Dependence of the leopard Panthera pardus fusca in Jaipur, India, on domestic animals

The ecology and predator-prey dynamics of large felids in the tropics have largely been studied in natural systems where wild ungulates constitute the majority of the prey base. However, in tropical countries where communities are primarily agrarian, the high density of domestic animals in human-dominated landscapes can be a potential prey source for large carnivores. We demonstrate almost complete dependence of the Vulnerable leopard Panthera pardus fusca in the Jhalana Reserve Forest in Jaipur, north-west India on domestic animals as prey. We analysed 132 leopard scats collected during the dry season of November 2017-April 2018. Domestic animals comprised the majority of the leopards' prey (89.5% frequency of occurrence): dogs Canis lupus familiaris (44%), cats Felis catus (13%), goats Capra aegagrus hircus (16%) and cattle Bos taurus (15%). Wild species, which occurred in the leopards' diet at a relatively low frequency, were rodents, the hare Lepus nigricollis, small Indian civet Viverricula indica, rhesus macaque Macaca mulatta, northern plains grey langur Semnopithecus entellus and mongoose Herpestes edwardsii. Diet is also a function of availability of potential prey, but no data are available on the density of the leopard's wild prey species in Jhalana Reserve Forest. Nevertheless, our results suggest that abundance of domestic prey around Jhalana Reserve Forest sustains the c. 25 known leopards. We conclude that these leopards, by preying on feral dogs in an urban environment, could be considered as suppliers of a service to the human population amongst whom they thrive, although this potentially exposes the leopards to the canine distemper virus.

Automated summary

Research in the Jhalana Reserve Forest in Jaipur, India, has shown that leopards there primarily depend on domestic animals as prey, with dogs, cats, goats, and cattle being the main sources of food. While they also consume wild species, the abundance of domestic prey sustains the population of around 25 leopards in the urban environment.