Category: Science and Research

ABC News reporter Dan Harris travels to Darjeeling, India, to learn about SLN member Tom McCarthy’s research.

Link to video: http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/video/snow-leopards-tracking-endangered-cats-19317484

Source: Headline Himalaya

A study titled “Conservation and Climate Change: Assessing the Vulnerability of Snow Leopard Habitat to Tree Line Shift in the Himalaya” has indicated that of the estimated 270,000 km2 of Snow Leopard habitat in the Himalayan region, about 30% may be lost due to tree line shrinking and shifting of the alpine zone. The study highlights that in the case of IPCC greenhouse gas high emissions scenario, Bhutan and Nepal may lose snow leopard habitat by about 55% and  40% respectively whereas the loss has been estimated to be 25% in India and China.

June 2012
Biological Conservation, Volume 150, Issue 1, Pages 129-135

Thanks to SLN member Jennifer Castner for providing the English translation to the Russian language article below. To read the article in its original Russian, see this link:
http://sayanzapoved.ru/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=165%3A2013-03-26-06-46-30&catid=35%3Anews&Itemid=68

Translation is as follows:

In Sayano-Shushensky Nature Reserve (Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia), Mongol the snow leopard has a new satellite collar. He was caught by the Reserve’s science staff and zoologists from Severtsov Institute for Ecology as part of the South Siberia Snow Leopard Study and Monitoring Program.

Two years ago, Mongol underwent a similar procedure thanks to which all aspects of this species of wild cat became accessible. Since then, he has also posed repeatedly in front of camera traps in Sayano-Shushensky Reserve, which has permitted tracking his behavior and physical condition in his natural environment.

This time, biological samples were taken and a zoological-veterinary examination took place, both of which showed that Mongol is completely healthy and in great condition. The feline was set free, an hour after he was immobilized for examination and a change of collars.

The goal of tracking snow leopards using GPS is to gather information about his movements using the Argos satellite system. Data from Mongol’s collar will be gathered in two places: at Severtsov Institute and at the Reserve, and makes it possible to comprehend his movements and possible migration paths.

Studying snow leopards in the Reserve takes place within the framework of the “Wild Cats of Southern Siberia” project which is funded with support from the All-Russia Russian Geographic Society, Sayano-Shushensky Nature Reserve, Khakassky Nature Reserve and Pozarym federal Refuge and is under the personal supervision of Russian president Vladimir Putin.

Currently, Sayano-Shushensky Reserve has the largest protected group of snow leopards in Russia, with 9 adults. During mating season, the number of wild felines within the Reserve grows to approximately 15 snow leopards.

Specialists are confident that this stable group of leopards persists thanks to strong enforcement efforts based on scientific study and comprehensive activities that increase environmental awareness and popularize knowledge about rare animals.

Enforcement improves annually thanks to planned, programmatic, and project activities. Joint patrols are conducted by staff from the region’s protected areas, and the frequency of patrols is increased in areas where snow leopards are resident. Improvements are being made to equipment and technology required for enforcement, science, and environmental education.

The Wild Cats of Southern Siberia program and Snow Leopard Study and Monitoring Program are ongoing, and that means that new discoveries will be made about the life of snow leopards.

Press Office, Sayano-Shushensky Nature Reserve

You can read about the controversial history of Mongol on The Altai Project’s website: http://www.altaiproject.org/2011/03/mongol-is-free/

Jennifer Castner jennifer@altaiproject.org Director, The Altai Project Moss Beach, CA (c) +1.510.393.5525

http://altaiproject.org Strengthening communities and protecting nature in Altai

January 2013: Presenting the first-ever evidence of the snow leopard Panthera unica in Kugti Wildlife Sanctuary in Himachal Pradesh, a recently-published paper has recommended further studies to help generate baseline information for conservation of this endangered species.

The snow leopard in Kugti Wildlife Sanctuary was sighted dragging its kill (a young ibex) by researchers – Neeraj Mahar and Sajid Idrisi – during a Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) survey in 2010 to help the Forest Department prepare an inventory of the area’s wildlife. It was recorded at an altitude of 3,376 m.

“While this opportunistic sighting by our team established snow leopard presence in Kugti, it raised a number of questions. Is Kugti Wildlife Sanctuary and nearby protected areas a snow leopard habitat? Or do they follow the prey to lower altitudes during winter, possibly from Lahaul or other nearby areas? This can only be verified with further focused studies,” said Dr. Rahul Kaul, Chief Ecologist, WTI, one of the authors of the paper.

