Author: sln_g5rd8x

Foreigners threaten Afghan snow leopards

By Jonathon Burch

KABUL (Reuters) – Afghanistan’s snow leopards have barely survived three decades of war. But now the few remaining mountain leopards left in Afghanistan face another threat — foreigners involved in rebuilding the war-torn country.

Despite a complete hunting ban across Afghanistan since 2002, snow leopard furs regularly end up for sale on international military bases and at tourist bazaars in the capital. Foreigners have ready cash to buy the pelts as souvenirs and impoverished Afghans break poaching laws to supply them.

Tucked between souvenir stores on Chicken Street, Kabul’s main tourist trap, several shops sell fur coats and pelts taken from many of Afghanistan’s threatened and endangered animals.

“This one is only $300 (151 pounds),” one shopkeeper told Reuters, producing a snow leopard pelt from the back of his shop.

“It was shot several times,” he said pointing to the patches of fur sewn together. “The better ones are only shot once. The skin remains intact,” he says as his assistant brings out a larger pelt, this time with no patches. “This one is $900.”

All the shopkeepers said they had more pelts at home and that they had sold furs to foreigners over the past few weeks.

Asked if it was easy to send the furs back home, one shopkeeper who did not want to be named said: “No problem! We hide the fur inside blankets and send it back to your country.”

Snow leopards along with several other animals in Afghanistan are listed as endangered or threatened under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). Anyone caught knowingly transporting a fur across an international border is liable to a large fine. In the United States, it could result in a $100,000 fine and one year jail term.

It is hard to know the exact numbers of snow leopards left in Afghanistan due to the creatures’ elusive nature and the lack of any case studies during the last three decades of conflict, said Dr. Peter Smallwood, Afghanistan country director for the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS).

But what is known is that the snow leopard is endangered.

“If you look historically at Afghanistan, Afghanistan actually had more big cat species than the entire continent of Africa,” said Clayton Miller, Environmental Advisor to the U.S. Embassy in Kabul.
Continue reading “Foreigners threaten Afghan snow leopards”

First ever long-term ecological study of snow leopards underway

JUNE 11: The Snow Leopard Trust (SLT) today announced the successful launch of a new long-term study of snow leopards with the establishment of the J. Tserendeleg Snow Leopard Research Center in Mongolia’s South Gobi Province. Located in the Tost mountains, approximately 250 km west of the provincial capital of Dalanzadgad, the research center is situated in some of Mongolia’s best snow leopard habitat. SLT has had
active conservation programs in this area for nearly a decade.

Today the research center consists of a modest 3 gers (yurts) but is already home to an international team of scientists and graduate students from Mongolia, India, USA, and Argentina. A Ph.D. student from Sweden will join the team next month. The center will be staffed year-round. Several local residents will be employed to provide logistical support and serve as field assistants on the various study components.

The research facility is named for one of Mongolia’s most respected conservationists, the late J. Tserendeleg, who was instrumental in establishing the first radio-collaring study of snow leopards in Mongolia in the early 1990s in collaboration with George Schaller and Tom McCarthy. “We can’t think of a better way to honor the man who did so much for snow leopard conservation in our country”, said Bayarjargal, Director of the Snow Leopard Conservation Fund (SLT’s Mongolian affiliate). Over the next 10 to 15 years the research
facility is expected to grow and eventually include an information center for local people and tourists, as well as a training/education center that will host scientists and graduate students from around the region. Despite its remote location the facility will be state-of-the-art from the outset. Already internet capable, the facility will also be fully solar powered by the end of this summer.

The first team of scientists is already busy conducting camera trapping and genetics studies. Methods testing will be a primary task of researchers at the facility and a Mongolian graduate student will be evaluating occupancy surveys as an alternative to ‘SLIMS’ sign transects, that have proven unreliable for monitoring snow leopard numbers, as the subject her thesis research this summer.

The most ambitious undertaking this year will be the initiation of GPS collaring of snow leopards in July. The new generation of collars the team will deploy uses satellite phone technology to uplink multiple GPS locations a day for each collared cat. This technology was selected to overcome problems related to failures of Argos-based uplinks for numerous collared species in the country. The findings from this collaring
project will add greatly to our knowledge of snow leopards, especially when viewed in conjunction with a similar study that will be initiated by the Snow Leopard Conservancy elsewhere in Mongolia later this summer. The two studies are complimentary and will share data for the betterment of the species.

The long-term study in South Gobi is a collaborative effort of the Snow Leopard Trust, Snow Leopard Conservation Fund, the Mongolian Ministry of Nature and Environment, the Mongolian Institute of Biology, Felidae Conservation Fund, Panthera, and the Wildlife Conservation Society.

