Henry Wong not too long ago posted a reducing on the Fb Group, The Battle of Hong Kong 1941 To 1945. It described, full with {photograph}, the looks and killing of a Leopard (Panthera pardus) within the New Territories on 26 November 1943. Sure, you learn that proper: a Leopard, not a Leopard Cat (Prionailurus bengalensis) which continues to be extant in Hong Kong and the scale of a home tabby (not that its measurement has prevented it from being mistaken for a Tiger previously). It’s troublesome to go looking newspapers or different materials on-line as a result of trying to find ‘leopard’ and never getting ‘leopard cat’ could be very troublesome seeing that each are cats.
I hesitate to write down that the supply of the article was a ‘newspaper’ because it was the English-language propaganda sheet, The Hongkong Information. This publication began out as a Japanese-owned English-language newspaper. It was revived in January 1942 initially of the Japanese Occupation from the workplaces of the South China Morning Publish. Amongst makes an attempt to influence its readers that every one was properly, by reporting on the resurrected horse racing at Glad Valley, for instance, whereas the native inhabitants have been starved, overwhelmed, tortured, killed or compelled into mainland China, there have been some information gadgets, like this one on the Leopard.
Leopard Killed At Taimoshan
Thrilling Hunt By Gendarmerie Police
Measuring 5 toes six inches from nose-tip to his tail-end and weighing about 70 catties, a male leopard was killed by a posse of Gendarmerie Police on the foot of Taimoshan (about seven kilometres from Taipo, within the New Territories) on Friday.
The primary report concerning the presence of the animal was made at 9.30 a.m. on Friday. The report said that the spoor of a tiger had been discovered on the foot of Taimoshan. The message was
finally despatched to the Hongkong Gendarmerie Headquarters, which instantly dispatched a posse of Gendarmerie police to the scene in an effort to seize the beast.
Whereas trying to find the tiger, one of many Chinese language Gendarmerie police, who displaying tremendous presence of thoughts, drew his revolver and shot the leopard below the chin, though he was injured by the leopard’s claws on the suitable shoulder and leg.
The leopard, though hit, managed to get away, and it was not till 5.30 p.m., which was about seven hours later, that the leopard was sighted once more, this time by an Indian Gendarmerie Policeman, Amaru Khan. This time the police marksman made no mistake and riddled the leopard to dying with a lot of photographs.
Seven km from Tai Po would make the place south of the mountain Tai Mo Shan and at its foot would recommend someplace across the place I’ve marked on a contemporary satellite tv for pc view of Hong Kong from Google Earth.
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| Places of the 1931 and 1944 (approximate space) Leopard sightings on a 2020s Google Earth satellite tv for pc view |
In 1942 the Japanese reconstituted a police pressure from native and Indian former policemen in addition to new native recruits. This ‘gendarmerie’ operated below the shut management of Japanese and was straight concerned in terrorising the inhabitants. Though the bulk averted official retribution after the Japanese give up in 1945, it’s recognized that a lot of gendarmerie members have been quietlyhunted down by native teams and executed Chinese language model by a bullet behind the neck. I ponder if the destiny of the 2 males of the ‘Chinese language Gendarmerie’ and the ‘Indian Gendarmerie’ concerned in capturing the leopard is understood.
In his e book, The Hong Kong Countryside, first printed in 1951, Geoffrey Herklots didn’t point out this incident which occurred whereas he was interned at Stanley on Hong Kong Island. He could not have been conscious of its existence. He describes one other leopard being present in 1931:
…On twentieth December, 1931, one was shot close to the village of Chung Pui to the north of the Pat Sin vary. The villagers had been within the behavior of setting traps to catch the barking deer and on the morning of that date a girl, listening to a noise and disturbance amongst some bushes, thought a deer had been caught in a lure and referred to as out the excellent news to her buddies under. Up rushed a celebration of villagers the primary man with a sack which he meant to put over the top of the deer. He went forward into the bushes to seek out the animal however the animal discovered him! A leopard had been caught within the lure by its left fore paw, it had damaged the rope which had hooked up the lure to a tree however was considerably handicapped in its actions by the lure on its foot. It sprang upon the person mauling his face and head which have been badly scratched.
A council of struggle was held and one of many celebration was then despatched to the village the place lived three males who owned rifles. The lads arrived and shot the leopard. An argument now adopted as to the possession of the physique; the armed males insisted that as they’d shot the animal the physique was theirs. This argument prevailed. The beast was skinned and the flesh, bones, cranium, tooth, whiskers and claws have been bought to bidders amongst the villagers for the massive sum of $150 (then about £15.0.0.). The pores and skin remained the property of the villagers however was transferred quickly to Sha tau kok police station the place, by means of the courtesy of Sergeant Coleman, I used to be in a position to look at and {photograph} it. Three bullet holes have been observed, two within the head, one within the again. Tip of snout to base of tail 4 toes 2½ inches, tail 2 toes 4 inches; complete size 6 toes 6% inches; width simply behind fore limbs 1 foot 11 inches. The pores and skin was in good situation.
The 1931 animal (intercourse unknown) was subsequently slightly longer than the 1944 beast. The burden of the latter converts to 42 kg which might recommend a younger male. The geographical type of the Leopard occurring in years previous from South China to the Malay Peninsula is Panthera pardus delacouri. It’s now regarded as near extinction in China. Have been those that did attain Hong Kong wandering younger animals in search of to ascertain their very own territory however which met the same destiny to these present in 1931 and 1944?
Herklots prefaced his remarks with:
The go to of a leopard to the Colony [Hong Kong] is a a lot rarer occasion than that of a tiger.
I have no idea the date of the final genuine report—or any declare of a sighting—for a Leopard in Hong Kong. Might 26 November 1943 have been the ultimate event? Their could have been others that went unspotted however the hills have been so properly labored by grass cutters and trappers that it appears unlikely. Additionally it is doable that Leopards have been as soon as—when the human inhabitants was actually sparse—and together with Tigers and Dhole simply a part of the surroundings in Hong Kong and the encompassing components of mainland China.