Abstract: Considerable efforts have been devoted to conserving the snow leopard Panthera uncia in recent years, but progress has inevitably been slow due to the difficulties of studying a sparsely distributed, secretive and endangered species in often isolated mountainous terrain. Although knowledge about the species overall distribution in the highlands of Central Asia still remains fragmenatry, it is important to briefly examine all the available information in order to review measures taken to date to conserve the species through the protected areas network. The purpose of this paper is to examine the distribution and status of protected areas inhabited or visited by snow leopard in relation to the species' distribution and highlight deficiences in the present network.

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.

Abstract: The work contains data on biology snow leopard in Hissar nature reserve, Uzbekistan. The number of snow leopards in this reserve has increased from two or four in 1981 to between 13 and 17 individuals in 1994. Since 1981, snow leopards have been sighted 72 times and their tracks or pugmarks 223 times. In the Hissar Nature Reserve snow leopards largely feed on ibex. Over a period of 14 years, 92 kills and remains of ibex aged from one to thirteen years of age have been examined. Other records of predation, by the number of events observed, include 33 cases of juvenile and mature horses, 25 long-tailed marmot (Marmota caudata). 18 Himalayan snowcock (Tetraogallus himalayemis), 17 domestic goat, 13 wild boar (Sus scrofa), five domestic sheep and three incidents involving cattle. Twenty-two attacks on domestic flocks were reported, and these occurred during both the daytime and at night. Snow leopards usually mate between the 20th of February and March 20th. The offspring are born in late April to May, and there are usually two per litter (23 encounters), although a single litter of three has also been recorded.

Abstract: The snow leopard inhabits a huge range of territory which encompasses some of Central Asia's most bleak and inhospitable terrains. The animal herders in these regions are desperately poor and yet they have agreed to cooperate with conservation groups in protecting the snow leopard. The World Wildlife Foundation has worked to create a refuge on the Pakistan-China border. Sheep herders near Askole, a village in the Baltistan region of northern Paksitan, drive their flocks past stone enclosures. The area is also home to snow leopards. With their natural prey dminished, leopards in 13 countries of central Asia occasionally feed on livestock, putting the cats on a collision course with mountain peoples.

Abstract: In 2001 the King Mahendra Trust for Nature Conservation (KMTNC), Annapurna Conservation Area (ACAP), Snow Leopard Conservancy (SLC) and WWF-Nepal initiated a collaborative project aimed at enhancing ecotourism in the Manang area, in ways that strengthen benefits to local communities while also protecting the environment and the local culture. Manang is known for its relatively dense snow leopard population, along with supporting good numbers of blue sheep, the endangered cat's principal prey through much of the Himalaya. However, snow leopards periodically kill many livestock, leading to retributive killing by herders along with other associated people-wildlife conflict. In order to encourage the local people to better co-exist with snow leopards and other wildlife, SLC, WWF-Nepal and ACAP agreed to explore ways of providing tourism benefits to local communities as an incentive to protect this rare predator and conserve its alpine habitat. Key in this regard is the possibility of developing locally guided nature treks, and accordingly, this survey was conducted in order to assess existing market opportunities and constraints to such ecotourism enterprise.

Abstract: Monitoring Techniques Forest leopards have never been systematically surveyed in African forests, in spite of their potentially vital ecological role as the sole large mammalian predators in these systems. Because leopards are rarely seen in this habitat, and are difficult to survey using the most common techniques for assessing relative abundances of forest mammals, baseline knowledge of leopard ecology and responses to human disturbance in African forests remain largely unknown. This technical handbook sums up the experience gained during a two-year study of leopards by Philipp Henschel in the Lop‚ Reserve in Gabon, Central Africa, in 2001/2002, supplemented by additional experience from carnivore studies conducted by Justina Ray in southwestern Central African Republic and eastern Congo (Zaire) . The main focus of this effort has been to develop a protocol that can be used by fieldworkers across west and central Africa to estimate leopard densities in various forest types. In developing this manual, Henschel tested several indirect methods to assess leopard numbers in both logged and unlogged forests, with the main effort devoted to testing remote photography survey methods developed for tigers by Karanth (e.g., Karanth 1995, Karanth & Nichols 1998; 2000; 2002), and modifying them for the specific conditions characterizing African forest environments. This handbook summarizes the results of the field testing, and provides recommendations for techniques to assess leopard presence/absence, relative abundance, and densities in African forest sites. We briefly review the suitability of various methods for different study objectives and go into particular detail on remote photography survey methodology, adapting previously developed methods and sampling considerations specifically to the African forest environment. Finally, we briefly discuss how camera trapping may be used as a tool to survey other forest mammals. Developing a survey protocol for African leopards is a necessary first step towards a regional assessment and priority setting exercise targeted at forest leopards, similar to those carried out on large carnivores in Asian and South American forests.

Abstract: The Snow Leopard Survival Strategy (SLSS) is a blueprint to guide the work of organizations and individuals working to conserve the endangered snow leopard. The SLSS was drafted in a collaborative fashion and includes the input of more than 65 of the world's leaders in snow leopard research and conservation. Implementation of the SLSS is overseen by the Snow Leopard Network (SLN), a partnership of organizations and individuals from government and private sectors who work together for the effective conservation of the snow leopard, its prey, and its natural habitat to the benefit of people and biodiversity