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Jackson, R. (2000). Linking Snow Leopard Conservation and People-Wildlife Conflict Resolution, Summary of a multi-country project aimed at developing grass-roots measures to protect the endangered snow leopard from herder retribution. Cat News, 33, 12–15.
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Norberg-Hodge, H. (1981). Ladakh: Developement without Destruction. In J. S. Lall (Ed.), The Himalaya: Aspects of Change (pp. 278–284). New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
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Zakhidov T.Z. (1960). Irbis (Felis uncia) Ilvrs.
Abstract: The author provides information about snow leopard taxonomy, distribution, habitat and appearance. Biology of this animal is understudied. Snow leopard is able to make long jumps. It feeds upon ibex, wild sheep, marmots, partridge, and sometimes livestock, but never man. Gestation period is three months, at the end of May female gives birth to two or three cubs. Being very occasional, purchase of skin is of no practical value.
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Jackson, R., & Ahmad, A. (1997). Introduction to the Proceedings (8th Snow Leopard Symp). In R.Jackson, & A.Ahmad (Eds.), (ix-x). Lahore, Pakistan: Allied Press.
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Anonymous. (1992). International Specialists Discuss China's Threatened Cats.
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Ferguson, D. A. (1997). International Cooperation for Snow Leopard and Biodiversity Conservation: The Government Perspective. In R.Jackson, & A.Ahmad (Eds.), (pp. 178–193). Lahore, Pakistan: Islt.
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Raghavan, B., Bhatnagar, Y., & Qureshi, Q. (2003). Interactions between livestock and Ladakh urial (Ovis vignei vignei); final report.
Abstract: The Ladakh urial (Ovis vignei vignei) is a highly endangered animal (IUCN Red List 2000) listed in the Appendix 1 of CITES and Schedule 1 of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act 1972. Its numbers had been reduced to a few hundred individuals in the 1960s and 70s through hunting for trophies and meat (Fox et al. 1991, Mallon 1983, Chundawat and Qureshi 1999, IUCN Red List 2000). However, with the protection bestowed by the IWPA 1972, and resultant decrease in hunting, the population seems to have shown a marginal increase to about 1000-1500 individuals in its range in Ladakh (Chundawat and Qureshi 1999, IUCN Red List 2000). Although the species had in the past, been able to coexist with the predominantly Buddhist society of Ladakh, the recent increase in the population of both humans and their livestock has placed immense pressures on its habitat (Shackleton 1997, Chundawat and Qureshi 1999, Raghavan and Bhatnagar 2003). This is especially important considering that the Ladakh urial habitat coincides with the areas of maximum human activity in terms of settlements, agriculture, pastoralism and development, in Ladakh (Fox et al. 1991, Chundawat and Qureshi 1999, Raghavan and Bhatnagar 2003). Increased developmental activities such as construction of roads, dams, and military bases in these areas have also increased the access to their habitat. This has consequently made the species more vulnerable to the threats of poaching and habitat destruction (Fox et al. 1991, Chundawat and Qureshi 1999, Raghavan and Bhatnagar 2002). Pressure from increased livestock grazing is one of the major threats faced by the species today (Shackleton 1997, Fox et al. 1991, Mallon 1983, IUCN Red List 2000 Chundawat and Qureshi 1999, Raghavan and Bhatnagar 2003). In the impoverished habitat provided by the Trans-Himalayas, there is great competition for the scarce resources between various animal species surviving here (Fox 1996, Mishra 2001). The presence of livestock intensifies this competition and can either force the species out of its niche (competitive exclusion) by displacing it from that area or resource, or lead to partitioning of resources between the species, spatially or temporally, for coexistence (Begon et al. 1986, Gause 1934).
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Namgail, T. (2004). Interactions between argali and livestock, Gya-Miru Wildlife Sanctuary, Ladakh, India, Final Project Report.
