Leopards — solitary, enigmatic, nocturnal predators with golden fur splashed with dark rosette spots — have the widest range of any big cat. They’re found in a variety of habitats — rainforests, rocky mountains, grasslands and deserts — in both warm and cold climates. Worldwide, there are eight subspecies of leopards categorized based on their range and appearance. Historical records show they once extended across Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, but today, their range has shrunk dramatically. Leopards (Panthera pardus) are now found in parts of Central Asia, South Asia and Africa, and in small regions of East and Southeast Asia. India, with nearly 14,000 wild leopards, is the country with the highest leopard population. Despite being listed on Appendix I of CITES, the global wildlife trade agreement, which prohibits their commercial international trade, leopards are the second-most traded wildcats after lions, whose commercial trade is regulated. Yet, there’s little attention given to the threats these big cats face, especially with a persistent demand for their body parts leading to their poaching. “There’s a lot more attention and reporting from governments on tigers compared to leopards,” Debbie Banks, campaign leader for tigers and wildlife crime at the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), a U.K.-based NGO that investigates environmental crime, told Mongabay. “They are the most prevalent species in trade as it relates to seizures,” she said, adding that for every tiger killed, EIA’s data show three to five leopards are killed. Leopard body parts, especially skins, claws, teeth and bones, are in…This article was originally published on Mongabay