Very little specific information exists on the distribution of snow leopards in India. Rough estimates put the population at 400-600 along the Himalayan region in India, and about 4080-6590 across the world (12 countries where it is found). Five Indian states, three in the western Himalayan region – Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand, and two in the north-eastern region – Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim, are known to host snow leopards in the country.

“Snow leopards inhabit the non-forested zone above the tree line – around 3,200 metres in the western Himalayas and around 4,200 metres in the eastern Himalayas, going over the Greater Himalayan crest into the Trans Himalayan region,” explained Dr. Yash Veer Bhatnagar of the Snow Leopard Trust and Nature Conservation Foundation, adding that the common leopards are ‘replaced’ by snow leopards in these areas.

The snow leopard is listed in Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, and is classified as ‘Endangered’ in the IUCN Red List. Yet, as other carnivores in India, it is threatened due to conflicts with people, retaliatory attacks, prey depletion due to competition with livestock and hunting, poaching, and unplanned development in their habitat.

Source: http://www.sanctuaryasia.com/conservation/news/9171-snow-leopard-in-kugti-wildlife-sanctuary

USAID partners with the Snow Leopard Trust to launch a new four-year ecosystem conservation project. Details from the USAID blog are as follows:

‘”USAID’s missions around the world are raising awareness of the interconnectedness between human and wildlife welfare in developing countries.

Here in Kyrgyzstan, we announced on Saturday the launch of a new four-year project focused on preserving the ecosystems of Asia’s mountainous regions, benefiting its people and environment. Entitled “Conservation and Adaptation in Asia’s High Mountain Landscapes and Communities,” the project will be implemented in close partnership with our partners: the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and the Snow Leopard Trust. It will operate not only in Kyrgyzstan but also in Bhutan, India, Mongolia, Nepal and Pakistan, and build alliances across all countries with snow leopards.

Officials from 12 countries attended a three-day conference on the snow leopard in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan on December 1-3, 2012. Photo Credit: USAID

The snow leopard is a focus of this project for three major reasons. First, these endangered animals face significant threats to their habitats in the context of a changing climate and increased human activities. Second, animals like the snow leopard have great popular appeal, drawing attention to the challenge of conservation and providing a rallying point to benefit entire ecosystems, including the humans who depend on these ecosystems for their livelihoods. Finally, snow leopards are indicative of the health and vitality of entire ecosystems across their range. They are an integral part of the ecosystems in which they live, and the well-being of countless other species and human communities depends on the health of those ecosystems.

The primary goal of the new USAID project is to stimulate greater understanding and action on the environment, by helping conserve this iconic and endangered species, as well as by connecting snow leopard conservation to a broader set of environmental, economic and social issues with consequences for Asia’s future sustainability, including local livelihoods, water and food security, and climate change adaptation. In Kyrgyzstan, the project will include a snow leopard population survey considering recent and predicted changes in key habitats, support to anti-poaching teams, and engagement in species conservation activities through conservation education and training with local communities.

It was not a coincidence that the project was announced in Kyrgyzstan. The President of the Kyrgyz Republic, Almaz Atambayev, and other senior Kyrgyz officials have shown great initiative in bringing this important topic to the international level, as demonstrated by the three-day conference on the snow leopard which ended on December 3, attended by representatives from 12 countries and NGOs from across the world. We hope this is just the beginning of our joint work with local and international partners on this challenging task to bring positive impact on both wildlife and the mountain communities of Asia.”‘

‘Footage of snow leopard cubs in the Pamir Mountains of Tajikistan was caught on camera trap surveys.

As many as 300 of the 3,500 to 7,000 wild snow leopards live in the Tajik Pamirs. This area is considered to be a critical link between the southern and northern regions of the snow leopard’s range, serving as a vital genetic corridor for the species.

Panthera recently released the footage obtained from a camera trap set up in the area of a mother snow leopard and her cubs.

The organization has carried out two camera trap surveys in the Pamir Mountains, including one in Tajikistan’s Jartygumbez Istyk River region.

Panthera said that while reviewing photos from the survey’s 40 camera traps, the team uncovered new images of a snow leopard mother and her two cubs.

“In true holiday form, the playful cubs are shown licking and pawing icicles, and attempting to climb a rock,” the team wrote in a press statement. “Along with this entertaining footage, also included are stunning images of the snow leopard mother and one of her cubs inspecting the camera trap, their quizzical faces pressed up against the camera lens.”