Abstract: Livestock production is the major land-use in Ladakh region of the Indian Trans-Himalaya, and is a crucial sector that drives the region's economy (Anon, 2002). Animal products like meat and milk provide protein to the diet of people, while products like wool and pashmina (soft fibre of goats) find their way to the international market. Such high utility of livestock and the recent socio-economic changes in the region have caused an increase in livestock population (Rawat and Adhikari, 2002; Anon. 2002), which, if continue apace, may increase grazing pressure and deteriorate pasture conditions. Thus, there is an urgent need to assess the impact of such escalation in livestock population on the regions wildlife. Although, competitive interaction between wildlife and livestock has been studied elsewhere in the Trans-Himalaya (Bhatnagar et al., 2000; Mishra, 2001; Bagchi et al., 2002), knowledge on this aspect in the Ladakh region is very rudimentary. The rangelands of Ladakh are characterised by low primary productivity (Chundawat & Rawat, 1994), and the wild herbivores are likely to compete with the burgeoning livestock on these impoverished rangelands (Mishra et al., 2002). Thus, given that the area supports a diverse wild ungulate assemblage of eight species (Fox et al., 1991b), and an increasing livestock population (Rawat and Adhikari, 2002), the nature of interaction between wildlife and livestock needs to be assessed. During this project, we primarily evaluated the influence of domestic sheep and goat grazing on the habitat use of Tibetan argali Ovis ammon hodgsoni in a prospective wildlife reserve in Ladakh.
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Blomqvist, L., & Dexel, B. (2006). In Focus: Declining numbers of wild snow leopards.
Abstract: International collaboration to ensure the long-term survival of snow leopards (Uncia uncia) in the wild is today more acutely needed than ever! Trade in live snow leopards, their skins and bones, has during the last decade reached such extensiveness that the species is in danger of being wiped out from many of its former habitats. All recent surveys support declining populations throughout most of their range.
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Xiao, C., Bai, D., Lambert, J. P., Li, Y., Cering, L., Gong, Z., Riordan, P., Shi, K. (2022). How Snow Leopards Share the Same Landscape with Tibetan Agro-pastoral Communities in the Chinese Himalayas. Journal of Resources and Ecology, 13(3), 483–500.
Abstract: The snow leopard (Panthera uncia) inhabits a human-altered alpine landscape and is often tolerated by residents in regions where the dominant religion is Tibetan Buddhism, including in Qomolangma NNR on the northern side of the Chinese Himalayas. Despite these positive attitudes, many decades of rapid economic development and population growth can cause increasing disturbance to the snow leopards, altering their habitat use patterns and ultimately impacting their conservation. We adopted a dynamic landscape ecology perspective and used multi-scale technique and occupancy model to better understand snow leopard habitat use and coexistence with humans in an 825 km2 communal landscape. We ranked eight hypothetical models containing potential natural and anthropogenic drivers of habitat use and compared them between summer and winter seasons within a year. HABITAT was the optimal model in winter, whereas ANTHROPOGENIC INFLUENCE was the top ranking in summer (AICcw≤2). Overall, model performance was better in the winter than in the summer, suggesting that perhaps some latent summer covariates were not measured. Among the individual variables, terrain ruggedness strongly affected snow leopard habitat use in the winter, but not in the summer. Univariate modeling suggested snow leopards prefer to use rugged land in winter with a broad scale (4000 m focal radius) but with a lesser scale in summer (30 m); Snow leopards preferred habitat with a slope of 22° at a scale of 1000 m throughout both seasons, which is possibly correlated with prey occurrence. Furthermore, all covariates mentioned above showed inextricable ties with human activities (presence of settlements and grazing intensity). Our findings show that multiple sources of anthropogenic activity have complex connections with snow leopard habitat use, even under low human density when anthropogenic activities are sparsely distributed across a vast landscape. This study is also valuable for habitat use research in the future, especially regarding covariate selection for finite sample sizes in inaccessible terrain.
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Changxi, X., Bai, D., Lambert, J. P., Li, Y., Cering, L., Gong, Z., Riordan, P., Shi, K. (2022). How Snow Leopards Share the Same Landscape with Tibetan Agro-pastoral Communities in the Chinese Himalayas. Journal of Resources and Ecology, 13(3), 483–500.
Abstract: The snow leopard (Panthera uncia) inhabits a human-altered alpine landscape and is often tolerated by residents in regions where the dominant religion is Tibetan Buddhism, including in Qomolangma NNR on the northern side of the Chinese Himalayas. Despite these positive attitudes, many decades of rapid economic development and population growth can cause increasing disturbance to the snow leopards, altering their habitat use patterns and ultimately impacting their conservation. We adopted a dynamic landscape ecology perspective and used multi-scale technique and occupancy model to better understand snow leopard habitat use and coexistence with humans in an 825 km2 communal landscape. We ranked eight hypothetical models containing potential natural and anthropogenic drivers of habitat use and compared them between summer and winter seasons within a year. HABITAT was the optimal model in winter, whereas ANTHROPOGENIC INFLUENCE was the top ranking in summer (AICcw≤2). Overall, model performance was better in the winter than in the summer, suggesting that perhaps some latent summer covariates were not measured. Among the individual variables, terrain ruggedness strongly affected snow leopard habitat use in the winter, but not in the summer. Univariate modeling suggested snow leopards prefer to use rugged land in winter with a broad scale (4000 m focal radius) but with a lesser scale in summer (30 m); Snow leopards preferred habitat with a slope of 22° at a scale of 1000 m throughout both seasons, which is possibly correlated with prey occurrence. Furthermore, all covariates mentioned above showed inextricable ties with human activities (presence of settlements and grazing intensity). Our findings show that multiple sources of anthropogenic activity have complex connections with snow leopard habitat use, even under low human density when anthropogenic activities are sparsely distributed across a vast landscape. This study is also valuable for habitat use research in the future, especially regarding covariate selection for finite sample sizes in inaccessible terrain.
