Snow leopard research center to be set up at Kibber – Spiti
Shimla: Raising conservation concerns for preserving the habitat of snow leopards, – the rare big cats that roam across some of the coldest zones on earth, wildlife wardens in collaboration with Mysore based National Conservation Foundation (NCF) have drawn up plans to set up a research centre in Spiti valley.
Chief wildlife warden AK Gulati says, “of the funds received under ‘Project Snow Leopard’ from central authorities, one of the first tasks is to set up a research center at Kibber, in Spiti.”
He said that with the snow leopard being declared the state animal a lot of conservation interest had been generated to protect it. In the first year Rs 30 lakhs is proposed to be spent on the centre.
Classified as an endangered species in the IUCN’s Red List, the Rs 5.5 crore centre funded snow leopard project spread over Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh and supported by Wildlife Institute of India and NCF this is an Indian initiative for strengthening wildlife conservation in Himalayan altitudes.
Yash Veer Bhatnagar, a senior NCF scientist and a leading authority on snow leopard conservation says, “the research centre would draw from telemetry experiences in Mongolia where such a facility has been set up.
Bhatnagar, who is also director, Snow Leopard Trust – India and are coordinating with state authorities adds, “there are some important issues about snow leopard ranging, behavior etc that remain largely unknown.”
The foundation, which has been working for over a decade has studying the animal in the wild around Kibber village in Spiti, has successfully used camera traps to photograph the deep furred solitary big cat with a long bushy tail in the wild.
Though the number of snow leopards in Indian Himalayas is estimated at 400 to 700, however, Gulati mentions that a survey in 2004 had come up with evidences of 35 of them in Himachal. “Evidences of 24 of them being in Spiti valley and 8 in Pangi-Lahaul valley came up in the survey, he said.
With studies conducted in Himalayas suggest a home range of a snow leopard between 20 to 100 square Kms but advanced GPS collar technology studies in Mongolia and Pakistan have estimated a home range of over 1400 to 1600 Kms, changing the very perception of their range sizes and potential population estimates dramatically, notes the snow leopard conservation management plan.
Proposed to be set up at Kibber, one of the highest villages in Spiti, the research center would help conservationists and wildlife wardens to do a comprehensive long term radio collaring study on snow leopards and their prey.
Photos (used under permission) of the rare Snow Leopards in Spiti valley taken in 2010 are by Kulbhushansingh Suryavanshi – a National Conservation Foundation Researcher
http://hillpost.in/2011/11/25/snow-leopard-research-center-to-be-set-up-at-kibber-spiti/35904/latest-news/ravinder
New WWF camera trap captures snow leopard in Nepal
Posted on 22 November 2011
Camera traps installed by WWF in the Nepalese Himalayas last month have captured their first picture of an endangered snow leopard. The cameras are part of a community monitoring project that will help WWF estimate number of snow leopards in area and determine the best way to conserve them.
“The camera traps are a means to empower local communities to lead conservation efforts of snow leopards,” stated Anil Manandhar, Country Representative of WWF-Nepal.
“With habitat loss, poaching and retaliatory killing by herders posing as major threats to snow leopards, community stewardship in conservation is key to the protection of snow leopards,” he added.
There are only about 6,000 snow leopards remaining in the wild. The animals stand to lose over a third of their habitat to climate change in the coming decades.
Last week, the Eastern Himalayan nations of Bhutan, Nepal, India and Bangladesh met to address the impacts of climate change on food, water and energy security, as well as on biodiversity (more here on the Climate Summit for a Living Himalayas). The countries agreed to collaborate on adaptation efforts to protect water sources, ensure sustainable food production, increase access to clean energy, and coordinate disaster management.
“The framework of cooperation will see the creation of an interconnected mosaic of conservation spaces across the Eastern Himalayas, crucial for communities that rely on the region’s natural resources for their survival and the protection of endangered species such as the snow leopard,” said Liisa Rohweder, CEO of WWF-Finland.
