Clouded Leopard

Animal Spotlight

August 2002

Mathio the Clouded Leopard

This is the story of Mathio, the male clouded leopard now residing along the Leopard Trail of Night Safari. We have long heard that he was once a pet of an Iban chief in Borneo. Animal Spotlight collects the various bits of information together and attempts to trace the life of Mathio, from the time he lived in Borneo to his present status in Singapore.

The story began some years ago in the 1990s, in the tropical rainforests of Borneo. Mathio was probably orphaned as a young cub. His mother was likely shot or trapped by the local poachers or villagers. Mathio was then 'adopted' by one of the nearby Iban chiefs. This chief must have doted on Mathio because the latter is very tame and calm in front of people, even today.

Despite the relatively good treatment given by his human master, the man did not have the adequate knowledge and facilities to raise Mathio properly. Mathio was kept in a bare cage for many years and hence never learnt to climb like a typical cat. He was feed meat and had no idea how to kill live food. But he was very friendly and would attempt to rub against people through the bars of his cage. No one knows if he was ever let out or if people could go into his cage. Both possibilities are likely, considering he is so tame.

Then what event happened that made the chief give up Mathio?

It is more likely that someone tipped off the local Wildlife Authorities who then confiscated Mathio from the chief. It was after all illegal to keep wild animals as pets. Mathio probably spent some time in a holding area at the premises of the Wildlife Authorities where they gave him a medical check-up. Other than not knowing how to climb or kill live food, he was in good health.

Latest version: Mathio was reportedly donated by the Iban chief to Night Safari. This information is still awaiting confirmation.

How did Night Safari manage to source for Mathio?

Being a wildlife institution, Night Safari is likely to have wide contacts in the Southeast Asian region. Either Night Safari was specifically looking for clouded leopards or a regional contact informed Night Safari the availability of Mathio as a suitable 'candidate' to fill the 'vacancy' along the Leopard Trail.

What procedures were involved to bring Mathio over to Singapore?

Night Safari might have sent a zoological and veterinary team over to Borneo to examine Mathio first. He could have been quarantined in Borneo for a further period of time before leaving the country. Besides, there were bound to be some tedious paperwork to prepare and handle before his departure could be approved.

When did Mathio leave Borneo and when did he arrive in Singapore? How long did he spend in the Zoo's holding area before his habitat was built?

Mathio arrived in Singapore a few years after Night Safari opened. Due to lack of funds to build him a habitat, he lived in the holding area for another 2 years until some time in the late 1990s, the Zoological department managed to have their budget proposals approved. The go-ahead was therefore given to build Mathio and the other 2 clouded leopards their very own habitats along the Leopard Trail.

Mathio was the first clouded leopard to arrive in Singapore. Shortly after, a pair of male and female clouded leopards joined him at the holding area. These 2 were of Indo-chinese origin. The female, Yen Bai was from a zoo in Vietnam while the male, Ying was a captive born from a zoo in Japan.

How long was the Quarantine by Singapore's AVA?

The animals that arrive at the zoo and Night Safari are usually quarantined at the zoo's holding area. This place was built under approval from AVA and is regularly supervised by AVA officials. Most animals like Mathio were quarantined for 1 month. For animals that come from places where outbreaks of diseases are known, they will be quarantined for 3 months.

How soon did Mathio adapt to life here?

Being a captive animal all his life, Mathio adapted to his new surroundings very quickly. He is also very used to people.

Any plans to breed him and the female (Yen Bai) next door?

In Mathio's case, he is a Borneon clouded leopard while Yen Bai next door is of Indo-chinese origin. Hence, he will not be bred with her. Ying is likely to breed with her instead.

According to clouded leopard experts, it is very risky to place a male and female clouded leopard together if the latter is not ready to mate. These cats are so aggressive and highly territorial that males have been known to kill females if they meet at the 'wrong' time. Hence captive breeding of clouded leopards is a very tricky business. Together with the fact that they are so rare, few institutions around the world dare to take such chances.

Even if a female Borneon clouded leopard is eventually found for Mathio, breeding these cats is still rather tricky. Mathio may be very tame in front of people but no one can be sure how he would react to a female. He may suddenly revert to his natural aggressive behaviour if he finds another clouded leopard in his space. In all his life, he always had the whole den or habitat to himself so he had never felt threatened.

How much meat does Mathio eat a day?

Mathio eats about 3.5 - 4 kg of meat per day and like the other big cats at Night Safari, he also has one fasting day each week.

Does he have any favourite pastime? Where is his favourite spot in the habitat?

Sleeping (typical cat ! ). While in his den, Mathio loves to sleep on the wooden plank rather than on the ground. This could have something to do with what the Iban chief provided him with back then when he was kept in a cage.

In the habitat, Mathio prefers to rest on some rocks at the right rear corner where it is much darker. If you do pass by his habitat and cannot see him, try peering into that little dark corner and look out for any movement. Chances are that he might be there.

Did anything interesting happen about Mathio since he was here?

Still gathering information on this but Mathio does has a distinct feature that sets him apart form the other 2 clouded leopards - he has a much slimmer or rather bonier tail than typical clouded leopards. Nobody knows why this is the case. Either this is unique to his sub-species or he was just born like this. Mathio's tail also has a slight kink, wonder if he ever got his tail caught between the door of his cage or den before? Another mystery......

The Clouded Leopard

In conjunction with our current posters about big posters that are now put up at the Rangers' Station, Animal Spotlight presents to you this rarely seen member of the cat family.

Scientific Name: Neofelis nebulosa

Range: From India, Nepal, Himalayan Foothills, south China down through Southeast Asia to Sumatra, Java and Borneo, and also in remote parts of Taiwan.

Habitat: Lives in dense forests, usually on branches, high up among the canopies.

Diet: Birds, monkeys, small mammals and reptiles.

Social structure: Solitary, males are aggressive and have been known to kill females (not during breeding season).

Life Span: Wild - unknown, Captivity - 17 years.

Conservation/status: Under Grade 1 international protection, nearly went extinct from hunting for its gorgeous-looking fur. Today it faces more threats from habitat loss and livestock farmers.

Remarks: The clouded leopard is NOT a kind of leopard. It is merely another member of the cat family, as distinct from the leopard as a puma is from a lion. The clouded leopard is categorised in a group by itself called 'neofelis' in the felidae family. The canine teeth are very long, the closest to those of the extinct sabre-toothed tiger among cats today. The unique voice box of the clouded leopard prevents it from roaring.

The clouded leopard is partly arboreal, spending much of the day in the high canopies where it hunts mainly birds and monkeys. At night, it can turn into a terrestrial predator to hunt ground-dwelling prey. The dark and 'clouded' designs on its fur coat help it to camouflage perfectly among the canopy shadows if one tries to view it from the ground below. The 'clouded' coat also allows the clouded leopard to remain 'invisible' if it lies motionlessly on the forest floor, just like a reticulated python!

When descending down a tree, the clouded leopard prefers to 'run down' head first along the trunk, whereas most other cats would descend tail first, carefully 'hugging' the tree trunk along the way till the last few metres where they would then leap onto the ground. The tail can grow up to 1m long and is an excellent tool for balance whilst maneuvering among the canopies.

For further information about the Clouded Leopard and other Big Cats, check out this great website that is dedicated to these fantastic felines !

Acknowledgements / Bibliography - Facts from Wildlife Fact File, Photo from Night Safari, and story of Matteo derived from informal interviews with the full-time Rangers long the Leopard Trail.

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