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Sultan, H., Rashid, W., Shi, J., Rahim, I. U., Nafees, M., Bohnett, E., Rashid, S., Khan, M. T., Shah, I. A., Han, H., Ariza-Montes, A. (2022). Horizon Scan of Transboundary Concerns Impacting Snow Leopard Landscapes in Asia. Land, 11(248), 1–22.
Abstract: The high-altitude region of Asia is prone to natural resource degradation caused by a variety of natural and anthropogenic factors that also threaten the habitat of critical top predator species, the snow leopard (Panthera uncia). The snow leopard’s landscape encompasses parts of the twelve Asian countries and is dominated by pastoral societies within arid mountainous terrain. However, no investigation has assessed the vulnerability and pathways towards long-term sustainability on the global snow leopard landscape scale. Thus, the current study reviewed 123 peer-reviewed scientific publications on the existing knowledge, identified gaps, and proposed sustainable mitigation options for the longer term and on larger landscape levels in the range countries. The natural resource degradation in this region is caused by various social, economic, and ecological threats that negatively affect its biodiversity. The factors that make the snow leopard landscapes vulnerable include habitat fragmentation through border fencing, trade corridor infrastructure, non-uniform conservation policies, human–snow leopard conflict, the increasing human population, climatic change, land use and cover changes, and unsustainable tourism. Thus, conservation of the integrated Socio-Ecological System (SES) prevailing in this region requires a multi-pronged approach. This paper proposes solutions and identifies the pathways through which to implement these solutions. The prerequisite to implementing such solutions is the adoption of cross-border collaboration (regional cooperation), the creation of peace parks, readiness to integrate transnational and cross-sectoral conservation policies, a focus on improving livestock management practices, a preparedness to control human population growth, a readiness to mitigate climate change, initiating transboundary landscape-level habitat conservation, adopting environment-friendly trade corridors, and promoting sustainable tourism. Sustainable development in this region encompasses the political, social, economic, and ecological landscapes across the borders.
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Jackson, R. M. (1996). Home Range, Movements and Habitat use of Snow Leopard (Uncia uncia) in Nepal. Ph.D. thesis, University of London, University of London.
Abstract: Home ranges for five radio-tagged snow leopards (Uncia uncia) inhabiting prime habitat in Nepal Himalaya varied in size from 11-37 km2. These solitary felids were crepuscular in activity, and although highly mobile, nearly 90% of all consecutive day movements involved a straight line distance of 2km or less. No seasonal difference in daily movement or home range boundry was detected. While home ranges overlapped substancially, use of common core spaces was temporally seperated, with tagged animals being located 1.9 km or more apart during the smae day. Spatial analysis indicated that 47-55% of use occured within only 6-15% of total home area. The snow leopards shared a common core use area, which was located at a major stream confuence in an area where topography, habitat and prey abundance appeared to be more favorable. A young female used her core area least, a female with two cubs to the greatest extent. the core area was marked significantly more with scrapes, Faeces and other sighn than non-core sites, suggesting that social marking plays an important role in spacing individuals. Snow leopards showed a strong preference for bedding in steep, rocky or broken terrain, on or close to a natural vegetation or landform edge. linear landform features, such as a cliff or major ridgeline, were preferred for travelling and day time resting. This behavior would tend to place a snow leopard close to its preferred prey, blue sheep (Psuedois nayaur), which uses the same habitat at night. Marking was concetrated along commonly travelled routes, particularly river bluffs, cliff ledges and well defined ridgelines bordering stream confluences--features that were most abundant within the core area. Such marking may facilitate mutual avoidance, help maintain the species' solitary social structure, and also enable a relatively high density of snow leopard, especially within high-quality habitat.