This graph shows the estimated snow leopard population by country. The elusive nature of the species makes it difficult to obtain an accurate population count.
http://wwf.panda.org/wwf_news/?202490/New-WWF-camera-trap-captures-snow-leopard-in-Nepal
Jackson eyed for Indianapolis Prize
By Emily Charrier-Botts INDEX-TRIBUNE ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
Nov 21, 2011 – 06:57 PM
Dr. Rodney Jackson is hoping third time really is the charm after learning he has been again named as a finalist for the prestigious Indianapolis Prize, awarded for efforts in wildlife conservation.
Jackson is the founder of the Boyes Hot Springs-based Snow Leopard Conservancy, which has been working since 1986 to protect the endangered cats in the 12 countries they inhabit. The Indianapolis Prize is a $100,000 grant awarded every other year to a person who has done extraordinary work to save a particular species. Jackson was named as one of 29 finalists picked from across the globe for the 2012 prize, after being named one of the six finalists in both 2008 and 2010.
“It’s an honor to get it the third time,” Jackson said. “It’s encouraging, that’s for sure.”
Jackson is considered one of the world’s foremost authorities on snow leopards after intensively studying the cats since 1981. Now, he works to protect the cats by reaching out to the residents of the mountainous communities where the endangered species live.
“Where do you go first? You ask the locals, they know what’s going on,” Jackson said.
Jackson explained that local residents can be a snow leopard’s biggest predator or biggest advocate. Many who live side-by-side with the cats find them to be a pest because snow leopards are known to feed on livestock.
“If your livelihood is based on your livestock, this is a major issue … One of the reasons snow leopards are trapped, poisoned and killed is when they get into those livestock pens,” Jackson explained. “The only way to deal with this is to minimize the loss of livestock or to find a way to make their livelihood off of the snow leopards.”
He said the answer is as simple as putting covers on the livestock pens to keep the cats out. If he wins the Indianapolis Prize, he said at least a portion of the money would be spent on predator proofing livestock pens for native populations.
“It’s very easy to predator proof so the snow leopards can’t get in,” Jackson said.
He also teaches local residents how to make money off their endangered neighbors by leading tourists on treks into the mountains to spot the elusive cats.
One of Jackson’s earliest research efforts involves mapping the range and movement of the cats to better focus his conservation efforts. He uses both radio collars to track the cats over long distances, as well as genetically testing fecal matter to understand which cats are living in the area and how far they travel.
“It helps us predict where the cats might occur,” he said. “It also tells us where the most efficient places to do our conservation would be.”
Right now, he said his efforts are specifically focused on Mongolia. Mineral-rich mines line the mountains, and are being heavily tapped to meet the need for natural resources in China, Jackson said. This has led to more highways and rail lines into the mountains, disrupting the snow leopard’s habitat. Working with conservation groups in the area, Jackson said, “We want to see if we can come up with some plans to offset the impact of those mines.”
The Indianapolis Prize is awarded by the Indianapolis Zoo, but the funding is provided by the Eli Lilly and Company Foundation. A nominating committee that selected the 29 nominees will narrow the list down to six finalists, who will be announced in the spring. Following that, a jury of experts in the field of conservation will select a winner, to be announced Sept. 29, during the Indianapolis Prize Gala.
Until then, Jackson said he’s keeping his focus on snow leopards. “It’s not as much the action of individual people, but the actions of groups of people working together,” he said.
In addition to continuing with their conservation work, Jackson and his partner Darla Hillard are finishing up a new e-book to be released in December. The book, “Vanishing Tracks 2,” follows up on Hillard’s 1989 book, “Vanishing Tracks,” which detailed four years of living on the mountainous cliffs in Western Nepal while conducting the world’s seminal research on snow leopards. The new book catches up with what the conservancy has learned since then, with proceeds from the book benefitting the nonprofit organization.
“We’ll have it in every format – for e-readers, for iPads for your computer,” Hillard said.
