New record of strawberry leopard (Panthera pardus) in Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania

A rare strawberry leopard, characterized by red or brown spots instead of the typical black, has been documented for the first time on the African continent outside South Africa. This unique phenotype, likely resulting from a mutation in the TYRP1 gene, was identified in the Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania, during camera trap surveys covering over 4600 km² between 2020 and 2022. Among 373 leopards recorded, only one female exhibited this distinctive coloration, representing a 0.3% occurrence rate. The discovery underscores the genetic diversity within leopard populations and expands the known distribution of this rare morph in Africa.

Searle, C. E., Strampelli, P., Parsais, S. N., Haule, L. J., Olesyapa, K. K., Salum, N. D., Hape, G., Elisa, M., Mathayo, D., Kaduma, J., Malulu, N., Mkaka, N., Robert, J., Ikanda, D., Mtoka, S., Doody, K., Lobora, A. L., & Dickman, A. J. (2024). New record of strawberry leopard (Panthera pardus) in Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania. Ecology and Evolution, 14(7). Portico. https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.11542