Tomcat: The Definitive Guide

Colophon

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The animal on the cover of Tomcat: The Definitive Guide is a snow leopard. The snow leopard (Uncia uncia) lives in the mountains of Central Asia, a cold, cliffy habitat with sparse vegetation. This medium-sized “big cat” has long body hair, dense underfur, a well-developed chest, and a furry tail that can be wrapped around its face and body for warmth, making it well-suited to the icy, thin air of its native climate. Its white to smoky-gray coloring and dark-gray to black spots blend in with the rocky slopes. Large paws help it walk on snow, and its exceptional leaping ability and feline agility aid in its pursuit of prey.

The snow leopard stands about 24 inches at the shoulder, weighs between 60 and 120 pounds, and can kill animals up to three times its weight. Common prey include Himalayan blue sheep, Asiatic ibex, marmot, small rodents, and game birds such as the Tibetan snowcock. Mature snow leopards are solitary animals, living and hunting alone, except during mating season. Young snow leopards are born in the spring and spend their first few months in rocky shelters lined with fur; after that, their mothers lead them on hunts through their first winter.

Listed as an endangered species since 1972, the snow leopard population ...