Snow leopard. When most people hear these words put together, they think of a large, beautiful cat with piercing blue eyes, prowling across snowy terrain high in the mountains. What they don't imagine is a defenseless animal whose habitat is being destroyed. This is exactly what is happening to these beautiful creatures. The mountain ranges, where these rare cats live, are under attack from global warming and the population of snow leopards is declining due to humans. One of the snow leopard's best-known habitats is the Himalayas. Located in Asia, the Himalayas are getting warmer every year, which results in a higher treeline. Snow leopards are forced to retreat higher and higher into the mountains, where there is less food, vegetation and, above all, oxygen. Even more, humans are attracted to the seductive fur of this beautiful feline. Illegal hunters, or poachers, track down snow leopards and kill them for their skins, bones and body parts. The fur of the snow leopard is whitish-grey, occasionally tinged with yellow in spring and with dark gray to black spots or rosettes (Scherer & Fletcher). The colors of their fur act as camouflage against the mountain snow. Additionally, this cat is one of the smallest of the world's big cats, averaging about two feet tall from paws to shoulders and about six feet from head to base of tail. The tail, however, can add up to a meter to the length of the body. The snow leopard eats everything from wild sheep to birds, from gazelles to red pandas. It is obviously a meat eater, which is called a carnivore. Getting back to the point, snow leopards are in grave danger of becoming extinct if humans continue to hunt them for their skins and bones and if climate change com... means of paper... Leopard." /Population . Web. 4 May 2014. “Snow leopard conservation – Why monitor snow leopards (threats)?” Web. 3 May 2014. “Threats and protections”. Web 03 May 2014. “Threats to snow leopards”. Global Wildlife Fund, 16 July 2012. Web, 01 May 2014. .