To find “Vanishing Tracks 2” or learn more about the Snow Leopard Conservancy, visit www.snowleopardconservancy.org.
http://www.sonomanews.com/News-2011/Jackson-eyed-for-Indianapolis-Prize/
Snow leopard sightings reported in the Mustang district, Nepal
Headlines Himalaya, No. 183
November15 -21, 2011
Medini Prajapati & Raju Jati, Editorial Team
In west Nepal, three snow leopards have been sighted in lower areas of Mustang district.
16 November, The Kathmandu Post, Kantipur
Snow leopard – Poster child of the Himalayas: Bhutan Climate Summit
Nov 18, 2011
Save snow leopards to save Himalayas
Saving its trans-Himalayan habitat is the first step to saving the species
Bhutan Climate Summit In the face of climate vulnerability in the Himalayan and trans-Himalayan regions, it is important to secure connected climate resilient habitat areas for the snow leopard (Panthera uncia) in the large conservation landscape.
In a presentation on snow leopard conservation and climate change, a conservation scientist of the world wildlife fund (WWF) in United States, Dr Eric Wikramanayake, said snow leopards are a large carnivore with large home ranges, and that an effective snow leopard conservation cannot be done in small fragmented patches. “They need large special areas.”
He also said snow leopards live in a relatively narrow band of alpine habitat, the broken rugged terrain between 3,000 and 4,500m above sea level.
Dr Eric Wikramanayake, speaking during the side event of the upcoming Bhutan Climate Summit, said that a study on the climate vulnerability of this iconic and mystical species in the Himalayas showed that the snow leopard is the top carnivore of the Himalayan mountains, and is actually a species that links three countries of India, Nepal and Bhutan.
“It’s global population, including the trans-Himalayan region and central Asia, is guesstimated at around 4,500 to 7,000 and they occur at a population density of 1 to 5 snow leopards in every 100 sq km, depending on habitat and prey availability, but they are killed and persecuted in all ranges,” he said.
Dr Eric Wikramanayake also said that, based on the biological attributes and threats, snow leopards are listed as endangered species in IUCN Red List of threatened species. “But now a new threat to snow leopard and its habitat looms and that is climate change.”
It is predicted that the temperatures in the Himalayas will increase by three degree Celsius by 2050, and by about 5 degree Celsius at the end of the century. Precipitation is also predicted to increase as the monsoonal rains become more intense, and even exert the influence all the way to the Tibetan plateau.
The conservation scientist said regionally as much of about 30 percent of the alpine habitats will be lost, but more importantly, there will be about 40 percent of habitat loss in Nepal and about 50 percent of loss in Bhutan and about 20 percent in India.
The warmer and wetter conditions are projected to cause flora from the lower elevations to move upslope and intrude into the alpine areas, which is the habitat of the snow leopard, and reduce the extend of available habitat, fragmenting them into small patches.
“As a top vibrant carnivore, with specialised habitat requirement, snow leopards can be considered as an umbrella species, further high Himalayan biodiversity as well as the indicator of the species changes that we expect to take place in these high Himalayan ecosystem,” Dr Eric Wikramanayake said.
Explaining a climate modeling of snow leopard habitat, he said, in the Himalayas, there will be loss of alpine habitat along the southern boundaries of the ecosystem, but there will also be significant intrusion of forests along the rivers that cut into the mountains, isolating and fragmenting the alpine habitat.
The conservation scientists also said it is a must to create a mechanism and forum for conservation and management of the alpine ecosystem. “We need to think about cascading impacts of ecological interactions and work with local communities for sustainable livestock grazing and medicinal plant collections,” Dr Eric Wikramanayake said.
He said that as some of the large mammals that live in the lower forest will also move upslope and begin to compete with snow leopard for resources and some, like in Bhutan, tigers will predate on snow leopards.
Dr Eric Wikramanayake also said there are also other concerns and implication beyond the snow leopard.
He said that people have been using these alpine grasslands for grazing and in recent years, livestock herds have grown considerably, resulting in depredation of physiologically sensitive high altitude grasslands.
“Even now, people hunt wild animals but in future, as resource competition increases in smaller spaces, the intensity of persecution of wild animals is likely to increase, as snow leopard will rely on domestic livestock and this will increase human-snow leopard conflict.”