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Xuedong, X., Jackson, R., & Zongyi, W. (1994). Herd characteristics and habitat use of a blue sheep population in the Qomolangma Nature Preserve. In J.L.Fox, & D.Jizeng (Eds.), (pp. 97–104). Usa: Islt.
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Fox, J. L., & Nurbu, C. (1990). Hemis, a national park for snow leopards in India's Trans-Himalaya. Int.Pedigree Book of Snow Leopards, 6, 71–84.
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Meiers, S. T. (1992). Habitat use by captive puma (Felis concolor) and snow leopards (Pathera uncia) at the Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago, Illinois. Ph.D. thesis, DePaul University, .
Abstract: Between May 1990 and January 1991, behavioral observations were made of two captive pumas (Felis concolor Linnaeus), and two captive snow leopards (Panthera uncia Schreber) in their outdoor exhibits at the Lincoln Park Zoological Gardens, Chicago, Illinois. Behaviors compared within and between species included: 1) time spend in the different habitat types; 2) time budgets for the different behaviors: laying, moving, sitting, standing, crouching, in the tree, drinking, urinating, defecating, within their inside dens, and “behavior not determined” when the identity or behavior of the individuals could not be determined; and 3) mobility of the animals within their exhibits. Also examined were: 4) preferences for different habitat types; 5) recommendations for future exhibit designs. Both species located themselves within their exhibits in a non-random manner. The majority of cats' time was spent in elevated locations (i.e., gunite ledges approximately 1-5.5 m above ground-level). Snow leopards exhibited this tendency to a greater extent than did the pumas. Both species also spent the majority of their time in the lying-down behavior; again snow leopards displayed this tendency significantly more than the pumas. Pumas were highly mobile and changed locations and behaviors in their exhibit significantly more than the snow leopards. No significant differences were noted between conspecifics in regard to habitat type preference, or mobility within the exhibit. Suggestions for future exhibit design include elevated locations for the cats to lay and look around within and outside their exhibits, caves for access to shade or relief from inclement weather, and ground surfaces to move about on. Features for exhibit design should take into consideration the natural habitat of the cat to occupy the exhibit.
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Namgail, T., Fox, J., & Bhatnagar, Y. (2007). Habitat shift and time budget of the Tibetan argali: the influence of livestock grazing (Vol. 22).
Abstract: Livestock production is the primary source of livelihood and income in most of the high steppe and alpine regions of the Indian Trans-Himalaya. In some areas, especially those established or proposed for biodiversity conservation, recent increases in populations of domestic livestock, primarily sheep and goats, have raised concern about domestic animals competitively excluding wild herbivores from the rangelands. We
evaluated the influence of domestic sheep and goat grazing on the habitat use and time budget of the endangered Tibetan argali Ovis ammon hodgsoni in the proposed Gya-Miru Wildlife Sanctuary, Ladakh, India. We asked if the domestic sheep and goat grazing and collateral human activities relegate the argali to suboptimal habitats, and alter their foraging time budgets. Data were collected on habitat use and time budget of a population of c. 50 argalis before and after c. 2,000 sheep and goats moved onto their winter pasture in the Tsabra catchment of the aforementioned reserve. Following the introduction of domestic sheep and goats, argalis continued to use the same catchment but shifted to steeper habitats, closer to cliffs, with lower vegetation cover, thus abandoning previously used plant communities with denser cover. Argalis' active time spent foraging also decreased by 10% in response to the presence of livestock. These results suggest a clear disturbance effect of livestock on argalis, and indicate a potential for competition, conceivably a significant disadvantage for argalis in winter when forage availability is minimal.
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Chundawat, R. S. (1990). Habitat Selection by a Snow Leopard in Hemis National Park, India. In L.Blomqvist (Ed.), (pp. 85–92). Helsinki, Findland: Leif Blomqvist and Helesinki Zoo.
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Namgail, T., Fox, J., & Bhatnagar, Y. V. (2004). Habitat segregation between sympatric Tibetan argali Ovis ammon hodgsoni and blue sheep Pseudois nayaur in the Indian Trans-Himalaya. Journal of Zoology, 262, 57–63.
