--- title: "Clouded Leopard (Neofelis nebulosa) | AnimalTracks.wiki" description: "Longer fangs for its skull size than any other wild cat, and ankles that rotate so it can hang from the branches by its back feet." image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/clouded-leopard-1.webp" published: "2026-10-10" updated: "2026-10-10" --- # Clouded Leopard (*Neofelis nebulosa*) > **Status**: Checked against 7 sources, listed under Sources below. > **Tagline**: Longer fangs for its skull size than any other wild cat, and ankles that rotate so it can hang from the branches by its back feet. > **Soundtrack Vibe**: Psychedelic Rock & Neo-Psych // The Beatles, "Tomorrow Never Knows" > **Soundtrack Links**: [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/track/00oZhqZIQfL9P5CjOP6JsO) > **Vibe Match**: Its ankles rotate backward, so it climbs down a trunk headfirst and can hang from its back feet with a gape of about 100 degrees waiting below. This track runs its guitar solo and tape loops in reverse over a drum that never changes direction: everything above the beat is upside down. ## Biological Superpowers & Stats - **Taxonomy**: *Neofelis nebulosa* - **Danger Level**: Medium - **Conservation Status**: Vulnerable ([IUCN Red List](https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2021-2.rlts.t14519a198843258.en)) - **Superpower**: Rotating ankles let it climb down a tree headfirst and hang from its back feet - **Habitat**: Forests south of the Himalayas and across mainland Southeast Asia and southern China - **Diet**: Gibbons, macaques, slow lorises, small deer and wild boars; may also take birds and rodents - **Tags**: mammal, feline, carnivore, arboreal, climber, nocturnal, forest, stealth-hunter ## Natural History & Behavior ## Ankles that spin backward The clouded leopard can climb down a tree headfirst. Its anklebones are specialised for climbing, and its ankles can rotate backward, so it can also climb upside down and hang from its back feet. That leaves its powerful front paws free to snatch at prey. Its tail is the longest for body size of any cat, and it works as a balance pole on branches. > **Fangs out of proportion** > Its canine teeth are longer in proportion to skull size than those of any other wild cat, and it can open its mouth to about 100 degrees. A skull study found features once thought to belong only to sabertooth cats, which the author mostly ties to a large gape. ## A mid-sized cat with a split family tree Adults usually weigh 18 to 22 kilograms and measure 75 to 105 centimeters from head to rump, with a tail of 79 to 90 centimeters. Despite the name, it is not a kind of leopard. It is a separate species of wild cat. The average life span is 12 to 15 years, and up to 17 in human care. Until 2006 the cats on Borneo and Sumatra counted as the same species. A study of the coats of 57 clouded leopards found two groups, so the island cats became the Sunda clouded leopard, *Neofelis diardi*. ## Forest hunter of the foothills This cat lives south of the Himalayas in Nepal, Bhutan and parts of northeastern India, and southward through Myanmar, southern China, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand and mainland Malaysia. It prefers lowland tropical rainforest but also turns up in dry woodlands. Camera traps in Nepal recorded one at 3,498 meters above sea level and found the cats mostly active at dusk and at night. Before that study, nobody had hard evidence of one above 2,300 meters. Its chief prey are gibbons, macaques, slow lorises, small deer and wild boars. Scientists once thought it hunted mainly in trees. Current thought is that most hunting takes place on the ground. In human care it is one of the most difficult cats to breed, because of aggression between males and females. The IUCN lists it as Vulnerable. Its main threat is habitat loss from a growing number of farms. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### Can a clouded leopard really climb down a tree headfirst? Yes. Its ankles turn backward, which lets it go down a trunk headfirst, clamber upside down or dangle by its hind feet with both front paws free to grab prey. *(Source: [San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance]())* ### How big is a clouded leopard? A typical adult stands 50 to 60 centimeters at the shoulder and weighs 18 to 22 kilograms. The body runs 75 to 105 centimeters, and the tail adds nearly as much again. *(Source: [Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan]())* ### Is the Sunda clouded leopard the same animal? No. A study of coat patterns split the mainland cats from the ones on Borneo and Sumatra, which are now called Neofelis diardi. The two groups differ mainly in the size of their cloud markings. *(Source: [Kitchener, Beaumont & Richardson 2006]())* ## Sources 1. [Gray et al. (2021). Neofelis nebulosa. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021: e.T14519A198843258.]() 2. [Christiansen (2006). Sabertooth characters in the clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa Griffiths 1821). Journal of Morphology.]() 3. [Can et al. (2019). Factors affecting the occurrence and activity of clouded leopards, common leopards and leopard cats in the Himalayas. Biodiversity and Conservation.]() 4. [Kitchener, Beaumont & Richardson (2006). Geographical Variation in the Clouded Leopard, Neofelis nebulosa, Reveals Two Species. Current Biology.]() 5. [Neofelis nebulosa (clouded leopard). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.]() 6. [Clouded Leopard. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance.]() 7. [Clouded leopard. Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute.]() *Published October 10, 2026. 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