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Schaller, G. B., Hong, L., Talipu, J., & Mingjiang, R. Q. (1988). The snow leopard in Xinjiang, China. Oryx, 22(4), 197–204.
Abstract: Snow leopards live in the mountains of Central Asia, their range stretching from Afganastan to Lake Baikal in Eastern Tibet. They are endangered throughout their range, being hunted as predators of mains livestock and for their skin. Much of the snow leopards range lies in China, but not enough is known about its staus there for effective conservation. As part of a project to assess China's high altitude wildlife resources the authors conducted a survey in Xinjiang- a vast arid region of deserts and mountains. Although the snow leopard and other wildlife have declined steeply in Xinjiang in recent decades, the cta still persists and one area has the potential to become one of the best refuges for the species in its entire range. Its future in XInjiang, howevere, depends on well protected reserves, enforcement of regulations against killing the animal, and proper managemnt of the prey species.
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Shi, K., Jun, Z. F. S., Zhigang, D., Riordan, P., & MacDonald, D. (2009). Reconfirmation of snow leopards in Taxkurgan Nature Reserve, Xinjiang, China. Oryx, 43(2), 169–170.
Abstract: China may hold a greater proportion of the global snow leopard Panthera uncia population than any other country, with the area of good quality suitable habitat, estimated at nearly 300,000 km2, comprising .50% of that available across the species' entire range. We can now reconfirm the presence of snow leopard in the Taxkurgan area of Xinjiang Province in north-west China after a period of 20 years.
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Shrestha, R., & Wegge, P. (2008). Wild sheep and livestock in Nepal Trans-Himalaya: coexistence or competition? Environmental Conservation, 32(2), 125–136.
Abstract: Excessive grazing by livestock is claimed to displace wild ungulates in the Trans-Himalaya. This study compares the seasonal diets and habitat use of sympatric wild naur Pseudois nayaur and domestic goat Capra hircus, sheep Ovis aries and free-ranging yak Bos grunniens in north Nepal and analyses their overlap both within and across seasons. Alpinemeadow and the legumes Oxytropis and Chesneya were critical resources for all animal groups. High overlap occurred cross-seasonally when smallstock (sheep and goats) in summer used the spring and autumn ranges of naur. Relatively high total ungulate biomass (3028 kg km-2) and low recruitment of naur (56 young per 100 adult females in autumn) suggested interspecific competition. The spatio-temporal heterogeneity in composition and phenology of food plants across the steep gradient of altitude, together with rotational grazing, appears to indirectly facilitate coexistence of naur and smallstock. However, owing to high crossseasonal (inter-seasonal) overlaps, competition is likely to occur between these two groups at high stocking densities. Within seasons, naur overlapped more with free-ranging yak than with smallstock. As their habitat use and diets were most similar in winter, when both fed extensively on the same species of shrubs, naur was most likely to compete with yak during that season.
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Sloane, A., Kelly, C., McDavitt, S., & Marples, N. (1998). Big cats in captivity: a quantitative analysis of enrichment. Adv.Etho, 33, 43.
Abstract: Studies on three species of big cats at Dublin Zoo have led to firm conclusions about the effects of certain forms of enrichment, some of which will be presented here. Lions, jaguars, and snow leopards were studied over two years and their behaviours quantified using focal animal sampling during selected hours during daylight. By comparison of these activity budgets with and without the enrichments being present, it was possible to identify the exact behavioural changes caused by each enrichment method, and to quantify these changes. In this contribution we present results showing that the presence of a platform in both lion and jaguar enclosures dramatically reduced stereotypic pacing behaviour. We will demonstrate that the effects of short term enrichment devices may have a wide range of effects on behaviours which outlast the presence of the stimulus. For instance scents added to the cage, or food/play items such as horse hides, hidden fish or ice-blocks often reduce pacing and increase resting later in the day, even after the cats have ceased using the enrichment items. This reduction in pacing and increase in resting time often meant that the amount of the enclosure used per hour was actually reduced with the presence of new stimuli, as result opposite to what might have been expected. The results of these studies will be discussed in relation to effective animal management.
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Wharton, D., & Mainka, S. A. (1997). Management and husbandry of the snow leopard Uncia uncia. International Zoo Yearbook, 35, 139–147.
Abstract: The international studbook for the Snow leopard Uncia uncia was established in 1976. The species has been the focus of intensive captive management and as at 1 January 1992, 541 animals were maintained at 160 collections. This paper gives an overview of the diet, housing, breeding and captive management of the species with specific reference to animals maintained in North American collections. A summary of veterinary care reported in the Snow leopard captive-management survey is also given.
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Chapron, G. (2005). Re-wilding: other projects help carnivores stay wild. Nature, 437, 318.
Abstract: Letter to Nature Editor, in response to: In their plea for bringing Pleistocene wildlife to the New World (“Re-wilding North America” Nature 436, 913–914; 2005), Josh Donlan and colleagues do not discuss successful efforts to ensure long-term survival of large carnivores in Africa and Asia. A few examples are given.
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Lovari, S., Boesi, R., Minder, I., Mucci, N., Randi, E., Dematteis, A., and Ale, S. B. (2009). Restoring a keystone predator may endanger a prey species in a human-altered ecosystem: the return of the snow leopard to Sagarmatha National Park. Animal Conservation, 12, 559–570.
