportunistic

• Small Mammals: Hares, hyraxes, rodents, bats.
• Birds: Guinea fowl, francolin, storks, raptors.
• Reptiles: Monitor lizards, crocodile hatchlings, snakes, tortoises.
• Fish & Amphibians: Catfish, frogs (in wetlands).
• Insects: Termites, locusts (during outbreaks).
• Carrion: Scavenges kills of lions, hyenas, wild dogs.
• Livestock: Goats, sheep, calves, dogs (conflict source).

Hunting & Feeding Behavior

• Stalk-and-ambush; explosive acceleration (58 km/h).
• Kill by throat bite (suffocation) or nape bite (spinal sever).
• Arboreal caching: Drag kills up trees (up to 2× body weight) to avoid kleptoparasitism (hyenas, lions).
• Solitary; territorial.

Adaptability allows leopards to persist from rainforest to desert edge, suburbia to alpine zones—most widespread wild cat.