BIG CATS 2: Leopards & Jaguars (2 Fast, 2 FURious)

We're back with PURR-T TWO of our big cats journey, and this time, we’re heading even deeper into the cat-iverse. 

We travel to India, where conservationist Shatrunjay Pratap Singh introduces us to leopards that live among shepherds and ancient temples. Then we head to Colombia, where biologist Laura Lisbeth Jaimes Rodriguez helps us track one of the most mysterious cats on Earth: the jaguar. We meet shapeshifting shamans, forest guardians, and cats so secretive that some scientists spend years studying them without ever seeing one. Finally, we meet the ghost cat of the mountains—the snow leopard—with wildlife biologist Dr. Nyeema Harris.

Along the way, we stumble onto the idea that the world might actually need its scariest creatures, that fear might be one of the most powerful forces keeping our planet in balance.

Special thanks to Luke Hunter at the Wildlife Conservation Society, Shatrunjay Pratap Singh, Laura Lisbeth Jaimes Rodriguez, and Dr. Nyeema Harris.

LEARN MORE:

• Watch this video of Shatrunjay Pratap Singh explaining the harmonious coexistence between humans and leopards in Bera, Rajasthan. 
• Read Panthera's piece on why Indigenous culture is key to jaguar conservation, including how shamans in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta believe jaguars travel between physical and spiritual worlds.
• Learn about the Jaguar Shamans of Yuruparí, recognized by UNESCO as guardians of sacred sites along Colombia's Pirá Paraná River.
• Meet the "ghost cat of the mountains" with National Geographic Kids' snow leopard page.
• Learn more about Dr. Nyeema Harris's work studying carnivores at the Applied Wildlife Ecology Lab at Yale.

Terrestrials was created by Lulu Miller with WNYC studios. This episode was produced by Ana González, with sound design by Mira Burt-Wintonick. Sarah Sandbach is our Executive Producer. Our team also includes Alan Goffinski, Tanya Chawla, Natalia Ramirez, and Joe Plourde. Fact checking by Diane Kelly.

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