Land of the Leopard National Park has received a recording of a Far Eastern leopard’s voice in the wild for the first time. A camera trap in the Kedrovaya Pad Nature Reserve recorded the spotted predator’s vocalisation – the sounds they use to communicate with each other.

The camera, installed at the top of a mountain ridge at a spot the nature reserve inhabitants use to view the area, captured Typhoon the leopard (Leo 12M). Upon reaching his favourite resting place, the master of the reserve gave a powerful roar.

Experts say Typhoon behaves like a healthy adult male by claiming his rights to the territory and prey.

“It is a very rare occasion when we hear the voice of a leopard in the wild, and this is the very first time we managed to record it,” said Viktor Storozhuk, a research department engineer at Land of the Leopard.

Leopards also use vocalisation during their mating season when they attract each other with loud roars. A leopardess has her own sounds she makes to call her cubs. Leopards can also communicate by leaving scratch marks on the ground and trees, and scent marks.

Land of the Leopard has used camera traps to study Far Eastern leopards since 2013. The national park has over 300 motion-sensor cameras that help researchers get unique images of rare predators. Thus, in 2015, a camera captured unique footage of the mating rituals of Far Eastern leopards in the wild.