More than 70 per cent habitat of the snow leopard, over 12 Asian countries, remains unresearched, the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF) said in a recent report.
- The report titled, “Over 100 Years of Snow Leopard Research — A spatially explicit review of the state of knowledge in the snow leopard range” says that the snow leopard lives in rugged terrain — some of the harshest landscapes on the planet — so research poses significant logistical challenges.
- It further says that despite serious efforts to learn more about the species began in the 1970s, the snow leopard’s remote and vast range and elusive nature, means that most of the habitat is still unexplored.
- Globally, there could be as few as 4,000 snow leopards left in Asia’s high mountains and this remaining population faces continued and emerging threats.
Snow leopards
- Snow leopards (Panthera uncia) are mammals with four to five feet size with a tail up to 36 inches.
- Snow leopards can be found throughout high mountain ranges, including the Himalayas and the southern Siberian mountains in Russia and they can also be found in the Tibetan Plateau.
- In India, their geographical range encompasses a large part of the western Himalayas including the states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh in the eastern Himalayas.
- The Minister of State for Environment Forest and Climate Change Shri Babul Supriyo said that India has identified three large landscapes, namely, Hemis-Spiti across Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh; Nanda Devi – Gangotri in Uttarakhand; and Khangchendzonga – Tawang across Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh for the conservation purpose.
Project Snow Leopard
- In India the Project Snow Leopard (PSL) was launched in 2009.
- India is also party to the Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Protection (GSLEP) Programme since 2013.
- The Government of India has identified the snow leopard as a flagship species for the high-altitude Himalayas.
- The Centre hosted the 4th Steering Committee of the GSLEP program in October 2019 at New Delhi. This meeting resulted in the “New Delhi Statement” of strengthening the resolve of the snow leopard range countries towards conservation of the mountain ecosystems of Central and South Asia.
- First National Protocol was also launched in 2019 on Snow Leopard Population Assessment.
Bishkek Declaration
- On October 23, 2013, leaders from 12 countries came together to endorse the “Bishkek Declaration” on the conservation of snow leopards.
- The political leaders from Kyrgyzstan, Almazbek Atambaeyev hosted leaders from Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, India, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan attended the Global Snow Leopard Forum held in the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek, with a shared goal of conserving snow leopards and their fragile habitats.
- A comprehensive Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Protection Programme (GSLEP) was also launched on this day.
- To commemorate this historic date and a watershed moment for snow leopard conservation, October 23 was chosen to be recognised as the “International Snow Leopard Day”.
