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In Western Tuva, the conflict between the snow leopard and local residents remains active

May 12, 2010 from Tuva Online

According to the research data of WWF, the conflict between the snow leopard and the residents of Western Tuva remains active. The leopards are in danger of getting shot by the herdsmen in revenge for attacks on domestic livestock. WWF continues to actively work with the herdsmen. The conflict between irbis and people originated when the local shepherds took their herds to graze in areas where this predator lives, and the normal population density of hoofed animals dropped off because of poaching.

Lacking their natural prey, the snow leopards started to attack domestic livestock. The leopards attack goats and sheep; only rarely do they attack large animals like yaks and horses, in which case they concentrate on young animals. However, a case was documented where a female leopard and two grown cubs killed a large 8-year-old yak.

According to the collected evidence from 2000-2007 yrs, in Western Tuva (Mongun-Taiga and Bai-Taiga districts of Republic Tyva), every year about 80-100 heads of small horned cattle and 10-30 horses and yaks fall prey to snow leopards. Especially massive losses of sheep and goats – up to 80-90% of the total number of killed animals – occur when a leopard gets into the koshara, a roofed stable where the cattle spends the night.

According to the census carried out by WWF specialists on the Tsagan-Shibetu ridge in the spring of 2010, during the period from November 2009 to February 2010, there were 6 cases of snow leopard attack on livestock. Defending the livestock, which, in these regions, is the only source of subsistence, Tuvans often shoot the leopards in revenge for their savaged cattle. Considering that many shepherds suffer from irbis attacks, there is a potential threat that they may act as accomplices to the poachers who hunt the snow leopard for profit on order.

In the evaluation of experts, the total snow leopard population in Western Tuva is at least 18-20 individuals. The preservation of this grouping of the species who live on the Shapshal and Tsagan-Shibetu ridges, Chikhachevo and Mongun-Taiga, is one of the priority tasks of the snow leopard protection in the Russian Federation.

Altai-Sayan project of WWF invests a great effort to defuse the conflict between herdsmen and the snow leopard. For example, in October 2007, using data from WWF, the staff of the “Ubsunur depression” nature preserve together with the local residents worked on strengthening the stables as a means to prevent incursions of snow leopards at the Tsagan-Shibetu ridge ( as part of the project PROON/GEF).

Ventilation openings in the kosharas, as well as windows and openings above doors were covered over by strong wire netting, which successfully prevented snow leopard incursions into the stables. This simple expedient allowed the losses from snow leopard attacks on livestock in the kosharas to decrease by 80-90%, and also prevented deaths of the predators at the hands of the herdsmen. In that way, during the period from November 2007 to the present time, there was not a single case of an irbis getting into a koshara at the Tsagan-Shibetu ridge.

In 2009, a special Buddhist calendar was published with photos of the irbis and Kamby-Lama’s appeal to the residents of the mountains to protect the snow leopard and the areas of his range. Such a calendar can now be seen in many yurts and houses of herdsmen in Western Tuva.

Currently a co-operative project of WWF and PROON/GEF is being realized, working out a trans-border eco-tourism route “The country of the snow leopard”, whose core task is to involve the herdsmen of Tuva and Altai in tourist activities within the irbis range. The irbis will be used as the main attraction of Western Tuva for tourism, with the aim to show the local population the value of this species for development of tourism. Motives of traditional souvenir production will also involve the snow leopard.

In this way, the protection of snow leopard will become a direct source of income for the population from eco-tourism, and its development could become an effective instrument of protection of rare species in Western Tuva.

For information:

In 2010, with support from WWF, an evaluation of the numbers of a trans-border grouping of snow leopard on the Tsagan-Shibetu range (Russia and Mongolia). The total numbers of this grouping was calculated at 15-20 individuals, and its condition was appreciated as stable. In June 2010 the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Problems of Ecology and Evolution RAN, together with WWF of Russia, are planning to start a project of observing this group of snow leopards with the use of satellite collars and automatic photo cameras. These works should bring many new findings about the snow leopard in Western Tuva, and to suggest new actions to be taken for protection of this species.

Tatiana Ivanitskaya, translated by Heda Jindrak

http://en.tuvaonline.ru/2010/05/12/3100_irbis.html

China arrests two Mongolians for smuggling snow leopard skins

Beijing 27 April 2010 – Chinese police arrested two Mongolian citizens after finding two snow leopard skins and a snow leopard skull hidden inside their jeep at a border checkpoint, state media said Tuesday.

