Extremely Rare Black Leopard Is Spotted In Indian Wildlife

The rare melanistic leopard was photographed by Anurag Gawande while he was in Tadoba National Park. Melanistic leopards are incredibly rare because of their black coats being highly coveted by poachers. Gawande said the leopard, pictured contrasted against clay-red ground, was spotted as it was hunting a deer. Around 11 per cent of leopards are melanistic - a unique pigmentation that turns their coats and skin black. You can watch video below the article.

The 24-year-old photographer said he was just 30 feet away from the leopard when he spotted it, adding that it had been hunting a deer when his safari group came across the rare cat. Black leopards, also known as black panthers, are melanistic. Their colour variant is caused by a recessive allele which means that due to this, a child does not share the father's coloration. Around 11 per cent of leopards have the unique pigmentation, making them a very rare sight. An extremely rare black leopard (pictured) was spotted in an Indian wildlife park as it tried to hunt a deer, and captured in a series of photographs from just 30 feet away, contrasted against the clay-red ground it was walking across. Wildlife photographer Anurag Gawande came across the melanistic leopard while on a safari at Tadoba National Park in western Maharashtra state in January. Pictured: The leopard stalks across the clay-red track as it hunts a deer.