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The snow leopard cubs got a big bone and whole prey (a giant rat) as enrichment Monday! Photos of their shenanigans behind the cut, because dead animal/carcasses are involved.

They don't... really know how to eat whole prey yet. So they just threw it around, chewed on it, growled at each other, and then went to gnaw the femur instead. It was too cute. Then Marai stole their rat and cached it.

Some (esp cubs) are the classic grey we associate with them:

(Never quite as grey as people draw them, but nevertheless!)

So I was just wondering -- what causes this? Is it genetics? Climate? Dust? (I was watching trail camera footage and saw one on a sheer cliff shaking off a BUNCH of dust, and went Oh... That could be it...)

I think it's a combination of a lot of things, probably.

We've definitely just oversimplified their representation in media to "white and grey." People hear 'snow'leopard and want to make them really clearly light color.

Snow leopards also have a lot of color variations in their fur, as you can see in the photos you provided. That makes them much more effective at blending to rocky or patchy snow backgrounds. Take a look at this photo of Marai - she's got a bunch of different greys and browns, in contrast to her white belly fur.

Light conditions and environmental color also influence how their coats look. In cool-toned indirect light, they look more grey to me.

If you're shooting through glass or acrylic (like at a zoo), all your photos will have a blueish tinge. If you're using automated functions in an editing program, those will also tend to make snow leopards look a little more grayscale. Lots of trees or pine needles will reflect color light onto their fur, too, and change how they look.