The conservation scientist said that it is important to adopt these recommendations, as saving snow leopard is not about saving the species but saving Himalayas, saving the high altitudes ecosystem and reducing climate vulnerability of biodiversity, of people, and economies of the countries.
“It’s about sustaining the ecological processes and environmental flows, especially water that affects millions of people far down stream from the actual snow leopard habitat,” Dr Eric Wikramanayake said.
By Tashi Dema
http://www.kuenselonline.com/2011/?p=21201
Regional cooperation on climate change key to future of Eastern Himalayas
Posted on 17 November 2011 |
Thimphu, Bhutan – Regional adaptation to extreme weather events and the impacts of climate change on endangered alpine species like snow leopards featured prominently at a WWF-led session in the lead up to the Climate Summit for Living Himalayas today, a high-level event that aims to work out a ten year regional framework on climate change adaptation for the Eastern Himalayan nations of Nepal, India, Bhutan and Bangladesh.
“Climate change is placing extraordinary pressure on the Eastern Himalayas – its people, iconic landscapes and species are all being hit hard by changing weather patterns,” said Minister Dr. Pema Gyamtsho, Ministry of Agriculture and Forests, Bhutan. “The Eastern Himalayas is now in urgent need of a regional framework of cooperation that combines expertise from governments, NGOs and civil society. Himalayan nations must act now to avoid the worst impacts of climate change,” he continued.
Climate Summit for a Living Himalayas
The pre-summit stakeholder meet is part of a series of events leading up to the Climate Summit for a Living Himalayas – Bhutan 2011, which is being hosted by the Royal Government of Bhutan in the nation’s capital on 19 November 2011.
Broadly speaking, Nepal, India, Bhutan and Bangladesh are holding this high level meeting to work out an agreement on four main themes: securing biodiversity and ensuring its sustainable use; ensuring food security and securing livelihoods; securing the natural freshwater systems of the Himalayas; and ensuring energy security and enhancing alternative technologies.
The event hosted by WWF today was a moderated discussion on two specific issues – the rising threats of climate change and adaptation strategies in Eastern Himalayas, as well as snow leopard conservation in the face of changing climate vulnerabilities.
“Snow Leopards are valuable indicator of environmental health – their declining numbers is a sign that the places they live are also threatened. With only up to 7500 individuals left in the wild it is up to India, Nepal, and Bhutan to take the lead and create a regional conservation framework that helps protect the future of this iconic species and the Eastern Himalayas,” said Tariq Aziz, Leader of WWF’s Living Himalayas Initiative.
Moving towards sustainable solutions for the future
The discussion was well attended by over a hundred senior representatives from development partners, civil society and the four governments. The presence of youth at the event underscored the importance of involving younger generations in discussions towards sustainable solutions for the future.
“This gathering of policy-makers and development partners from India, Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh is significant as it provides a crucial platform for agreeing on much needed approaches, investment and policies to help the Himalayan region adapt to extreme weather events,” said Ravi Singh, Secretary General & CEO, WWF-India.
WWF has been working in the Eastern Himalayas for close to 50 years to ensure that the region’s incredible diversity of life is preserved for generations to come. Through our Living Himalayas Initiative WWF works closely with the governments and people of Bhutan, India and Nepal to restore and protect ecological processes, reduce the human footprint and support local economies.
http://wwf.panda.org/wwf_news/?202420/Regional-cooperation-on-climate-change-key-to-future-of-Eastern-Himalayas
Snow leopards spotted in western Nepal (by SLN member Bikram Shrestha)
English.news.cn 2011-11-16 12:20:37
KATHMANDU, Nov. 16 (Xinhua) — Conservationists are elated with the sighting of three snow leopards in lower areas of Mustang district in western Nepal recently, local media reported on Wednesday.
Due to their inherently rare and mysterious character, these critically endangered mammals, scientifically known as Uncia, are often seen by a few people including researchers and conservationists.
