Borneo Clouded Leopard a Separate Species
Borneo, Clouded Leopard, Natural History, Taxonomy
AP is reporting that DNA testing has established that the Borneo Clouded Leopard Neofelis nebulosa diardi should really be classified as a separate species from Neofelis nebulosa. It will probably be renamed simply Neofelis diardi.
A type of leopard found on the Southeast Asian island of Borneo and believed to be related to its mainland cousin is in fact a completely new cat species, WWF said Thursday.
The conservation group said American scientists compared the DNA of the clouded leopard with that of its mainland cousin and determined the two populations diverged some 1.4 million years ago.
“Genetic research results clearly indicate that the clouded leopard of Borneo should be considered a separate species,” WWF quoted Dr. Stephen O’Brien of the U.S. National Cancer Institute, which carried out the tests, as saying.
The clouded leopard is Borneo’s largest predator, has the longest canine teeth relative to its size of any cat, and can grow as large as a small panther.
There are estimated to be between 5,000 and 11,000 of these animals left in Borneo’s rain forests.
