Research overview: leopards in human-dominated and urban landscapes

Leopards are remarkable among big cats for persisting in close proximity to dense human populations, including the edges of major cities. This overview synthesizes research, notably from India, on how leopards live in agricultural mosaics and around urban centers, hunting domestic dogs, livestock, and feral animals while moving largely undetected at night. It reviews how this coexistence generates both conflict and surprising tolerance, how leopards exploit human-subsidized prey, and how their secretive, nocturnal habits enable them to share space with people. The synthesis frames the leopard as a test case for large-carnivore coexistence in the Anthropocene. For enthusiasts it explains the striking reality of leopards prowling city outskirts and farmland, why such populations persist despite intense human presence, and what their success and the conflicts it brings reveal about sharing landscapes with adaptable predators.