Regular reports will be posted to the SLN listserve and on the websites of many of the collaborating organizations.

For more information contact: Tom McCarthy, Science and Conservation Director, SLT.
tom@snowleopard.org www.snowleopard.org

The Kanchenjunga conservation area

The New Nation: Bangladesh’s Independent News Source, Internet Edition. May 26, 2008

http://nation.ittefaq.com/issues/2008/05/26/news0731.htm

The Kanchenjunga conservation area

It was 10 years ago when the staffs of DNPWC and WWF Nepal who had gone for feasibility study in KCA were chased away by locals fearing that they would be removed from their land and restricted from using the natural resources which they had being doing for ages. Over the years, despite the various adversity and challenges, Kanchenjunga Conservation Area Project (KCAP) has managed to fulfill its objectives but even as we appreciate and applaud the effort the one of a kind protected area management practice and its impact on such conservation practice is yet to be evaluated.

Declared as “A Gift to the Earth (1997)”,the

Kanchenjunga Conservation Area (KCA) is known for its rich biodiversity, its spectacular scenery of Mt Kanchenjunga (8,586m), and rich cultural heritage represented by the 5,254 inhabitants living within the four Village Development Committees (VDCs) of Lelep, Olangchungola, Tapethok and Yamphudin.

On March 22, 1998, with the technical and financial support from WWF Nepal, the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC) launched the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area Project or KCAP. The aim was to conserve globally threatened wildlife species such as the snow leopard combined with local development activities like the promotion of health services, informal education, and income generating activities. The KCA also falls within the Sacred Himalayan Landscape, a landscape approach for biodiversity conservation and improving livelihoods in the Eastern Himalaya. Since 1998, WWF has invested US$ 1.5 million in KCA undertaking initiatives to conserve and protect the flora and fauna while also focusing on programs to improve livelihood, as well as educational and advocacy programs. In 2000, the Conservation Area Government Management Regulation was formulated while the territory of KCA was extended from 1,659sq.kms to 2.035sq.kms.

Ever since the initiation of KCAP, the local communities of Kanchenjunga have long expressed their eagerness to take on the responsibility of the conservation area. With this perspective the KCA Management Council (KCAMC) was formed in 2000 which was represented by all stakeholders from the seven Conservation Area User Committees, 44 User Groups, and 32 Mother Groups. The KCAMC in July 2004 submitted the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area Management Plan to the DNPWC. The goal of the management plan is that biodiversity of KCA is managed by local communities to ensure ecological integrity and bring socio-economic benefits. The management plan was approved by the Cabinet of the Government of Nepal on August 31, 2006.

On September 22, 2006, a formal handover of KCA to the local management council KCAMC was organized. Late Mr Gopal Rai, Minister of State for Forests and Soil Conservation, handed over a Certificate of Authority to late Mr. Dawa Tchering Sherpa, Chairperson of the management council, for the management of the conservation area at a ceremony. This ceremony was attended by international and national conservationists, government dignitaries, friends and supporters as well as national media. This historic step shows the commitment of the Government of Nepal towards the devolution of power to local communities, especially with regard to natural resources and equitable sharing of benefits.
Continue reading “The Kanchenjunga conservation area”

Protecting the predator

From: India Today

By Sandeep Unnithan

May 15, 2008

Till a few years ago, whenever the people of the picturesque Kibber village in Himachal Pradesh’s Spiti valley discovered that their cows and yaks were killed by the snow leopard, they would try to poison or trap the elusive cat.

Today, however, after every such incident, they merely inform the village community members who then confirm if the preyed animal had a thumbnail-sized numbered metal tag on its ear—a proof of insurance—and hand them anything between Rs 2,500 and Rs 10,000 as compensation.

Thanks to a unique livestock insurance scheme started by the International Snow Leopard Trust (ISLT) and the Nature Conservation Foundation (NCF), villagers do not vent their anger on trying to kill the endangered animal and instead are compensated for their loss.

Every year, all the households of the five quaintly named villages of Spiti—Kibber, Kee, Gete, Tashigang and Chichim—pool in Rs 800 towards insuring their cows and yaks—sheep and goats are not covered yet— against assaults by snow leopards.

These shy cats are smaller than the common leopard but sport a thicker spotted-coat and tail. They number less than 500 and are found mostly in the upper reaches of the Himalayas.

The project was initiated nearly six years ago because of the failure of the usual state-run compensation schemes mired in red tape, corruption and fake claims.

It owes its success mainly to the fact that the villagers have taken ownership of the programme and treat it as their own. “There are no fake claims because the villagers realise it is their own money,” says Koustubh Sharma, regional field biologist with ISLT.

The scheme began with the two organisations paying 60 per cent of the premium but is now wholly paid for and run by the villagers.

