Amur Leopard

Panthera pardus orientalis Status: Critically Endangered

Region: Southeastern Russia and northeastern China Population remaining: 100

Only found in temperate forests of the Russian Far East and Northeast China, the Amur leopard is particularly vulnerable to extinction because they have the lowest levels of genetic variation among leopard subspecies. The primary causes of their low numbers are habitat destruction due to commercial logging and illegal poaching for their thick, pale fur. Although the species is believed to be extinct in the wild in South Korea, unconfirmed reports suggest that a few of them exist in the northern region of North Korea and the demilitarised zone between North and South Korea.