Its muscular yet graceful stealth makes the leopard a prize sighting on safari, but it's not just spots that make for super-effective camouflage. The black form can be just as elusive in the forest, remaining unseen only a few metres away, the twitch of a tail the only giveaway to its resting place on a tree branch. Leopards are skilled climbers, carrying carcasses heavier than themselves up trees and descending head first. There are recognised subspecies living in Africa, Asia and the Middle East, and may be others as yet unidentified. Leopards were once found from the British Isles to Japan.

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