The footage helps to indicate that a healthy, breeding snow leopard population exists in the Jartygumbez Istyk River region of Tajikistan.

When combining the data with evidence gathered in 2011 of snow leopard cubs in the Zorkul region of Tajikistan’s Pamir Mountains, it adds evidence to a thriving population in the habitat.

Panthera said its scientists are reviewing all of the camera traps photos from the surveys to assess the size of the region’s snow leopard population, and the significance of the Pamirs as a part of the snow leopard’s corridor.

The team has collected snow leopard scat samples for diet analysis, and are conducting surveys to evaluate the abundance of the snow leopard prey species. Panthera also said its team is assessing the management and impact of local trophy hunting concessions and nature reserves.

Scientists at the organization have identified poaching and unsustainable hunting of snow leopard prey, including ibex and Marco polo sheep, as a major threat to Tajikistan’s snow leopards.

The staff is working with local villagers and a trophy “prey” hunting expert to analyze the infrastructure and training needed to establish a hunting program of prey species. This program, which begins in 2013, will help better regulate the current unsustainable hunting of ibex and Marco polo sheep to conserve Tajikistan’s snow leopards.

“Ultimately, if successful, Panthera hopes to use this community-based prey hunting program model to implement similar operations in other Central Asian countries,” according to the statement.’

Source: Lee Rannals for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online
http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1112746395/snow-leopards-panthera-video-footage-of-cubs-playing-121112/

See link above for video.

Snow leopard survey cameras confirm the presence of Pallas Cats in an area where there had been no previous photographic evidence of their existence in the area.

Stout and pushy: It uses low vegetation and rocky terrain for cover

Source: http://www.kuenselonline.com/2011/?p=38488
By Passang Norbu

Trap camera image

Wangchuck Centennial Park: Camera traps, set up to survey the snow leopard population in Wangchuck centennial park in Bumthang, has captured and confirmed the presence of another cat in the country, the Pallas cat.

“Several pictures show the Pallas cat at a place called Boera in January and April, and at Marganphu area in February and April this year,” World Wildlife Fund (WWF) officials said.

Marganphu is a three-day walk from the nearest road point at Nasiphel in Choekhor gewog, Bumthang; and Boera is a four-day walk. Both places have no human settlement, and the only visitors are yak-herders and cordycep collectors.

With an uncanny resemblance to the comic strip character, Garfield, the Pallas cat is about the size of a domestic cat, 18-26inches long, and weighs between 3-5kg.

The combination of its stocky posture and long, dense fur makes it appear stout and plushy. Its fur is ochre, with dark vertical bars on the torso and forelegs, and its winter coat is greyer and less patterned than the summer one. The legs are proportionately shorter than those of other cats, and ears are set very low and wide apart. With unusually short claws, its face is shortened, compared with other cats, giving it a flattened look.

Pallas cats are not fast runners, and hunt primarily by ambush or stalking, using low vegetation and rocky terrain for cover. They feed largely on diurnally active prey species, such as gerbils, pikas and partridges, and sometimes catch young marmots.

The habitat of the cat, WWF officials said, is characterised by rolling hills, dominated by glacial outwash and alpine steppe vegetation. Pallas cats were spotted on same locations, where other predators, such as snow leopard, Tibetan wolf and red fox, are found.

Wildlife conservation officials say that the Pallas cat is negatively impacted by habitat degradation, prey base decline and hunting, and has therefore been classified as near threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature since 2002. Hunters, lured by its fur, fat and organs for medicinal value, threaten its survival.

WWF conservation director Vijay Moktan told Kuensel that, although foresters mentioned the presence of Pallas cat in the past, with possibilities of finding the cat at an altitudinal range of 2,800m to 4,000m, until now there had been no pictorial evidence as such. “Before we carry out anything, we first need to discuss it with the government,” he said.

The WWF head office in United States was informed about the finding. The finding could probably be the first report on the occurrence of Pallas cat in the eastern Himalayas, according to WWF-US conservation scientist, Rinjan Shrestha, who has been closely working on the snow leopard survey.

A joint project between WWF and department of forests and park services (DoFPS), camera traps were placed at the end of November last year for the snow leopard survey.

SLN member Shafqat Hussain proposes creating protected areas for Snow Leopards in Pakistan.

Source: National Geographic News
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/10/121009-snow-leopards-conservation-big-cats-animals-science/
By Christine Dell’Amore

Snow Leopards Need to be Protected… But How?

One conservationist has a radial new plan – treating the rare cat as a “domesticated” animal.

