VLADIVOSTOK, February 15 (RIA Novosti) - A new national park for Far Eastern leopards, the world's most endangered big cat, is to be set up in the Primorye Territory in Russia's Far East this year, a local administration source said on Friday.
The specially protected natural site will be established after two existing wildlife sanctuaries are amalgamated into one area, which will allow a better response to such threats like destructive forest fires, poaching and deforestation.
The Far Eastern leopard, also referred to as the Amur leopard, is the only subspecies of common leopard, adapted to harsh winters. The population of nearly 30 animals lives in the south of the Primorye Territory along the Russian-Chinese border and is in immediate danger of becoming extinct in the wild because of inbreeding.