From 171 households in the five Spiti villages which pooled in over Rs 24 lakh, the scheme has now spread to nearby Ladakh where it covers 72 households.

The villagers have taken up the scheme with a missionary zeal. “Their democratic and tightly-knit social structure and the involvement of women have played a big role in its success,” says Pranav Trivedi, who heads ISLT’s education programmes.

The trust also got the villagers to set aside a 20 squarekilometre reserve for the snow leopard near their villages to ensure that the endangered animal found enough prey.

Consequently, when they spot a snow leopard now, the villagers in Spiti valley do not see the animal as a threat, instead they treat it as a gentle interloper. It’s a welcome change in attitude, which could augur well for other areas of human-wildlife conflict as well.

 

http://indiatoday.digitaltoday.in/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&&issueid=54&id=8320&Itemid=1&page=in&latn=2

Bhutan tigers reach new high

From “The Hindu” Online edition of India‘s National Newspaper
Monday, May 19, 2008

Thimphu: Bhutan is the only country to have tigers at incredibly high altitudes, where their habitat is overlapping those of the elusive snow leopards, conservationists in the Himalayan country have claimed.

Fresh pictures and pugmarks from the Jigme Dorji National Park show that Royal Bengal tigers in Bhutan are being found at altitudes never seen before. Authorities say the tigers are being found at heights overlapping the habitat of the snow leopard.

The study, which started in April, is using 38 strategically placed GPS-marked and infrared-trigger cameras to find out the total number of tigers. It will also be extended to secure a photographic record of the total number of snow leopards in the country.

The reasons for tigers being found at such high altitudes will hopefully emerge from the study. “We may also get data on how the overlapping of territory of these two big cats may be affecting each other, if at all,” said ‘Tiger’ Sangay of the Nature Conservation Division. — PTI

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/19/stories/2008051951442000.htm

DNA profiling to find Bhutan`s snow leopard count

From zeenews.com:

Thimphu, May 20: With tigers and wild dogs encroaching habitat of snow leopards and little information available about their spread and abundance, scientists in Bhutan are mulling genetic fingerprinting to know more about this elusive animal.

The technique, used along with a modern graph calculation system, will provide a more scientific estimate of the number, spread and abundance of snow leopards in Bhutan, said animal biologist Tsewang.

“To track these animals by genetic fingerprinting, we will collect their ‘scat’ or faeces and analyse their DNA for more information on them,” he said.

Tsewang has already gone ‘scat’ hunting and come up with some interesting findings. “In Bartshong-Lingshi under Jigme Dorji National Park we were told by officials that stray dogs were found to be encroaching in the habitat of the snow leopard.”

According to villagers, these dogs have also been known to corner leopards and steal their kill with ease. Authorities say tigers in the country are being found at altitudes so high that they are overlapping the habitat of the snow leopard.

According to Tsewang, the best places for snow leopard scat and signs are off the beaten track and deeper into the forest. “These leopards prefer places like steep cliffs at an elevation, bases of cliffs, narrow bases and ridges. They sometimes even come as low as the river when travelling from one place to another,” he said.

The study, when completed, will also show whether snow leopards are using the biological corridors.

“We’ll determine this by seeing if the gene pools are mixing in the different parks of Bhutan,” said Tsewang.

Bureau Report

http://www.zeenews.com/articles.asp?aid=444055&sid=ENV&ssid=26

Snow Leopard Conservation Fund (SLCF) is to coordinate international and national information sharing on snow leopard conservation and research in Mongolia

The March 2008, international snow leopard conference in Beijing passed three major resolutions. The first being for national focal points to be formed in each of the snow leopard range countries. The focal points will coordinate the communications and exchange of information on snow leopard conservation and research both international and national levels.  Following this resolution, The Mongolian Focal Point was established at the National Snow Leopard Policy review, 18 March 2008 in Ulaanbaatar, where it was decided to form a broad based focal point group in order to maximize the benefits of collaboration. The group is comprised of government agencies, international and national NGOs, engaged in snow leopard conservation and research. The six members of the group represent Ministry of Nature and Environment (MNE), WWF, UNDP ( Altai Sayan Eco- Region project), Uvs Lake Basin Protected Area and Snow Leopard Conservation Fund (SLCF, NGO). It was agreed that SLCF would coordinate focal point group activities. This will be good news for snow leopard conservation and research in Mongolia, as it will enable all group and other stakeholders to better facilitate problems of information sharing and allow NGO’s and government institutions to learn from each other.  One of the three resolutions suggested at the Beijing conference was to expedite development of a Snow Leopard Action Plan, or to better implement existing plans to their fullest extent.  Mongolia already has had an action plan that has been followed since 2005 when it was first approved, along with the Snow Leopard National Policy. However, the action plan for the next decades which was suggested at the Beijing international conference, was introduced for review at the 18 March policy review workshop as well. A group of Mongolian participants who attended at the international conference, was able to suggest adaptations and additional activities that would update the existing action plan and improve harmony with international guidelines set at the Beijing conference.    Action Plan review workshop was hosted by MNE, WWF and Irbis Mongolia, NGO in 18 March, 2008.

