Snow Leopards in Nepal

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Good

news and bad news for the Snow leopards of of Nepal August 10, 7:03 PMGreen

Living Examiner <http://www.examiner.com/x-4002-Green-Living-Examiner>Amy

Lou Jenkins

 

The good news is, there are more snow leopard in Nepal than officials

imagined. The bad news is the species is still very vulnerable to poaching,

and the long-term viability of the species remains at risk. The preliminary

population estimate of snow leopards in the Nepal Himalaya conducted by WWF

in collaboration with the Department of National Parks and Wildlife

Conservation (DNPWC) has shown the presence of about 300-400 animals. The

figures were recently released by the Government of Nepal.

 

The study was undertaken with funding from WWF-US, WWF-UK and WWF-Finland.

" The population estimate was based on the model describing the relationship

between sign (scrape) encounter rates, the snow leopard numbers assessed

through genetic analysis and the habitat suitability assessment in the Nepal

Himalaya, " says Dr. Rinjan Shrestha, Conservation Biologist with WWF Nepal.

" This model is useful for providing relatively good estimates of populations

at landscape scales, when the conservation actions are urgently needed and

when data gathering poses a challenge to developing and implementing

conservation strategies. " Snow leopards are widely, but patchily and

sparsely distributed throughout the alpine ecosystems of the Himalayan

mountain range. Their preferred habitat is considered to be rugged,

non-forested landforms, dominated by cliffs, rocky outcrops, and ravines.

Because this terrain is quite inaccessible to people, and because snow

leopards are elusive by nature, very little information is available on

their distribution and population status.

 

" The declining numbers of snow leopard due to the widespread poaching for

bones and pelts, and retaliatory killing call for urgent and strategic

conservation action, " said Mr. Anil Manandhar, Country Representative, WWF

Nepal. " Simple, inexpensive, but effective and standardized methods are

needed to acquire reasonable estimates of snow leopard abundance and

distribution in the Nepal Himalaya that can become the basis for a

conservation strategy. " " In Kangchenjunga Complex, the presence of 18 snow

leopards shows the success of the Livestock Insurance Scheme (LIS) in

involving the local communities in saving the snow leopards from retaliatory

killings, " said Dr. Ghana Shyam Gurung, Conservation Program Director, WWF

Nepal.

 

The LIS is being replicated in other snow leopard landscapes with a vision

to save the snow leopard throughout its landscape ranging from Dolpo in the

west to Kangchenjunga in the east. In Nepal, the endangered snow leopards

are listed in Schedule 1 of the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation

Act, 1973, thereby making it a priority species for conservation. " The

results from the present study is exciting and positive but we can not stay

unworried saying this, " said Dr. Uday Raj Sharma, Secretary, Ministry of

Forest and Soil Conservation, Government of Nepal.