Now you see them, now you still see them.
Of
all the human and animal amenities included in the San Diego Zoo’s new
Asian leopard habitat — the bonanza of tree branches, the cozy windowed
dens, the cat-friendly cat walks — the greatest luxury is the view.
Everywhere you look, there they are. Looking at you. “In
a lot of cat exhibits, they are tucked away somewhere,” senior keeper
Kelly Murphy said, as Penny, the 2-year-old snow leopard, peered down
from her rock outcropping. “But here, we have a great balance where we
are making the animals comfortable and we have a great viewing
experience. We are here to connect people to wildlife, and we need to
show them what we are all fighting for.”
In
this case, the fight is critical. The snow leopard is an endangered
species, with an estimated 7,000 left in the wild. Amur leopards are the
most critically endangered big cat in the animal kingdom, with an
estimated 40 left in the wild and only 300 in zoos around the world.
From viewing spots to visiting hazards, here is what you need to know
about this very special big cat encounter.
You are here:
The 16,500-square-foot exhibit, which opened on June 5, is part of the
expanded Barlin-Kahn Family Panda Trek area. Follow the single-minded
masses to Panda Canyon, but don’t make the mistake of power-walking
through the leopard habitat just because you’ve got Bai Yun on the
brain. While the new exhibit leads to the pandas, this $3 million
project is more than a foyer. And the leopards are not about to be
anyone’s opening act.
Meet the tenants:
This lush mini-jungle is home to three snow leopards and two Amur
leopards, all of whom were relocated from the old Cat Canyon habitats.
The snow-leopard contingent is led by the diva-esque Anna, the
12-year-old matriarch who got first dibs on exploring the new digs
before her fellow cats moved in. She staked out a choice rock in one of
the exhibits nearest the entrance, and was recently seen guarding her
treat of the day — a meaty shank bone.
Anna
is joined by the aforementioned Penny, who took to the new space so
well, she appeared to take on a new personality. The formerly shy cat
now roams the overhead catwalks and curls up so close to the exhibit’s
chain-link fencing, her luxurious fur spills through the holes. She
recently lost a staring contest to Koshka, one of the habitat’s two Amur
leopards. Or did she? “She
put her shank bone just on the other side of the Amurs’ chute, where
Koshka could smell it, but he couldn’t get it,” Murphy said. “I think
she got the final word.”
The
leopard ladies share their half of the habitat with Ramil, a male snow
leopard who turns 3 in July. He moved in after my visit, so I can’t
vouch for his personality. But he is very handsome.
Speaking
of handsome, say hello to Koshka and Primorye, the 4-year-old Amur
leopard brothers. The Amurs are more outgoing and curious than their
habitat-mates. Primorye has taken to hanging out in the entrance to the
overhead cat walkways, where he can survey the whole zoo and his human
visitors. Koshka is a fan of the rock that gives him a view of the back
of the takin exhibit, the better to smell the neighbors and keep an eye
on zoo staffers.
“We like to watch cats, and the cats like to people watch,” Murphy said.
Heads up, humans!
With its horizontal network of suspended logs and rock outcroppings,
and the overhead cat walkways connecting the exhibits, the Asian leopard
habitat caters to a cat’s need to watch from on high while indulging
zoo visitors’ needs for Facebook photos and bragging rights. When in
doubt, look up.
Or not.
While the walkways give you a close-up view of cats in motion, they
could also make you a victim of cat-spraying from above. But where most
of us see a real hygiene challenge, Murphy sees an opportunity. “How
many people will ever be able to say they were sprayed by an endangered
Amur leopard?” the keeper said cheerfully. “I call it the bonus
package.”
If that’s not
what you would call it, avoid loitering under the walkways in favor of
lingering by exhibits. You might even get lucky enough catch a leopard
taking a cat nap in one of the windowed bedrooms.
Just make sure you are not the one caught snoozing. "This
probably sounds silly, but you have to take your time,” Murphy said.
“Sometimes guests look at the exhibit, and if they don’t see anything
immediately, they walk off. But you honestly don’t know where they will
be next, because the leopards are all around you."
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