Black Leopard Mauled Man Who Paid $150 to Have Pictures Taken

Would you pay for a full-contact experience with a wild animal? Well, some people would dare to, like the man who was mauled by a black leopard in a backyard zoo in South Florida.

Wild animals are known to be vicious and are very dangerous. Even when they are captive, people should keep their distance from them to avoid getting mauled. But some daredevils would take the risk for a different kind of experience.

Anyone who comes close in contact with any wild animals, such as lions, tigers, or leopards, should take extra caution or they could sustain injuries or, worse, die.

Black Leopard Mauled Man Who Paid to Take Pictures

According to wildlife officials in South Florida, a man who paid $150 for a full-contact experience with a captive black leopard was mauled by the animal.

A report by the HuffPost said that the man was allowed to play with the big cat and take pictures as part of the deal. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservative Commission said that the incident happened on August 31 in Davie, near Fort Lauderdale.

The agency said that owner who runs a licensed animal sanctuary for rare and endangered animals at home was charged with sanctions after allowing the man full contact experience with a dangerous animal and cited for maintaining a captive black leopard, a wild animal, in an unsafe condition.

As soon as the man entered the leopard enclosure, he was charged directly by the animal and suffered injuries that were described as severe. The report said that the man's scalp was "hanging from his head and his right ear was torn in half."

The man required multiple surgeries, the report added.

Rare Black Leopards

Black leopards are one of the big cats in the animal kingdom, and unlike the ordinary leopards, they are quite rare, according to Smithsonian Magazine. They blend into the shadows because of their black fur that provides a boost to their stealthiness, which they use in hunting their prey.

According to experts, the black color in black leopards is the same as jaguars and ocelots in a condition known as "melanism." But their black color comes with a cost to communication as it gets obscured, according to research published in PLOS ONE.

Melanistic cats are not entirely black, as their spots can still be seen. However, they lack the white markings on their ears and tails that other members of their species have. This inability has raised difficult challenges for black cats.

But in terms of the day and night activity of both leopard and black leopard, both have no difference at all, experts said. Contrary to popular belief, black cats did not prefer the night's cover any more than the other big cats. Their black fur can act as their camouflage any time of the day, but the only downside is that a spotted leopard and a black leopard may not easily understand each other.