The mammals are the class of vertebrate animals characterized by the presence of mammary glands, the presence of hair or fur; specialized teeth; the presence of a neocortex region in the brain; and endothermic or 'warm-blooded' bodies. The brain regulates endothermic and circulatory system, including a four-chambered heart. In India there are 410 species, 186 genera, 45 families and 13 orders of which nearly 89 species are listed as threatened in the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Animals (IUCN 2006).

The Indian leopard (Panthera pardus fusca) is a leopard subspecies widely distributed in the Indian subcontinent. Indian leopards are not common in habitat where tiger density is high, and are wedged between prime tiger habitat on the one side, and cultivated village land on the other. Where the tiger population increases, tigers drive leopards off to areas located closer to human settlements. In the Gir National Park, they are sympatric with Asiatic lions. Elsewhere in the Indian subcontinent, they co-occur with Asiatic black bears, sloth bears, Indian wolves, striped hyenas and wild dogs.

IUCN Status: Near Threatened (NT) Photo: Sreekanth Sekar