I love animals - Information and videos for small kids - Panthers

We are not talking about the 'pink panther', we are talking about another one of the big cats and this one is black.  It is actually a leopard or a jaguar or even a cougar but it has black hair because of mutation.  These cats are normally more aggressive than the rest of their family.

The "black panther" is a black jaguar of the Americas or a black leopard of Asia and Africa. In fact, the black panther actually has normal rosettes (spots), they are often just too hard to see because the animal's fur is so dark .

This dark colour pigmentation that happens is called 'melanism' and happens to about 6% of the species.  The opposite of this is called 'albinism' and that is when a certain species is totally white, all the colour is gone.  This can happen with any animal and even in humans.  These animals usually do not survive long in the wild, because they cannot camouflage themselves like the rest of their species.

Besides from the fact that the colour of the panther is altered from the rest, they are also less fertile and will not so easily get pregnant as the other big cats.

The black panther is a very strong climber and will spend a lot of time in the trees and will also hunt from there, where they will pounce on their prey.  They hunt deer, rabbits, birds and monkeys.  They are also very good swimmers.

Their hearing and eyesight is very good and this make them extremely good predators.  They are called 'the ghost of the forest' because the move around so quietly and are good at hunting and can camouflage well in the forest and especially at night because of their dark colour.

The panther is an endangered species and there are very few of them left in the wild/

Watch the video and answer the questions.

1. What is meant by 'panthers are not their own species'?
2. Why are panthers black?
3. Will you see spots on a panther?
4. Where do panthers live?
5. What is the place called where they live?
6. Name a few countries where panthers are found.
7. What do panthers like to eat?
8. How long do panthers live?
9. Can panthers jump high and run fast?
10. Can panthers climb a tree?

Team South Africa banner designed by @bearone