Abstract: Large carnivores can cause considerable economic damage,
mainly due to livestock depredation. These conficts instigate negative
attitude towards their conservation, which could in the extreme case
lead to retaliatory killing. Here we focus on the snow leopard (Panthera
uncia), a species of conservation concern with particularly large
spatial requirements. We conducted the study in the Bayan Olgii
province, one of the poorest provinces of Mongolia, where the majority
of the human population are traditional herders. We conducted a survey
among herders (N 261) through a semi-structured questionnaire with the
aim to assess: the current and future herding practices and prevention
measures, herders’ perceptions and knowledge of the environmental
protection and hunting laws; the perceived livestock losses to snow
leopard, wolf (Canis lupus), and wolverine (Gulo gulo), as well as to
non-predatory factors; the key factors affecting livestock losses to
these three large carnivores; and, finally, the attitudes towards these
three large carnivores. Non-predatory causes of mortality were slightly
higher than depredation cases, representing 4.5% and 4.3% of livestock
holdings respectively. While no depredation of livestock was reported
from wolverines, snow leopard and wolf depredation made up 0.2% and 4.1%
of total livestock holdings, respectively. Herders’ attitudes towards
the three large carnivores were negatively affected by the magnitude of
the damages since they had a positive overall attitude towards both snow
leopard and wolverine, whereas the attitude towards wolf was negative.
We discuss conservation and management options to mitigate herder-snow
leopard impacts. To palliate the negative consequences of the increasing
trend in livestock numbers, herd size reduction should be encouraged by
adding economic value to the individual livestock and/or by promoting
alternative income and/or ecotourism. Furthermore, co-management between
government and stakeholders would help tackle this complex problem, with
herders playing a major role in the development of livestock management
strategies. Traditional practices, such as regularly shifting campsites
and using dogs and corrals at night, could reduce livestock losses
caused by snow leopards.

Abstract: The Asiatic wild ass Equus hemionus, or khulan, once ranged across much of Central Asia, but is now globally threatened. The largest free-ranging populations are now restricted to a 250-km wide area (range 100ñ400 km) across the Gobi Desert region of southern Mongolia. Over the last 23 years the population has moved further north and east into its former range. Surveys conducted in the 1970s and 1980s estimated that the Mongolian population contained fewer than 15 000 animals and was declining as a result of human exploitation and livestock competition. Aerial surveys (one in autumn 1994, two in spring 1997) were flown as line transects over portions of the khulan's range in Mongolia and ground surveys (’ve in spring, summer, and autumn 1994ñ97) were conducted by vehicle and foot. Sample sizes and areas surveyed were larger than previous surveys, and our methods were often more systematic. Population size was estimated at 33 000ñ63 000 wild asses in Mongolia. Animal density ranged from 4.2 a 1.3 to 19.1a 3.2 per 100 km2. Mean group size ranged from four to 35 animals in the south-western Gobi, four to seven animals in the southern Gobi, and three to 18 in the south-eastern Gobi. Our data suggest that Mongolia is the most important stronghold for the conservation of E. hemionus. Conservation management continues to be challenging because intensive studies on khulan biology and ecology are just beginning. As a freemarket economy continues to emerge in Mongolia, pressure from resource extraction interests and nomadic livestock herders to remove the khulan's protected status, permit harvesting and halt population growth and expansion, also makes implementation of research and conservation management programs more imperative.