# Snow leopard (*Panthera uncia*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/panthera-uncia  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The snow leopard (Panthera uncia), also called the ounce, is a big cat in the family Felidae, subfamily Pantherinae, order Carnivora. It is a large, terrestrial and diurnal carnivore of forest and mountain habitats, with a representative adult body mass of 44.17 kg and up to 47.81 kg reported. Its main foods include bharal, siberian ibex, himalayan tahr, markhor, himalayan marmot, ochotona, sheep, goat and carrion. The snow leopard is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, a threatened category, and has a gestation period of 102 days with 2.12 young per litter and 1 litter per year.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 44.2 kg – 47.8 kg |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | 21 years |
| Diet | Carnivore |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 21.2 years |
| Main food | bharal, bos grunniens, carrion, chicken, chinese goral, chukar partridge and 21 more |
| Habitat | forest, mountain |
| Gestation | 97.9 days – 102 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 2.12 |
| Age at maturity | 2 years – 2.15 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Active | By day (diurnal) |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial |
| Conservation status | Vulnerable (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Mammalia
- order: Carnivora
- family: Felidae
- genus: Panthera
- species: *Panthera uncia* (Schreber, 1775)

Synonyms: *Felis irbis*, *Felis uncia*, *Felis uncioides*, *Panthera uncia schneideri*, *Panthera uncia uncia*, *Panthera uncia uncioides*, *Panthera unica*, *Uncia uncia*, *Uncia uncia*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the snow leopard?

The snow leopard is a mammal and a big cat in the family Felidae, order Carnivora. It is also called the ounce.

### How heavy is a snow leopard?

An adult snow leopard has a representative body mass of 44.17 kg, with up to 47.81 kg reported by sources. This places it in the large size class.

### What does the snow leopard eat?

The snow leopard is a carnivore. Its main foods include bharal, siberian ibex, himalayan tahr, markhor, himalayan marmot, ochotona, wild boar, sheep, goat and carrion.

### What habitat does the snow leopard live in?

The snow leopard lives in forest and mountain habitats. It is terrestrial and diurnal.

### Is the snow leopard endangered?

The snow leopard is listed as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List, which is a threatened category.

### How long does a snow leopard live?

The snow leopard has a lifespan of 21 years, with up to 21.2 years reported by sources.

### How many young does a snow leopard have?

The snow leopard has 2.12 young per litter and 1 litter per year, after a gestation period of 102 days.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1), CC0 1.0, 1.0. Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Snow leopard (Panthera uncia). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/panthera-uncia