The snow leopard in Pakistan is an endangered species. The population of the rarely seen big cat has likely fallen to fewer than 450 in the country, mainly due to hunting. Now an expert has come up with an unconventional—and controversial—proposal to save the snow leopard: Classify it as a domesticated animal.

That doesn’t mean that snow leopards are literally tame, like a chicken, explained Shafqat Hussain, a National Geographic Emerging Explorer who spoke during the National Geographic Explorers Symposium in Washington, D.C., in June: “When I say that snow leopards are like domestic cats, I mean it rhetorically to make contrast with the word wild.” (National Geographic News is part of the National Geographic Society.)

His idea stems from the changing relationship between snow leopards and humans. Where the cats do remain in the Himalaya, they increasingly share their habitat with mountain herders. A 2010 study of snow leopard scat found that up to 70 percent of the species’ diet in the Gilgit Baltistan Province (map) comes from sheep, cattle, and other domestic animals. Some herders have killed snow leopards in retaliation for preying on their livestock. (See pictures and video of snow leopards in Afghanistan.)

Given the snow leopards’ diet, “how do we see these mythical, elusive wild animals? Are they really wild in the sense that of meaning we attach to the word wild—existing on its own, having no connection with society and domestic economy?” Hussain said.

“Clearly not.”

Supporting Locals

So the way to enable snow leopards to survive, says Hussain, is not to create protected areas that sequester them from local communities. That solution often alienates farmers, who lose their grazing areas as a result. He would suggest supporting local herders instead so they can make a living despite snow leopard incursions. (See snow leopard pictures in National Geographic magazine.)

And that’s exactly what he’s been doing for more than a decade. In 1999 Hussain founded the Snow Leopard Project, an insurance scheme that compensates local people in snow leopard-range countries if their livestock are killed by the predators.

Various branches of the successful project, which is jointly managed by project officials and a committee of villagers, have spread to 400 households covering 3,000 animals across central Asia.

Since 1998, close to U.S. $7,000 has been paid out in compensation for lost animals, and $13,000 invested on improving livestock corrals and other infrastructure. Meanwhile, the snow leopard population seems to have remained stable, if not grown, Hussain said.

Snow Leopard Perspective Controversial

Not everyone agrees. In fact, there is great consternation in the big-cat conservation community about Hussain’s ideas, particularly that conservation groups don’t work with locals. (Learn about National Geographic’s Big Cats Initiative.)

Tom McCarthy, executive director of the Snow Leopard Program for the big-cat conservation group Panthera, said that he doesn’t “know a single conservation [nongovernmental organization] working on snow leopards today that would support setting up reserves for the cats at the expense of local people.”

For example, before Hussain set up the Snow Leopard Project, McCarthy and colleagues founded the award-winning Snow Leopard Enterprises, which helps local people in snow leopard countries generate income.

Conservation biologist and snow leopard expert Jerry Roe also said by email that relabeling the snow leopard as domestic will not resolve the conflict between snow leopards and herders or benefit the species.

For one, “a change of definition will not alter the perspective of snow leopards as a pest species in the eyes of herders,” said Roe, co-founder of California-based Nomad Ecology, an ecological consulting and research company.

Living with Snow Leopards

Hussain thinks the objections are just not valid. Local people—at least in Pakistan—do not have an “atavistic enmity to snow leopards, [nor] this itch to kill it,” he said. “If they get compensated for their losses, they have no interest in eliminating this animal.”

Such is the case with Mohammed Ibrahim, chairman of Skoyo Krabathang Basingo Conservation and Development Organization in Krabathang, Pakistan (map), who also owns 15 goats. In a phone interview with an Urdu interpreter, Ibrahim said that he’s not worried about snow leopards, mostly because of insurance schemes such as Project Snow Leopard that compensate herders for lost animals.

And since snow leopards have never been known to attack people, Hussain is confident that his scheme would work far better than a conservation policy that separates the leopards from the locals: “The idea of co-existing with snow leopards is easy to implement if you satisfy the villagers.”

Ultimately, conservationists share the same goal: Ensuring that the snow leopard —what Hussain calls a “symbol of the high mountains”—can survive. Whether that will continue to be an animal dependent on people for food, though, is still up in the air.

Wildlife Conservation Society –

WAKHAN CORRIDOR, AFGHANISTAN, (July 17, 2012) – Two snow leopards were captured, fitted with satellite collars, and released for the first time in Afghanistan by a team of Wildlife Conservation Society conservationists and Afghan veterinarians conducting research during a recent expedition.