Abstract: Tibetan argali Ovis ammon hodgsoni and blue sheep Pseudois nayaur have almost completely overlapping distributions encompassing most of the Tibetan plateau and its margins. Such a sympatric distribution of related species with similar ecological requirements implies that there is some degree of resource partitioning. This may be accomplished on the basis of habitat and/or diet separation. This study evaluated such ecological separation on the basis of physical habitat partitioning by these two sympatric ungulates in Hemis High Altitude National Park, Ladakh, India, in an area where the argali established a small new population in 1978. Such separation was tested for
on the basis of expected difference between the species in their proximity to cliffs, associated with species-specific anti-predator behaviour. Tibetan argali selected habitats away from cliffs while blue sheep selected habitats close to cliffs. Blue sheep also selected steep slopes whereas argali selected gentle slopes. The two species did not differ
in their use of habitats in terms of elevation. They did, however, differ in their use of plant communities; blue sheep selected sub-shrub and grass-dominated communities whilst argali selected forb-dominated communities. We suggest that the two species coexist in this site as a result of the differential use of habitat associated with their
species-specific anti-predator strategies.
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Shrestha, R., & Wegge, P. (2008). Habitat relationships between wild and domestic herbivores in Nepalese trans – Himalaya. Journal of Arid Environments, 72, 914–925.
Abstract: In the semi-arid ecosystems of Asia, where pastoralism is a main subsistence occupation, grazing competition from domestic stock is believed to displace the wild ungulates. We studied the habitat relationships among sympatric naur and domestic yak and smallstock in Phu valley in upper Manang district, Nepal, on the basis of their distribution on vegetation types, elevation and slope. To control for the disturbance effect by humans, we collected the data on naur from those ranges where domestic stock were not being attended by herders. We applied correspondence analysis to explore habitat associations among animal groups (n ¬ 1415) within and across-seasons. Within each association, interspecific habitat overlaps and species habitat preferences were calculated. Naur was strongly associated with free-ranging yak as they used similar altitudinal ranges in all seasons, except in spring. Their distributions on vegetation types and slopes were also quite similar, except for a stronger preference for alpine meadows by naur during summer and winter. Naur and smallstock did not form temporal associations as the latter consistently used lower elevations. In autumn and spring, however, naur spatially overlapped with the summer range of smallstock, and both preferred the alpine meadow habitat during these periods. Alpine meadow was the least abundant vegetation type but was consistently and preferentially used by all animal groups across seasons. At high stocking densities, all three animals groups are therefore likely to compete for this vegetation type. The role of spatio-temporal heterogeneity for interpreting the interspecific relationships among ungulates in the semi-arid rangelands of the trans-Himalaya is discussed.
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Hacker, C., Atzeni, L., Munkhtsog, B., Munkhtsog, B., Galsandorj, N., Zhang, Y., Liu, Y., Buyanaa, C., Bayandonoi, G., Ochirjav, M., Farrington, J. D., Jevit, M., Zhang, Y., Wu, L. Cong, W., Li, D., Gavette, C., Jackson, R., Janecka, J. E. (2022). Genetic diversity and spatial structures of snow leopards (Panthera uncia) reveal proxies of connectivity across Mongolia and northwestern China. Landscape Ecology, , 1–19.
Abstract: Understanding landscape connectivity and population genetic parameters is imperative for threatened species management. However, such information is lacking for the snow leopard (Panthera uncia). This study sought to explore hierarchical snow leopard gene flow patterns and drivers of genetic structure in Mongolia and China. A total of 97 individuals from across Mongolia and from the north-eastern edge of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau in Gansu Province to the middle of Qinghai Province in China were genotyped across 24 microsatellite loci. Distance-based frameworks were used to determine a landscape scenario best explaining observed genetic structure. Spatial and non-spatial methods were used to investigate fine-scale autocorrelation and similarity patterns as well as genetic structure and admixture. A genetic macro-division between populations in China and Mongolia was observed, suggesting that the Gobi Desert is a substantial barrier to gene flow. However, admixture and support for a resistance-based mode of isolation suggests connective routes that could facilitate movement. Populations in Mongolia had greater connectivity, indicative of more continuous habitat. Drivers of genetic structure in China were difficult to discern, and fine-scale sampling is needed. This study elucidates snow leopard landscape connectivity and helps to prioritize conservation areas. Although contact zones may have existed and occasional crossings can occur, establishing corridors to connect these areas should not be a priority. Focus should be placed on maintaining the relatively high connectivity for snow leopard populations within Mongolia and increasing research efforts in China.
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Jackson. R. (2012). Fostering Community-Based Stewardship of Wildlife in Central Asia: Transforming Snow Leopards from Pests into Valued Assets. In Springer Science and Business Media (pp. 357–380).