Police in the remote Alxa League of north China’s Inner Mongolia region spent 10 hours searching the vehicle that had more than 40 hidden compartments, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

The smuggled skins and skull had an estimated value of more than 200,000 yuan (29,000 dollars) on the black market, the agency quoted Zhao Jun, an anti-smuggling officer from the regional capital, as saying.

Experts say snow leopard skins from Mongolia and Kyrgyzstan are often smuggled across the borders to be sold in China or abroad.

Only about 6,000 snow leopards are believed to remain in the wild in 12 central and southern Asian nations, according to international wildlife protection groups.

Last month, a court in China’s far western region of Xinjiang – which borders Mongolia and Kyrgyzstan – sentenced two herdsmen to long prison terms after they were convicted of trapping and killing a snow leopard.

In a major case in 2007 in Gansu province, between Inner Mongolia and Xinjiang, police seized a record 27 snow leopard skins when they investigated a report of illegal trading in endangered animal parts.

http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/320814,china-arrests-two-mongoli
ans-for-smuggling-snow-leopard-skins.html

Rodney Jackson Named Finalist for the 2010 Indianapolis Prize: Award Celebrates Outstanding Achievement in Animal Conservation

Press release from the Indianapolis Zoo, Indiana, US: April 13, 2010

INDIANAPOLIS — Graceful, powerful, supremely adapted to life at high altitudes, this animal’s most dangerous attribute is its stunningly beautiful coat of spotted fur, a coat that has brought the species near to extinction. But the snow leopard has a champion in Rodney Jackson, Ph.D., a visionary conservationist working from the Himalayas to the mountains of Mongolia and Russia, who has been named one of six finalists for the $100,000 Indianapolis Prize. Jackson, director and founder of the Snow Leopard Conservancy, applies today’s technology to the problem of disappearing snow leopards by implementing new camera-trapping and genetic surveying techniques, which ultimately gives these graceful creatures a chance of survival.

The other Prize finalists are Gerardo Ceballos, Ph.D., leader in conservation strategy;
premier elephant expert Iain Douglas-Hamilton, Ph.D.; famed cheetah researcher Laurie Marker, D. Phil., Blue Ocean Institute founder Carl Safina, Ph.D. and Amanda Vincent, Ph.D., seahorse expert with the University of British Columbia.

“The passion and energy of these six finalists are the essence of the Indianapolis Prize. Their ability to connect conservation with the community has established hope for all species, including us,” said Indianapolis Prize Chair Myrta Pulliam.

“Studying snow leopards is not a passive endeavor. These elusive creatures do not give up their secrets easily,” said Don O. Hunter, Ph.D., team leader, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. “They demand boot time, strained lungs, routine hypoxia, poor rations and the inevitable time away from loved ones. But in spite of these hardships, Rodney is among the handful of field biologists in the world who finds the experience transformative.”

Studying snow leopards is extremely challenging; Jackson has endured long, bitter winters and dangerous terrain at altitudes above 12,000 feet to track and monitor these elusive creatures, and to teach local goat herders how to protect their flocks and coexist peacefully with the big cats. Jackson’s grassroots approach to research, conservation and education is helping to transform this magnificent big cat from a potential livestock predator to an economic asset throughout much of its 12-country range.

Born in South Africa, Jackson received his bachelor’s degree and doctorate from the University of London and his master’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley. He resides in the San Francisco Bay area.

The winner of the 2010 Indianapolis Prize receives $100,000, along with the Lilly Medal, to be awarded at the Indianapolis Prize Gala presented by Cummins Inc. The Gala is scheduled for September 25, 2010, at The Westin Hotel in Indianapolis.

The 2008 Indianapolis Prize was awarded to legendary field biologist George Schaller, Ph.D. Schaller’s accomplishments span decades and continents, bringing fresh focus to the plight of several endangered species – from tigers in India to gorillas in Rwanda – and inspiring others to join the crusade.

To learn more about each of the finalists, how you can support their work, and the Indianapolis Prize, please visit indianapolisprize.org.