The team successfully captured and released the male snow leopards on May 27 and June 8 respectively. Each cat was weighed, measured, fitted with a Vectronix satellite collar, and DNA samples were taken. After DNA samples, the healthy snow leopards were released and headed up the Hindu Kush Mountains in good condition. The big cats will be tracked by WCS to better understand their behavior and range. So far, the first snow leopard, Pahlawan, has travelled more than 125 kilometers; while the second cat, Khani Wakhai, has travelled more than 153 kilometers.

The veterinary team, including WCS’s Dr. Stephane Ostrowski and two Afghan colleagues Dr. Ali Madad and Dr Hafizullah Noori, conducted the tranquilizing process at the capture sites along with Nat Geo WILD’s Boone Smith, an expert tracker who traveled to Afghanistan for the project with the Nat Geo WILD film crew.

The work was generously supported by the National Geographic Society, Nat Geo WILD and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

An adult snow leopard stands about two feet at the shoulder and weighs between 60 and 120 pounds. The snow leopard is an alpine rock-climbing specialist with large paws that are ideally adapted to both rocky terrain and deep snow drifts and thick fur to stay warm.

David Lawson, WCS Afghanistan Country Director, said: “These captures are sensational. They are also a real tribute to the knowledge of the local community rangers and the success of our recent camera trapping efforts, which enabled the team to select spots that were known to be frequented by snow leopards.”

The range of the snow leopard includes about 2 million square kilometers across 12 nations in Asia from Russia to Nepal. It is the apex predator and a flagship species for one of the last great wilderness regions on earth – the spectacular mountain ranges of Asia, including the Himalaya, Karakoram, Hindu Kush, Pamir, Tien Shan, and Altai ranges.

The entire process was documented by a Nat Geo WILD television crew for a world premiere special Snow Leopards of Afghanistan premiering this December on Nat Geo WILD during the third annual Big Cat Week, an extension of the Cause An Uproar campaign, dedicated to saving the world’s big cats.

Despite survival skills such as spectacular leaping ability and coloring that camouflages them to near invisibility on the rocky alpine slopes of their native habitat, the snow leopard faces threats that are bringing this species closer to extinction. Snow leopards have been categorized as an Endangered Species on the IUCN’s Red List since 1972, and the species is listed as endangered by almost all range countries. Despite these listings, snow leopard populations are still thought to be dwindling across most of their range. Some 3,000 to 7,500 individuals are thought to exist.

There are five major threats facing snow leopards in the wild: poaching, especially for the skins but also for the traditional medicinal trade; loss of natural wild prey (mostly wild sheep and goats, but also marmots and smaller prey); retaliatory killing by shepherds and villagers when snow leopards switch to livestock as the only available alternative food source; general disturbance of habitat as people increasingly move into snow leopard ranges; and lack of awareness by local communities and governments of the rapid disappearance of snow leopards and the need for improved enforcement both in and outside protected areas.

Peter Zahler, WCS Deputy Director of Asia Programs, said: “The information garnered from the tagging will assist researchers as they learn more about the range, behavior, movements, and habitat used by snow leopards. This information in turn will help us in our partnership with the Afghan Government and local communities to design protected areas and management strategies to optimize the conservation of this big cat.”

WCS works closely with Afghanistan government partners including the Ministry of Agriculture and the National Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA) to find ways to save snow leopards while improving local people’s livelihoods.

NEPA Director General Mostapha Zaher said, “History is being made. Snow leopards are indeed magnificent creatures, and we hope that this research will raise awareness and help in preserving Afghanistan’s snow leopards and our country’s other wonderful wildlife.”

Ghani Ghuriani, Afghanistan Deputy Minister for Agriculture Affairs in the Ministry of Agriculture, said: “The snow leopard is an iconic species for our country. Its continued presence in Afghanistan shows that our efforts at improving natural resource management – from rangeland practices to wildlife protection – are succeeding.”

While this is the first collaring effort in Afghanistan, WCS supported the first ever radio-collar study of snow leopards in Mongolia’s Gobi Altai Mountains in the 1990s under the leadership of Dr. George Schaller. WCS has a long history of working on snow leopard conservation, beginning with Schaller’s wildlife surveys on snow leopards and their prey in the Himalaya in the 1970s, resulting in his seminal books “Mountain Monarchs” and “Stones of Silence.” Schaller and colleagues have followed up that work with ongoing conservation efforts in China, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Tajikistan.

Source: http://www.sciencenewsline.com/articles/2012071716000040.html