Camera traps at Land of the Leopard have captured the courtship displays and mating of two Far Eastern leopards, the leopardess Taiga and the male Typhoon, the master of the Kedrovaya Pad Nature Reserve.

The images show the female rolling in front of the male and showing her friendly intentions. The male accepted her advances.

“The camera traps show us the growing leopard population, new cubs and new couples. Information about such a rare life event of the endangered wild cats is very important for our work. The instincts took over! Maybe this is the beginning of the story of a new spotted family at Land of the Leopard,” said Yevgenia Bisikalova, deputy director for research at Land of the Leopard.

Experts know Taiga’s approximate age, and believe this is her first time courting with a male leopard. Typhoon, in turn, has been repeatedly seen with the leopardess Bary, and recently was spotted at the same site as the unnamed female Leo 120F and her cub.

Far Eastern leopard courtship games were captured on camera for the first time in 2017, involving the male Leo 64M and an unknown female who is yet to be identified.

Far Eastern leopards can mate any time of year. They engage in mating rituals for about five days, after which they leave each other. The gestation period lasts about 90 days; the female gives birth to one to three cubs which she takes full care of by herself.