The biennial $100,000 Indianapolis Prize represents the largest individual monetary award for animal conservation in the world and is given as an unrestricted gift to the chosen honoree. The Indianapolis Prize was initiated by the Indianapolis Zoo as a significant component of its mission to inspire local and global communities and to celebrate, protect and preserve our natural world through conservation, education and research. This award brings the world’s attention to the cause of animal conservation and the brave, talented and dedicated men and women who spend their lives saving the Earth’s endangered animal species. It was first awarded in 2006 to Dr. George Archibald, the co-founder of the International Crane Foundation and one of the world’s great field biologists. In 2008, the Indianapolis Prize went to Dr. George Schaller, the world’s preeminent field biologist and vice president of Panthera and senior conservationist for the Wildlife Conservation Society. The Eli Lilly and Company Foundation has provided funding for the Indianapolis Prize since 2006.

Locals Fleecing Professional Blue Sheep Hunters, Nepal

Nepal: Professional hunters who come to hunt the blue sheep and Himalatan tahr in Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve, are forced to pay more than six-fold to local communities than their hunting fee set by the government. A hunter has to pay NPR 40,000 for a trophy blue sheep and Rs 20,000 for a Himalayan tahr to the government. Now they have to pay NPR 250,000 to locals otherwise they are not allowed to hunt desptie having a license.

March 29, 2010
The Himalayan Times

Thanks to Headlines Himalaya, March 22-31 (104), 2010 edition for the translation of this article.

Bones, skin of snow leopard seized in Dibrugarh, India

Bones, skin of snow leopard seized

STAFF CORRESPONDENT, Assam Tribune

DIBRUGARH, April 1 – Five kilograms of bones and a fur-covered body skin of a highly-endangered Himalayan snow leopard was seized from one Sanjib Jalan from the heart of the city on March 27.
The police led by additional SP Debashish Sharma reportedly caught Jalan redhanded while he was striking the deal with one Ranjan Tasa in a furniture shop, close to Sadar police station. Police arrested the duo and further investigation is on.

Police is yet to find out how the skin and the bones reached the city, as these rare, beautiful snow leopards are reportedly not found in any parts of the northeastern region. They are traced to the mountains of central Asia.

In India, they are found in the snowy Himalayan region. These animals are insulated by thick hair, and their wide, fur-covered feet act as natural snowshoes. These endangered cats appear to be in declining because of the demand of their fur, skin. Besides, illegal traders look for these animals as its body parts are reportedly used for traditional Chinese medicines.

http://www.assamtribune.com/scripts/detailsnew.asp?id=apr0210/state07

Mongolia winter kills herds, devastating the poorest

28 Mar 2010 21:00:18 GMT

By Tyra Dempster

BEIJING, March 29 (Reuters) – A severe winter has left 4.5 million dead animals in stockyards across the Mongolian steppes, and many poor herders face the loss of all their property just before the important breeding season.

About a tenth of Mongolia’s livestock may have perished, as deep snows cut off access to grazing and fodder.

The damage to the rural economy could increase demands on Mongolia’s already-stretched national budget, which relies on mining revenues to meet spending commitments.

The Red Cross launched an emergency appeal for 1 million Swiss francs to assist Mongolian herders, after it estimated that 4.5 million livestock have died in the country since December.

“The numbers of livestock that have perished have gone up very, very quickly and dramatically now to about 4 million which is roughly a tenth of the whole livestock population,” Francis Markus, communications director for the Red Cross’ East Asia delegation, said in Beijing after returning from Mongolia.

“This means that thousands of families, mostly coming from the poorest and most vulnerable layers of the herder population, have lost their entire flocks of animals and have been left in a very, very distraught and very, very desperate state.”

Roughly one-quarter of Mongolia’s 3 million people are nomads, while others also raise livestock in fixed settlements. Many go deeply in debt to buy and raise their herds, in hopes of making the money back by selling wool, meat and skins.

A similar combination of a summer drought, followed by heavy snow and low winter temperatures, which is known in Mongolian as a ‘zud’, caused widespread hardship in Mongolia a decade ago.

As a result, impoverished herder families flocked to the slums outside the capital, Ulan Bator, straining the city’s ability to provide basic services.

“The herding community’s situation is very hard now. The best off are those who still have around 40 percent of their livestock left and in the worst 50 cases are those who have lost absolutely everything,” said Zevgee, speaker of the county parliament in Bayangol, southwest of the capital.

This zud was the worst for several years, with temperatures dropping to 40 degrees Celsius below zero or colder in 19 of Mongolia’s 21 provinces, according to a World Bank report.

Around 63 percent of Mongolia’s rural residents’ assets are their livestock, it said, and at least 35 percent of the population earn a living from their animals.

Herder Tsendjav said that she had no option but to rely on the government and aid to survive the weather.

