Abstract: The snow leopard Panthera uncia is the flagship species of the high mountains of the Himalayas. There is po- tentially continuous habitat for the snow leopard along the northern border of Nepal, but there is a gap in information about the snow leopard in Gaurishankar Conservation Area. Previous spatial analysis has suggested that the Lamabagar area in this Conservation Area could serve as a transbound- ary corridor for snow leopards, and that the area may con- nect local populations, creating a metapopulation. However, there has been no visual confirmation of the species in Lamabagar. We set !! infrared camera traps for " months in Lapchi Village of Gaurishankar Conservation Area, where blue sheep Pseudois nayaur, musk deer Moschus leucogaster and Himalayan tahr Hemitragus jemlahicus, all snow leopard prey species, had been observed. In November #$!% at &,!$$ m, ' km south-west of Lapchi Village, one camera recorded three images of a snow leopard, the first photographic evidence of the species in the Conservation Area. Sixteen other species of mammals were also recorded. Camera-trap records and sightings indicated a high abun- dance of Himalayan tahr, blue sheep and musk deer. Lapchi Village may be a potentially important corridor for snow leopard movement between the east and west of Nepal and northwards to Quomolongma National Park in China. However, plans for development in the region present in- creasing threats to this corridor. We recommend develop- ment of a transboundary conservation strategy for snow leopard conservation in this region, with participation of Nepal, China and international agencies.

Abstract: Ensuring the long‐term persistence of snow leopards (Panthera uncia) in changing landscapes requires a deep understanding of their spatial ecology and movement behavior. To maintain viable metapopulations and ensure gene flow between populations, there is an urgent need to develop sound and effective conservation plans. This study presents findings from Nepal's first GPS telemetry study of snow leopards, shedding light on their home range size, habitat selection, and transboundary movements. GPS data were collected from four snow leopard individuals in the Kangchenjunga Conservation Area, eastern Nepal, over tracking periods ranging from 20 to 659 days, yielding a total of 4707 location points. We used three home range estimators
for analysis: local convex hulls (LoCoH), fixed kernels (Kernel), and minimum convex polygons (MCP). Our results show that home range sizes were 6 to 97 times larger than previous estimates for Nepal, with LoCoH estimates of 310 and 102 km2 (MCP = 730 and 211 km2) for two adult females and 312 km2 (MCP = 1032 km2) for one adult male. Three snow leopards crossed international borders five to seven times, spending, on average, 10%–34% of their time in neighboring countries (China and India), with 28%–50% of their home ranges overlapping India. Our study demonstrates that snow leopards in Nepal have home ranges that are significantly larger than previously documented and frequently cross international borders. These extensive transboundary movements highlight the need for stronger coordination between Nepal, China, and India to ensure the long‐term conservation of snow leopards in this key region of their distributional range.