“I saw a small number of Himalayan Blue sheep grazing around the grassland near Taprang in Jarkot area on Thursday morning. I waited for a while and moved my eyes around, and suddenly I saw a snow leopard coming towards the pasture from the stream nearby,” said Bikram Shrestha, field biologist and a member of the census team. “I was elated and took numerous pictures of the animal.”
According to Wednesday’s The Kathmandu Post daily, a team of researchers and technical experts are conducting the first ever count of the snow leopards in the country for the past three weeks.
Meanwhile, digital cameras installed in different parts of the mountainous district on Oct. 28 have recorded the sight of two more snow leopards in Taprang area near Muktinath temple and Namuma area in Jomsom. The cameras will be installed in more areas in Mustang by Dec. 15. Snow Leopard Conservancy (SLC), USA for Nepal Snow Leopard Corridor Project and Snow Leopard Scouts in coordination with National Trust for Nature Conservation and Annapurna Conservation Area started the count of the mammal from Mustang.
Experts believe that about 300-500 adult snow leopards survive in the country, particularly in Manang, Mustang, Dolpa and Gorkha districts. Due to habitat loss and increased poaching activities, their number is declining in recent years, said Karna Shah, another member of the research team.
The snow leopard, which lives around 5,000-6,000 meters above sea level, is considered a solitary animal.
Editor: Zhang Xiang
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-11/16/c_131250238.htm
Indian researcher’s work in Australia holds hope for wild cats
Deep Saxena, Hindustan Times
Lucknow, November 10, 2011
First Published: 19:20 IST(10/11/2011)
Last Updated: 19:26 IST(10/11/2011)
Cats may mythically have nine lives, but wild cats — pushed to the brink of extinction — have not been as lucky by any stretch of imagination. Indian PhD student Rajneesh Verma’s work in Australia, however, holds the promise of a fresh lease of life for endangered species, primarily wild cats.
Verma, 32, born and brought up in Lucknow, has created embryonic stem-like (ES-like) cells from a snow leopard’s ear tissue. His ES-like cells have the capability of creating life without extracting fertilised eggs (sperms and egg) from the animal.
Verma believes he can in due course of time create life through IVF (in-vitro fertilisation) because his ES-like cells “have the potential to form any other cell type of the body — egg and sperm”.
He conducted his research at Monash Institute of Medical Research, Melbourne, on the snow leopard, Bengal tiger, jaguar and the serval (African wild cat).
The cells created by Rajneesh holds promise for endangered snow leopards.The university has validated his research and a prominent science journal in the US is publishing it later this week. Subsequently, the university will have a global release of the research.
In May, Study Melbourne, the Victoria government’s official website, had noted the progress of Verma’s research under the title ‘Technology adds a tenth life to endangered cats’.
Verma told HT from Australia, “Hailing from India, loving tigers and the cat family comes to me naturally.” His work involves non-invasive technology called Induced Pluripotent Stem cells.
According to Verma, extracting eggs and sperm for cloning is a gruelling process. “Take the case of the tiger. Who will allow experiment with endangered species? Complicated surgeries are needed to get the eggs and sperm for IVF or cloning. Extracting them is a very painful process for the animal.”
PhD student Rajneesh Verma Verma has created cells from snow-leopard ear tissue that can create life without extracting fertilised eggs from the animal.The PhD student who did his schooling from Lucknow’s City Montessori School and Class XII from Colvin Taluqdars’ College wants to bring his work to India. “This project is on wild cats, but since the population of our national animal tiger is depleting fast, I want to come down to open a research centre.”
His elder brother Maneesh Verma, who owns Dreamworld Water Park in Lucknow, said, “He tried to start the project here, but, due to the high cost and infrastructure involved, Australia was a better option.”
Uma Shanker, chief conservator of forests, Jhansi, said, “Rajneesh has briefed me on the outline of the project. Let it be announced internationally. Then we may take it forward as per government protocol.”
A guarded approach by experts is evident amid the excitement surrounding Verma’s work.