“I have seen many zuds that have caused the loss of numerous animals but I have never seen a zud as bad as this one,” she said at a Red Cross aid dispensary.

(Writing by Lucy Hornby; Editing by Sugita Katyal)

http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/MYAI-83Z33V?OpenDocument&rc=3&emid=CW-2010-000010-MNG

Illegal Wildlife Trade Flowing Through Porous China-Myanmar Border

World Sentinel: Newswire Services
March 21, 2010

Washington, DC — Porous borders are allowing vendors in Myanmar to offer a door-to-door delivery service for illegal wildlife products such as tiger bone wine to buyers in China, according to a new report from TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network.

The State of Wildlife Trade in China 2008 is the third in an annual series on emerging trends in China´s wildlife trade.

The report found that over-exploitation of wildlife for trade has affected many species and is stimulating illegal trade across China´s borders.

“China´s remote border areas have long been considered a hotbed for illegal wildlife trafficking and surveillance is difficult in these sparsely populated areas,” said Professor Xu Hongfa, Director of TRAFFIC – China

The illegal trade in Asian big cat products is a key issue at the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) meeting.

The meeting is taking place in Doha, Qatar, where 175 countries will vote on measures that, if properly enforced, can end illegal tiger trade for good. Tigers are especially in the spotlight during this Year of the Tiger in the Chinese lunar calendar.

“TRAFFIC and WWF are encouraging CITES Parties to enforce the law effectively in their own countries in order to end all illegal trade,” said Colman O´Criodain, Wildlife Trade Analyst at WWF International.

Tiger and leopard parts were also found openly for sale in western China, although market surveys in 18 cities found just two places where such items were encountered. One of them—Bei Da Jie Market in Linxia city—has a history of trading in tiger products. Five surveys between late 2007 and 2008 found one tiger, 15 leopard skins and seven snow leopard skins for sale in this market.

“There is clearly ongoing demand for leopard and tiger products, but the trade appears to be becoming less visible year-on-year,” said Professor Xu, adding that it is unclear if it is because there is less trade in such products or it has become more covert and organized.

The report also examines the trade of other wildlife species in China. In southern China, TRAFFIC identified 26 species of freshwater turtles for sale. The majority of animals were claimed by vendors to be supplied from freshwater turtle farms—many of which do not practice closed-cycle captive breeding and therefore rely on wild-sourced breeding stock.

“If no action is taken, sourcing from the wild coupled with increased captive production to meet an expanding market demand will pose a serious threat to wild species through unsustainable harvesting from wild populations in China and beyond,” said Professor Xu.

The report also highlights research into the legality of timber imported into China from source countries in Africa and South-East Asia, noting up to 30% discrepancies between reported import and export timber volumes.

Other topics covered include sustainable utilization of traditional medicinal plants, analysis of wildlife trade information, the Corallium trade in East Asia, tackling cross-border illegal wildlife trade on the China-Nepal border, and stopping illegal wildlife trade online.
The American Chronicle, California Chronicle, Los Angeles Chronicle, World Sentinel, and affiliates are online magazines for national, international, state, and local news. We also provide opinion and feature articles. We have over 5,000 contributors, over 100,000 articles, and over 11 million visitors annually.

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China and India called on by scientists to collaborate on conservation

Biodiversity knows no ‘national boundaries’ and nations must protect species from rising consumption, dams and industry

Jonathan Watts, Asia environment correspondent
guardian.co.uk (http://www.guardian.co.uk/), Thursday 18 March 2010 18.00 GMT

Mount Kanchenjunga in the Darjeeling mountains in the Himalayas, a particularly environmentally sensitive area. Photograph: Frederic Soltan/© Frederic Soltan/Corbis

China and India could together decide the future of the global environment, a team of senior scientists warn today in a call for closer collaboration on conservation by the world’s two most populous nations.

Writing in the journal Science, the eight coauthors — including zoologists from both nations — warn of the security and biodiversity threat posed by rising consumption, dam construction and industrial emissions.

The ecological footprint of the two fast-emerging Asian economies has already spread beyond their borders and with future economic growth rates likely to continue at 8% for several years, the experts say the pressure on borders, resources and biodiversity could reach dangerous levels.

“The degree to which China and India consume natural resources within their boundaries and beyond will largely determine future environmental, social and economic outcomes,” say the co-authors headed by Peter Raven, director of the Missouri Botanical Garden.

The report notes that the two countries import 9m of crude oil a year and 64% of all the roundwood pine produced in Asia, adding to the problems of global deforestation and warming.

