Why is there a caudal flag in the leopard (Panthera pardus) but not the puma (Puma concolor) or the jaguar (Panthera onca)? part 2

...continued from https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/milewski/54546-why-is-there-a-caudal-flag-in-the-leopard-panthera-pardus-but-not-the-puma-puma-concolor-or-the-jaguar-panthera-onca-part-1#

In part 1, we discussed the possibility that the caudal flag (see https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/41144910 and https://www.shutterstock.com/nb/video/clip-30261376-female-leopard-walks-her-tail-curled-moremi) of the leopard (Panthera pardus) is indirectly adaptive to a habitat in which its enemies, the lion (Panthera leo), the tiger (Panthera tigris) and/or the spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta, see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rFubUfAFgM), are common.

We saw that one way to test this is by comparison with similar felid species in faunas depauperate in carnivores larger than the leopard. And indeed the puma (Puma concolor) and the jaguar (Panthera onca) do lack any caudal flag.

However, another test is possible in Sri Lanka, where a distinctive subspecies of the leopard (P. p. kotiya) is the top carnivore because of isolation on an island. The Sri Lankan leopard seldom bothers to hoist its prey into trees, eating on the ground.

There are many clear photos on the Web from Sri Lanka, because the leopard is unusually bold here. And these do indeed seem to show that the caudal flag is poorly-expressed compared to the African (P. p. pardus) and Indian (P. p. fusca) subspecies.

In Sri Lanka, the white underside of the tail seems inconsistent (e.g. see the third photo in https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/41229003), and curling up of the tail-tip seems to be infrequent.

The following video seems typical of the Sri Lankan subspecies: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYO3obqi6H8. Compare it with these video from South Africa: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zB7IIc21q0 and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_risCBZtIgc.

The following is also relevant to how the leopard manages its risk from superior carnivores in African savannas.

R D Estes (1991), in The Behavior Guide to African Mammals, pages 367-368, points out that "a barking terrier can easily tree a leopard by daylight, and one even gave way to a yapping jackal (Bertram 1974)...that an animal as well armed and powerful as a leopard would surrender its own kills to a single (brown) hyena is somewhat puzzling." Estes elaborates on page 332: "a lone female (brown hyena) robbed a male leopard of the springbok it had just killed and when the leopard tried to reclaim it, chased it up a tree (Owens and Owens 1978). Yet the same (hyena) species keeps at least 200 m from lions on kills and allows 1/2 hour after the lions leave before moving in (Owens and Owens 1978)".

For proof that the leopard can be intimidated by a single individual of the brown hyena (Parahyaena brunnea), see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HW2OwVreINA.

Furthermore, the caudal flag of the leopard is larger, relative to body size, in females than in males, and probably also in juveniles than in adults.

In summary, the following lines of evidence support the idea that the caudal flag signifies some sort of indirect appeasement:

  • the caudal flag is reduced in adult males, and in Sri Lanka in all adults, and
  • in Africa, the leopard sometimes gives in to inferior carnivores, rather than risking attraction of the lion or the spotted hyena.
Posted on Ιούλιος 27, 2021 0311 ΠΜ by milewski milewski

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Estes (1991, page 368) states: "The white tail tip, which looks like a flitting moth when flicked in the darkness, no doubt functions as a follow-me signal between mother and cubs (Kingdon 1977)". However, if this true then why does the male also have a caudal flag, and why do female puma and female jaguar lack caudal flags? The following video shows a female leopard leading infants but there is no use of the caudal flag involved: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkWM3xuVFtc.

Αναρτήθηκε από milewski πάνω από 2 χρόνια πριν

A little-known aspect of the lion (Panthera leo) is that females possess a caudal flag: https://www.shutterstock.com/nb/image-photo/lioness-sitting-on-dry-grass-relaxing-1269528727.

Αναρτήθηκε από milewski πάνω από 2 χρόνια πριν

The size of the tail relative to the size of the head varies in decreasing order from female leopard to male leopard to female jaguar to male jaguar. Compare male leopard (https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/56932512 and a similar photo in https://welackdiscipline.com/2021/06/26/caturday-special-the-leopard-panthera-pardus/) with female jaguar (https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/69755122). Despite the sexual dimorphism in both species, it remains true that both sexes of the leopard possess a caudal flag, whereas neither sex of the jaguar possesses a caudal flag.

Αναρτήθηκε από milewski πάνω από 2 χρόνια πριν
Αναρτήθηκε από milewski πάνω από 2 χρόνια πριν

For illustration of the sexual dimorphism in the size of the tail, and thus of the caudal flag, see my comment in https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/7061425.

Αναρτήθηκε από milewski πάνω από 2 χρόνια πριν

PANTHERA UNCIA

https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/facts/snow-leopard

In https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oFqccD6_X_I, the caudal flag is not activated around 17.50; it is activated around 6.41, 21.58, and 43.52. A pectoral flag can be seen around 45.04.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1HZPdZlI_w

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oy2WBohZ8qQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rUSo5LuO_Sk

Both the leopard and the snow leopard possess a caudal flag, consisting of white fur on the ventral surface of the subterminal part of the tail.

However, with respect to caudal flagging, the snow leopard differs from the leopard as follows:
a) the tail is far bushier at the tip in the former than in the latter,
b) the tail is not raised high, even when the caudal flag is activated,
c) activation is by curling the tip of the tail sharply forward.

Αναρτήθηκε από milewski 8 μήνες πριν

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