Upasna, a researcher from Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park, Darjeeling, which pioneers snow leopard breeding in the country, said, “Creating life with embryonic stem cell is possible and can be done with egg and sperm through IVF. Until the research report comes I can’t say anything.”
An email to Monash Institute remained unanswered.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/Lucknow/Indian-researcher-s-work-in-Australia-holds-hope-for-wild-cats/Article1-767376.aspx
Slideshow: Tibet’s snow leopards, by SLN Member J Marc Foggin
November 08, 2011
Local herders are central to protecting the snow leopard in the source area of the Yangtze River. J Marc Foggin introduces a series of photos documenting the community conservation project.
The first joint planning meeting with nature reserve staff and local herders occurred in Suojia in 2007, inaugurating a new collaboration based on the key principles of community co-management. In a remote area of Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, in China’s western Qinghai province, local Tibetan herders have been actively protecting the snow leopard and other endangered wildlife in the high grasslands and mountains for more than a decade. Now, with help from non-profit organisation, Plateau Perspectives, and the Sanjiangyuan National Nature Reserve, they are also using “camera traps” to photograph the animals and better document their distribution, range and behaviour. The images presented here include some of the first photographs taken.
There are fewer than 7,500 snow leopards worldwide, according to the latest estimates from a dozen countries. Around 60% of this elusive species’ potential habitat is in China, most of it on the Tibetan Plateau. Conservation efforts are crucial and the people of Muqu village are supporting them in several ways, serving as park wardens, environmental advocates and as partners in applied wildlife research.
Such commitment to environmental protection is rooted in the community’s involvement in a more people-centred approach to environmental management, known as “community co-management”. When locals are treated as genuine partners and allowed to voice their concerns as well as sharing their knowledge, there is a real opportunity to find better models for a sustainable future.
In remote mountain areas of the world, if we are to succeed in protecting the snow leopard, for example, we must equally protect its fragile habitat. To protect the snow leopard is to protect the entire landscape and many other species and habitats will in this way be preserved as well.
For over a decade, around a dozen members of Muqu village have served as wildlife monitors and searched for snow leopards in their rugged mountain terrain. Many different signs can be seen – prints, scrapes, scat and kills – and several times a year, these herders report all their sightings as well as any instance of livestock predation or poaching. Now, with the advent of technologies such as global positioning systems (GPS) and digital cameras activated by motion sensors, an increasingly clear picture of the conservation situation is emerging.
Since 2009, over a dozen camera traps have been set in the mountains of western Yushu, located according to the extensive knowledge of local herders. Nine individual snow leopards have already been captured on film, within an area of about 150-square kilometres. Clearly this geographic area has one of the highest densities of snow leopard in the world. Many other species also live here, including blue sheep, Tibetan antelope, wild ass, wild yak, black-necked crane and saker falcon.
But when snow leopards and wolves flourish, the number of livestock killed by these predators rises – and herders are starting to ask about financial compensation. On the one hand, people want to protect the land and wildlife, but on the other hand, the cost is sometimes deemed too high. Developing alternate sources of income for local herders is crucial, and the solution currently being explored is ecotourism.
While there are many challenges to developing an economically viable and equitable ecotourism project, the potential benefits have swayed many people in the area to give it their best effort, including tourism bureaus and several responsible business partners, community representatives and non-profit organisations. If projects in the Yushu area are well designed from an early stage, then community-based tourism could flourish, bringing benefits to local people. The environment could also be better preserved and more easily appreciated by the nation as a whole.
The benefits of working in genuine partnerships with local communities in the source area of the Yangtze River are already clear. Together we can find viable solutions to protect the high mountains, the grasslands and the wildlife of the Tibetan Plateau. And both the elusive snow leopard and local herders will enjoy the results.
J Marc Foggin has worked in China for around 15 years, focusing his attention on conservation and community development on the Tibetan plateau. He is founding director of international NGO Plateau Perspectives and associate professor in the School of Geography and Life Sciences at Qinghai Normal University. He lives in Qinghai.
http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/show/single/en/4615