title: New hope for the survival of the Amur leopard in China.
abstract: Natural range loss limits the population growth of Asian big cats and may determine their survival. Over the past decade, we collected occurrence data of the critically endangered Amur leopard worldwide and developed a distribution model of the leopard's historical range in northeastern China over the past decade. We were interested to explore how much current range area exists, learn what factors limit their spatial distribution, determine the population size and estimate the extent of potential habitat. Our results identify 48,252 km(2) of current range and 21,173.7 km(2) of suitable habitat patches and these patches may support 195.1 individuals. We found that prey presence drives leopard distribution, that leopard density exhibits a negative response to tiger occurrence and that the largest habitat patch connects with 5,200 km(2)of Russian current range. These insights provide a deeper understanding of the means by which endangered predators might be saved and survival prospects for the Amur leopard not only in China, but also through imperative conservation cooperation internationally.
authors.affiliation: Feline Research Center of the Chinese State Forestry Administration; College of Wildlife Resources, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, China.
authors.forename: Guangshun
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.affiliation: Feline Research Center of the Chinese State Forestry Administration; College of Wildlife Resources, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, China.
authors.forename: Jinzhe
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Qi
authors.affiliation: Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Aquaculture, Mississippi State University, Mail Stop 9690, Mississippi State, MS 39762, USA.
authors.forename: Guiming
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Feline Research Center of the Chinese State Forestry Administration; College of Wildlife Resources, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, China.|WWF-China, Harbin 150040, China.
authors.forename: Quanhua
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.affiliation: WWF-Russia, Amur Branch, Verkhneportovaya 18A, Vladivostok 690003, Russia.
authors.forename: Yury
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Darman
authors.affiliation: College of Forestry and Conservation, University of Montana, Missoula, MT 59812, USA.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hebblewhite
authors.affiliation: WCS, 2300 Southern Boulevard, Bronx, NY 10460, USA.
authors.forename: Dale G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Miquelle
authors.affiliation: Feline Research Center of the Chinese State Forestry Administration; College of Wildlife Resources, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, China.
authors.forename: Zhilin
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Feline Research Center of the Chinese State Forestry Administration; College of Wildlife Resources, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, China.
authors.forename: Xue
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Feline Research Center of the Chinese State Forestry Administration; College of Wildlife Resources, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, China.
authors.forename: Jiayin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gu
authors.affiliation: WWF-China, Harbin 150040, China.
authors.forename: Youde
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.affiliation: Feline Research Center of the Chinese State Forestry Administration; College of Wildlife Resources, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, China.
authors.forename: Minghai
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Feline Research Center of the Chinese State Forestry Administration; College of Wildlife Resources, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, China.
authors.forename: Jianzhang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ma
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002681:China; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources; D017753:Ecosystem; D005843:Geography; D008954:Models, Biological; D046009:Panthera / Q000502:physiology*; D011156:Population Density; D011235:Predatory Behavior; D011336:Probability; D016019:Survival Analysis