The impacts are becoming more obvious in the strategically sensitive Himalayan border area, where the authors say large numbers of troops are damaging the environment. Resources in the mountain region are so scarce, they note, that soldiers sometimes eat rare plants.

Melting glaciers that supply meltwater for half the world’s population and the constriction of rivers by hundreds of dams are also major problems, they say.

With the demand for energy in both nations growing, they predict a further rise in construction of hydroelectric plants and exploitation of other Himalayan resources, with alarming implications for regional security.

“The synergistic effects of decreasing water resources, loss of biodiversity, increased pollution and climate change may have negative social and economic consequences and, even worse, escalate conflicts within and between the two countries,” they warn.

Despite their growing global importance, China and India have conducted little joint research and engaged in only modest collaboration to mitigate the impact of their rapid development. There have been small signs of progress in recent years, including agreements to jointly monitor glaciers and study the interaction between the atmosphere and the ocean. But the authors say much more collaboration is necessary.

“More earnest cooperation between the world’s two most populous countries will be vital for mitigating biodiversity loss, global warming and deforestation,” the authors say.

They suggest turning disputed territory into trans-boundary protected areas, fostering scientific collaboration, working with the United Nations to manage natural resources and encouraging regional forums, such as Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), to focus more on the environment.

One of the authors — Zhang Yaping, the president of the Kunming Institute of Zoology — said it was rare for biodversity protection to span the two nations.

“We should certainly strengthen cooperation in this field,” he said. “China and India have done a lot of conservation work inside their own nations. What we need now is a joint effort. There should be no national boundaries in biodiversity protection.”

Next round in New Delhi: Gross National Happiness Seminar

GNH (Gross National Happiness) Seminar 14 March, 2010 – The first ever
seminar between Bhutan and India on GNH concluded on March 12, with
participants from both sides acknowledging the need for more discussion
and study for the development philosophy to be successfully implemented.

Dasho Karma Ura, the president for the centre for Bhutan studies (CBS),
said that the “rich dialogue” had “enriched” the understanding of GNH
for both Bhutanese and Indian participants. The seminar saw, what a CBS
press release described as, “influential minds in India” talking to
Bhutanese counterparts on various topics related to GNH. The Indian
delegation included young politicians, sociologists, environmentalists,
conservationists, and health activists.

“GNH offers potential that needs to be unlocked,” said Peter DeSouza,
director for the institute of advanced studies in India. He added that
GNH is relevant today, as it offered a framework within which the ideas
contained offered a counter discourse to the western development model.
“GNH shows how Bhutan thinks ahead of time, it’s an evolved state of
thinking, a brilliant concept,” said Koustubh Sharma (PhD), a regional
field biologist with snow leopard trust, the largest organisation
concerned with the conservation of the endangered snow leopard. He said
that India is now suffering the consequences of a fast paced development
policy based on the western model.

Koustubh Sharma said the dialogue on GNH showed that it did not exist to
hide Bhutan’s underdevelopment as skeptics might observe. But he added
that some aspects have to be addressed, such as ensuring minor details,
such as the needs of specific groups of people are not undermined, when
using only one value to express the people’s happiness and development.
“A pivotal issue is whether GNH offers an alternative framework for
evaluation of policy or a state imposed prescription,” said Akhil Sibal,
a lawyer. “I’m definitely convinced that GNH is really a more of a
useful prism through which to look at policy rather than a dogma to be
imposed.” He added, “It’s an ideal worth working towards, to apply not
only within Bhutan but abroad.”

“Ideas and ideologies keep evolving so it’s never sufficient, but for
now, yes,” said Latika Dikshit, a social development consultant on
whether the seminar had provided a thorough understanding of GNH. On
whether GNH is too Utopian, she said, “All dreams start off Utopian,
it’s the path that leads to it that has to be realistic.” Latika Dikshit
said she hoped she would be invited again for another dialogue on GNH.
Comments were also made that perhaps GNH needed to be modernised to
include younger generations.

Dasho Karma Ura said Bhutan could certainly do with more discourses on
GNH and that the dialogue would be continued in India in August this
year. He also added that more discussion on GNH is needed among
Bhutanese, particularly one that includes all three branches of the
government and private sector.

The seminar was jointly organised by CBS and Malvika Singh, the owner
and publisher of Seminar magazine in India.

By Gyalsten K Dorji

http://www.kuenselonline.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1489
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