The documentary “Snow Leopard: Beyond the Myth” was chosen “Best of Festival” at this year’s International Wildlife Film Festival.

The following article appeared in the Missoulian on 8 April 2008:Newly edited ‘Snow Leopard’ best of IWFF
By JAMIE KELLY of the MissoulianThe film chosen Best of Festival for this year’s International Wildlife Film Festival has already been seen in Missoula.

However, “Snow Leopard: Beyond the Myth” underwent plenty of editing changes during the last year, when its producer arrived fresh from Pakistan, where the film takes place.

Resubmitted as an official entry this year, the epic story of the rare snow leopard, and efforts to save the species, is “an indicator of the future of wildlife filmmaking,” said IWFF executive director Janet Rose.

“It’s not just about wildlife,” Rose said of the BBC Natural History Unit film, one of 96 documentaries to be screened next month. “It’s about culture and people. The film really hits on all of those cylinders in a dynamic and sometimes controversial, sometimes emotional way.”

The festival’s six finalist judges awarded the film Best of Festival, but as always, it was a close call, said Rose.

Because the entries are increasingly excellent, the festival expanded its list of award categories, for the first time recognizing the best of Montana wildlife documentary filmmaking.

The Montana Filmmaker Award went to “Fish and Cow,” an 18-minute film by Bozeman filmmakers Geoff Stephens and Rick Smith about ranchers and conservation efforts in the Upper Big Hole Valley. It was filmed for the Nature Conservancy.

The Sapphire Award, named after Montana‘s official gemstone, is essentially the runner-up to Best of Festival. The award went to “Crash: A Tale of Two Species,” by New York filmmaker Allison Argo, an emotional tale of the decline of horseshoe crabs and a small species of bird that relies on crab eggs for its survival.

The last addition to the award category is the Special Jury Award. It went to “The Last Trimate,” an account of Birute Galdikas’ lifelong fight to save Indonesia‘s wild orangutans.

For more information about the award-winning films and all others that will be shown at next month’s IWFF, go to www.wildlifefilms.org

Coming next monthThe 31st International Wildlife Film Festival runs May 10-17 at the Roxy Theatre and the Wilma Theatre. For tickets and information, go to www.wildlifefilms.org

http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2008/04/05/news/mtregional/news08.txt

Resolutions of the International Conference on Range-wide Conservation Planning for Snow Leopards Beijing, China March 2008

In Memoriam

In recognition of the her pivotal role in bringing the plight of the snow leopard into the world’s consciousness and in championing broad conservation efforts to save the species across its range, the participants of this conference wish to honor Helen Freeman by dedicating the outcomes and stipulated conservation actions to her memory.

Participants

This conference was attended by representatives from eleven snow leopard range countries including Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, India, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Representatives from six non-range countries also participated. The participants agreed upon the following vision and resolutions.

A Vision for Snow Leopards over the next century
A world where snow leopards and their wild prey thrive in healthy mountain ecosystems across all major ecological settingsa of their entire rangeb, and where snow leopards are revered as unique ecological, economic, aesthetic and spiritual assets.

a Defined as: Altai-Sayan, Trans-Altai – Alashan Gobi, Tian Shan, Pamir, Hindu-Kush, Karakorum, Himalayas, Hengduan Mountains, and Tibetan Plateau
b As defined by the potential range analysis conducted in a workshop during this conference. Resolutions

1. All range countries should expedite development of a Snow Leopard Action Plan, or implement existing plans to the fullest extent. A draft plan should be developed within 12 months and be based on the aforementioned range-wide vision, and set a framework that addresses the human-snow leopard interface looking at economic, cultural, moral, aesthetic and ethical issues. Plans should also take into account successful models from within and outside range states for designing and implementing conservation, research and monitoring programs for snow leopards while supporting local peoples who are maintaining the natural heritage of snow leopards and their mountain ecosystems.

2. Each country will designate a national snow leopard focal point from a relevant institution to coordinate with the Snow Leopard Network and other focal points for the exchange of information at the national and international level.

3. Range state governments will develop mechanisms (e.g., Memoranda of Understanding) to promote transboundary cooperation on matters such as trade, research and management relevant to snow leopard conservation that include, inter alia, the impacts of climate change on distribution and long-term survival of snow leopards, and where possible incorporate positive actions within conservation programs (e.g ,carbon neutral projects).