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| Author | Ale S. | ||||
| Title | Have snow leopards made a comeback to the Everest region of Nepal? | Type | Report | ||
| Year | 2005 | Publication | Abbreviated Journal | ||
| Volume | Issue | Pages | 1-21 | ||
| Keywords | snow; snow leopards; snow leopard; snow-leopards; snow-leopard; leopards; leopard; region; Nepal; Report; International; international snow leopard trust; International-Snow-Leopard-Trust; trust; program; 1960; endangered; Sagarmatha; High; Himalaya; tourism; impact; establishment; national; national park; National-park; park; 1980; area; Tibet; surveys; survey; status; Cats; cat; prey; research; project; sign; transects; transect; length; valley; Response; hunting; recovery; Himalayan; tahr; density; densities; range; pugmarks; sighting; 60; study; population; predators; predator; structure; prey species; prey-species; species; populations; mortality; effects; predation; population dynamics | ||||
| Abstract | In the 1960s, the endangered snow leopard was locally extirpated from the Sagarmatha (Mt. Everest) region of Nepal. In this Sherpa-inhabited high Himalaya, the flourishing tourism since the ascent of Mt Everest in 1953, has caused both prosperity and adverse impacts, the concern that catalyzed the establishment of Mt. Everest National Park in the region in 1976. In the late 1980s, there were reports that some transient snow leopards may have visited the area from adjoining Tibet, but no biological surveys exist to confirm the status of the cats and their prey. Have snow leopards finally returned to the top of the world? Exploring this question was the main purpose of this research project. We systematically walked altogether 24 sign transects covering over 13 km in length in three valleys, i.e. Namche, Phortse and Gokyo, of the park, and counted several snow leopard signs. The results indicated that snow leopards have made a comeback in the park in response to decades of protective measures, the virtual cessation of hunting and the recovery of the Himalayan tahr which is snow leopard's prey. The average sign density (4.2 signs/km and 2.5 sign sites/km) was comparable to that reported from other parts of the cats' range in the Himalaya. On this basis, we estimated the cat density in the Everest region between 1 to 3 cats per 100 sq km, a figure that was supported by different sets of pugmarks and actual sightings of snow leopards in the 60 km2 sample survey area. In the study area, tahr population had a low reproductive rate (e.g. kids-to-females ratio, 0.1, in Namche). Since predators can influence the size and the structure of prey species populations through mortality and through non-lethal effects or predation risk, snow leopards could have been the cause of the population dynamics of tahr in Sagarmtha, but this study could not confirm this speculation for which further probing may be required. | ||||
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| Language | English | Summary Language | Original Title | ||
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| Notes | Progress report for the International Snow Leopard Trust Small Grants Program. | Approved | no | ||
| Call Number | SLN @ rana @ 1063 | Serial | 50 | ||
| Permanent link to this record | |||||
| Author | McCarthy, K.; Fuller, T.; Ming, M.; McCarthy, T.; Waits, L.; Jumabaev, K. | ||||
| Title | Assessing Estimators of Snow Leopard Abundance | Type | Miscellaneous | ||
| Year | 2008 | Publication | Journal of Widlife Management | Abbreviated Journal | |
| Volume | 72 | Issue | 8 | Pages | 1826-1833 |
| Keywords | abundance; camera,capture-recapture,density,index,predator:prey ratios,techniques,Tien Shan,Uncia; leopard; SaryChat; sign surveys; Slims; snow; snow-leopard; snow leopard; Tomur | ||||
| Abstract | The secretive nature of snow leopards (Uncia uncia) makes them difficult to monitor, yet conservation efforts require accurate and precise methods to estimate abundance. We assessed accuracy of Snow Leopard Information Management System (SLIMS) sign surveys by comparing them with 4 methods for estimating snow leopard abundance: predator:prey biomass ratios, capture-recapture density estimation, photo-capture rate, and individual identification through genetic analysis. We recorded snow leopard sign during standardized surveys in the SaryChat Zapovednik, the Jangart hunting reserve, and the Tomur Strictly Protected Area, in the Tien Shan Mountains of Kyrgyzstan and China. During June-December 2005, adjusted sign averaged 46.3 (SaryChat), 94.6 (Jangart), and 150.8 (Tomur) occurrences/km. We used counts of ibex (Capra ibex) and argali (Ovis ammon) to estimate available prey biomass and subsequent potential snow leopard densities of 8.7 (SaryChat), 1.0 (Jangart), and 1.1 (Tomur) snow leopards/100 km2. Photo capture-recapture density estimates were 0.15 (n = 1 identified individual/1 photo), 0.87 (n = 4/13), and 0.74 (n = 5/6) individuals/100 km2 in SaryChat, Jangart, and Tomur, respectively. Photo-capture rates (photos/100 trap-nights) were 0.09 (SaryChat), 0.93 (Jangart), and 2.37 (Tomur). Genetic analysis of snow leopard fecal samples provided minimum population sizes of 3 (SaryChat), 5 (Jangart), and 9 (Tomur) snow leopards. These results suggest SLIMS sign surveys may be affected by observer bias and environmental variance. However, when such bias and variation are accounted for, sign surveys indicate relative abundances similar to photo rates and genetic individual identification results. Density or abundance estimates based on capture-recapture or ungulate biomass did not agree with other indices of abundance. Confidence in estimated densities, or even detection of significant changes in abundance of snow leopard, will require more effort and better documentation. |
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| Area | Expedition | Conference | |||
| Notes | Approved | no | |||
| Call Number | SLN @ rana @ 881 | Serial | 653 | ||
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| Author | Fox, J.L.; Chundawat, R.S. | ||||
| Title | Wolves in the Transhimalayan region of India: The continued survival of a low-density population | Type | Journal Article | ||
| Year | 1995 | Publication | Canadian Circumpolar Institute Occasional Publication No.35; Ecology and conservation of wolves in a changing world | Abbreviated Journal | |
| Volume | 35 | Issue | Pages | 95-103 | |
| Keywords | Competition; Population-Density; Tibetan-Wolf; Transhimalayan-Region; Wildlife-Management; browse; population; density; tibetan; wolf; wildlife; management; transhimalayan; region; 710 | ||||
| Abstract | Canadian Cirumpolar Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada/Second North American Symposium on Wolves, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, August 25-27, 1992 | ||||
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| Notes | Approved | no | |||
| Call Number | SLN @ rana @ 272 | Serial | 306 | ||
| Permanent link to this record | |||||