A Zanzibar Leopard has been caught on camera by a film crew making a series about possibly extinct animals. Zanzibar Leopard Captured on Camera, Despite Being Declared Extinct
That is pretty much unexpected, that a large cat can hide for so long on a densely populated island (though it is full of inpenetrable scrubland where they could hide). The guides in the National Park on Zanzibar last year said the Leopard still existed there, but as guides are known to make some pretty wild claims I thought none of it. I wouldn't be surprised if some local people still see one from time to time...
The guys reaction was priceless! Also, what a fantastic find. It’s truly amazing that an animal of this size went missing for 25 years, but it’s good to see that their alive.
Now that they have photographic evidence of the leopard's continued existence, I wonder if it will attract any attention from the Tanzanian government or from conservation NGOs. Even if they are surviving on the island, they are probably still at risk for extinction.
Maybe this means we can eventually get a less horrific photograph illustrating the subspecies on the Wikipedia page
Why are there so few news outlets covering this? The response seems very subdued for what appears to be fairly conclusive evidence that an extinct large mammal still survives.
