Research overview: clouded leopard diet and prey

Dietary information for clouded leopards, drawn from scattered observations, scat, and prey remains, indicates a broad diet spanning arboreal and terrestrial prey. This overview synthesizes records of the cats taking primates, deer, wild pigs, porcupines, squirrels, birds, and other vertebrates, using both canopy and ground. Their powerful build, long canines, and climbing ability let them tackle relatively large or arboreal prey unusual for a cat of their size. Direct dietary study is limited by the species rarity and secretiveness, leaving gaps in understanding regional variation. Characterizing the diet matters because it links clouded leopards to diverse forest prey communities and helps clarify their ecological role as a mid-to-upper-level predator in Asian forest food webs.