Abstract: Twenty-five years ago, the snow leopard Uncia uncia, an endangered large cat, was eliminated from what is now Sagarmatha National Park (SNP). Heavy hunting pressure depleted that area of most medium-large mammals, before it became a park. After three decades of protection, the cessation of hunting and the recovery of wild ungulate populations, snow leopards have recently returned (four individuals). We have documented the effects of the return of the snow leopard on the population of its main wild prey, the Himalayan tahr Hemitragus jemlahicus, a 'near-threatened' caprin. Signs of snow leopard presence were recorded and scats were collected along a fixed trail (130 km) to assess the presence and food habits of the snow leopard in the Park, from 2004 to 2006. Himalayan tahr, the staple of the diet, had a relative occurrence of 48% in summer and 37% in autumn, compared with the next most frequent prey, musk deer Moschus chrysogaster (summer: 20%; autumn: 15%) and cattle (summer: 15%; autumn: 27%). In early summer, the birth rate of tahr (young-to-female ratio: 0.8-0.9) was high. The decrease of this ratio to 0.1-0.2 in autumn implied that summer predation concentrated on young tahr, eventually altering the population by removing the kid cohort. Small populations of wild Caprinae, for example the Himalayan tahr population in SNP, are sensitive to stochastic predation events and may be led to almost local extinction. If predation on livestock keeps growing, together with the decrease of Himalayan tahr, retaliatory killing of snow leopards by local people may be expected, and the snow leopard could again be at risk of local extinction. Restoration of biodiversity through the return of a large predator has to be monitored carefully, especially in areas affected by humans, where the lack of important environmental components, for example key prey species, may make the return of a predator a challenging event.
Keywords: conservation, food habits, genetics, Hemitragus jemlahicus, Himalayan tahr, management, microsatellite, predation, presence, scat, scat analysis, snow leopard, Uncia uncia
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Li, J., Yin, H., Wang, D., Jiagong, Z., Lu, Zhi. (2013). Human-snow leopard conflicts in the Sanjiangyuan Region of the Tibetan Plateau. Biological Conservs, (166), 118–123.
Abstract: Conflicts between humans and snow leopards are documented across much of their overlapping distribution
in Central Asia. These conflicts manifest themselves primarily in the form of livestock depredation
and the killing of snow leopards by local herders. This source of mortality to snow leopards is a key conservation concern. To investigate human-snow leopard conflicts in the Sanjiangyuan Region of the Tibetan Plateau, we conducted household interviews about local herders’ traditional use of snow leopard
parts, livestock depredation, and overall attitudes towards snow leopards. We found most respondents
(58%) knew that snow leopard parts had been used for traditional customs in the past, but they claimed
not in the past two or three decades. It may be partly due to the issuing of the Protection of Wildlife Law
in 1998 by the People’s Republic of China. Total livestock losses were damaging (US$ 6193 per household
in the past 1 year), however snow leopards were blamed by herders for only a small proportion of those
losses (10%), as compared to wolves (45%) and disease (42%). Correspondingly, the cultural images of
snow leopards were neutral (78%) and positive (9%) on the whole. It seems that human-snow leopard
conflict is not intense in this area. However, snow leopards could be implicated by the retaliatory killing
of wolves. We recommend a multi-pronged conservation program that includes compensation, insurance
programs, and training local veterinarians to reduce livestock losses.
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Chen, P., Gao, Y., Lee, A. T. L., Cering, L., Shi, K., Clark, S. G. (2016). Human–carnivore coexistence in Qomolangma (Mt. Everest) Nature Reserve, China: Patterns and compensation. Biological Conservation, (197), 18–26.
Abstract: Livestock depredation by large carnivores is frequently reported in Qomolangma (Mt. Everest) National Nature Reserve, Tibet Autonomous Region of China. Seeking to minimize conflicts, we assessed depredation patterns and ways to upgrade the compensation program. We gathered 9193 conflict records over 2011–2013 to determine the extent and tempo-spatial patterns of the depredation.Weinterviewed 22 local officials and 94 residents to learn their views on depredations and to assess the adequacy of compensation. Data showed that wolves (Canis lupus), lynx (Lynx lynx), and snowleopards (Panthera uncia)were themajor livestock predators. Total livestock
loss accounted for 1.2% of the entire stockholding (n=846,707) in the region. Wolves and lynx tended to take sheep and goats,whereas snowleopards favored yaks and cattle in relation to their proportional abundance. Predation mostly occurred in March through July. Livestock depredation by all predators when combined was best explained by terrain ruggedness and density of small- and large-bodied livestock. Temporal and spatial predation patterns variedamong carnivores.Most respondents (74%) attributed depredation causes to an increase in carnivore abundance. Only 7% blamed lax livestock herding practice for predation losses. Five percent said that
predation was the result of livestock population increases, while 11% had no idea. The compensation scheme was found to be flawed in all aspects—predation verification, application procedure, compensation standard, operational resource allocation, making payment, and other problems. To enhance management for human–carnivore coexistence, we recommend a problem-oriented, integrated, adaptive approach that targets the complex social context of the conflict and addresses the interconnected functions of decision-making process.
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Michel, S., Michel, T. R., Saidov, A., Karimov, K., Alidodov, M., Kholmatov, I. Population status of Heptner’s markhor Capra falconeri heptneri in Tajikistan: challenges for conservation. Flora & Fauna International, , 1–8.
Abstract: Heptner’s markhor Capra falconeri heptneri is an Endangered wild goat occurring in disjunct populations in southern Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. Surveys to determine the total population in Tajikistan were conducted during February–April 2012. A total of 1,018 animals were observed. In most areas, which include state protected areas and family- and communitybased
conservancies, markhor populations are stable or increasing. Threats include illegal hunting, habitat degradation, competition with livestock and disease transmission. To motivate conservancies economically to protect markhor populations, trophy hunting should be permitted to accommodate the sustainable use of markhor, with revenues distributed in a transparent and equitably shared manner.
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