Abstract: Book Title: Rangeland Stewardship in Central Asia: Balancing Improved Livelihoods, Biodiversity Conservation and Land Protection, 2012. Edited by Victor Squires. Published Springer Science+Business Media. 458 p. 91 illus., 61 in color.
Addressing human–wildlife conflict is an important requisite to managing
rangelands for livestock and wildlife. Despite high altitudes, aridity, and relatively
low primary productivity, the rangelands of Central Asia support a rich and diverse
biodiversity—including the endangered snow leopard that many herders perceive
as a predator to be eliminated. Conserving this and other wildlife species requires
carefully crafted interventions aimed at curbing depredation losses and/or reducing
competition for forage, along with offering locally sustainable, environmentally
friendly income-generating activities for supplementing pastoral household livelihoods.
This is best achieved through a combination of incentives designed to foster
sound rangeland and wildlife stewardship, along penalties or disincentives targeting
herders who violate mutually agreed rules and regulations (including grazing norms
and wildlife disturbance or poaching).
When working toward the harmonious coexistence of people and wildlife,
conservationists and rangeland practitioners need to seek the cooperation and
build goodwill among herders and other stakeholders, including local government
and private industry (especially the livestock production, mining, and tourism
sectors).
Keywords: Gurvan Saikhan National Park,Annapurna National Park,Nepal,Pakistan,India,Mongolia,China,Tibet,Mining,Poaching,PRA,Holistic,Community engagement,Fuel,Habitat fragmentation
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Chundawat, R. S., & Rawat G.S. (1990). Food Habits of Snow Leopard in Ladakh, India.
Abstract: The snow leopard has remained little studied in the past, and most of the information available is either in the form of natural history or anecdotal notes. The inaccessibility of the terrain and its secretive habits make this one of the more difficult animals to study in the wild. In the past decade, several ecological surveys were conducted in India, Nepal, China and Mongolia, which gave us information on the status and distribution of snow leopard (Jackson, Mallon, Fox, Schaller, Chundawat) A detailed study in Nepal through light on its secretive habits ( Jackson and Ahlborn, 1989). Even then little is known about its feeding habits. The present paper discusses this aspect from a study which was part of a detailed study conducted on the ecology of snow leopard in India from October 1987 to Feburary 1990.
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McCarthy, T., Khan, J., Ud-Din, J., & McCarthy, K. (2007). First study of snow leopards using GPS-satellite collars underway in Pakistan. Cat News, 46(Spring), 22–23.
Abstract: Snow leopards (Uncia uncia) are highly cryptic and occupy remote inaccessible habitat, making studying the cats difficult in the extreme. Yet sound knowledge of the cat's ecology, behavior and habitat needs is required to intelligently conserve them. This information is lacking for snow leopards, and until recently so was the means to fill that knowledge gap. Two long-term studies of snow leopards using VHF radio collars have been undertaken in Nepal (1980s) and Mongolia (1990s) but logistical and technological constraints made the findings of both studies equivocal. Technological advances in the interim, such as GPS collars which report data via satellite, make studies of snow leopards more promising, at least in theory.
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Karki, A., Panthi, S. (2021). Factors affecting livestock depredation by snow leopards (Panthera uncia) in the Himalayan region of Nepal. PeerJ, 9(e11575), 1–14.
Abstract: The snow leopard (Panthera uncia) found in central Asia is classified as vulnerable species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Every year, large number of livestock are killed by snow leopards in Nepal, leading to economic loss to local communities and making human-snow leopard conflict a major threat to snow leopard conservation. We conducted formal and informal stakeholder’s interviews to gather information related to livestock depredation with the aim to map the attack sites by the snow leopard. These sites were further validated by district forest office staffs to assess sources of bias. Attack sites older than 3 years were removed from the survey. We found 109 attack sites and visited all the sites for geo location purpose (GPS points of all unique sites were taken). We maintained at least a 100 m distance between attack locations to ensure that each attack location was unique, which resulted in 86 unique locations. A total of 235 km2 was used to define livestock depredation risk zone during this study. Using Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt) modeling, we found that distance to livestock sheds, distance to paths, aspect, and distance to roads were major contributing factors to the snow leopard’s attacks. We identified 13.64 km2 as risk zone for livestock depredation from snow leopards in the study area. Furthermore, snow leopards preferred to attack livestock near livestock shelters, far from human paths and at moderate distance from motor roads. These identified attack zones should be managed both for snow leopard conservation and livestock protection in order to balance human livelihoods while protecting snow leopards and their habitats.
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