Researchers from Land of the Leopard National Park have received camera trap footage of an Amur tiger and a Far Eastern leopard. The video shows a large tiger trying to get into a cave, and a female leopard coming out of the same cave five days later. According to the experts, the leopardess was not in the cave when the tiger came.

The scientists believe it is highly unlikely that the Far Eastern leopardess would have stayed in the cave if the tiger was somewhere near.

“We checked this cave, making sure that it has only one entrance,” said Viktor Storozhuk, an engineer and researcher at Land of the Leopard. “Apparently, the camera was not working properly and did not record the moment when the leopardess entered the cave. Tigers do not need to hunt leopards; most likely, he was looking for a hibernating bear. Some striped predators prefer this ‘delicacy’ to ungulates. This is normal behaviour for them.”