Snow Leopard Survival Strategy - Panthera

Threats to Snow Leopard Survival
A key component of the SLSS process was to identify
threats to long-term snow leopard survival across their
range. The following list is the result of extensive consultations
with stakeholders in Asia and the expert group
at the SLSS Summit. Threats are grouped into four broad
categories 1) Habitat and Prey related, 2) Direct Killing
of Snow Leopards, 3) Policy and Awareness, and 4)
Other Issues.
List of Threats
Category 1: Habitat and Prey Related
1.1 Habitat Degradation and Fragmentation
1.2 Reduction of Natural Prey due to Illegal Hunting
1.3 Reduction of Natural Prey due to Legal Hunting
1.4 Reduction of Natural Prey due to Competition with
Livestock
1.5 Reduction of Natural Prey due to Disease
1.6 Fencing that Disrupts Natural Migration
Category 2: Direct Killing or Removal of Snow Leopards
2.1 Killing of Snow Leopards in Retribution for Livestock
depredation
2.2 Poaching Snow Leopards for Trade in Hides or
Bones
2.3 Museum Collection of Live Animals
2.4 Traditional Hunting of Snow Leopards
2.5 Secondary Poisoning and Trapping of Snow Leopards
2.6 Diseases of Snow Leopards
Category 3: Policy and Awareness
3.1 Lack of Appropriate Policy
3.2 Lack of Effective Enforcement
3.3 Lack of Trans-boundary Cooperation
3.4 Lack of Institutional Capacity
3.5 Lack of Awareness among Local People
3.6 Lack of Awareness among Policy Makers
Category 4: Other Issues
4.1 War and Related Military Activities
4.2 Climate Change
4.3 Human Population Growth and Poverty (indirect
threat)
Potential Actions to Address Threats
Several methods are identified and elaborated in this
document and they include:
• Grazing Management: Promote livestock grazing
practices that reduce impacts on native wildlife, in
particular snow leopard prey species.
• Wildlife-based Ecotourism: Establishing wildlifebased
tourism that provides jobs and financial benefits
to local people will add economic value to wildlife
and create incentives to protect the resource.
• Cottage Industry: Provide income generation opportunities
for communities in snow leopard habitat
through handicraft manufacture and marketing opportunities
with direct and transparent linkages to wildlife
conservation via contracts that provides positive
incentives for compliance.
• Ungulate Trophy Hunting Programs: Establish or
restructure trophy hunting programs that are sustainable,
well monitored and provide return to local people
as an incentive to protect ungulates. Community
co-management of hunting program should be encouraged
where ever appropriate.
• Reducing Poaching and Trade in Snow Leopard Parts:
Determine location, nature and extent of snow leopard
poaching for trade and bring pressure, both legal and
educational, to limit same.
• Reducing Livestock Depredation by Snow Leopards:
Encourage livestock husbandry practices that reduce
depredation by snow leopards and other predators.
• Animal Husbandry: Provide training in animal husbandry
and veterinary care to improve monetary return
at lower stock levels, limit exposure to predation,
and reduce impacts on pasture and rangelands.
• Conservation Education and Awareness: Raise awareness
of snow leopard conservation issues, concerns,
need for action, legal matters, etc, through variety of
media among different audiences.
III. RESEARCH AND INFORMATION NEEDS
During the process of listing the threats to snow leopards
and the required conservation actions, a set of information
needs was also identified. Hence, the list below
encompasses the knowledge required to carry-out urgent
conservation actions.
Master List of Information Needs
R.1 Snow leopard distribution and “hot spots”
R.2 Snow leopard migration and dispersal routes
R.3 Snow leopard population size
R.4 Snow leopard population trends and factor responsible
for changes
R.5 Protected Area coverage – extent and representation
of habitats (gap analysis)
R.6 Agents of habitat degradation and relative impacts
R.7 Snow leopard – prey relationships
R.8 Prey species distribution and “hot spots”
R.9 Prey population baseline and trends
R.10 Dynamics of illegal ungulate hunting (sources,
local need, uses, trade, etc.)
R.11 Dynamics of legal ungulate harvest and baseline
statistics (sex/age, effort, trophy size, etc.)
R.12 Wild ungulate – livestock interactions (competition)
R.13 Ungulate disease – type, areas of occurrence,
prevalence, virulence, treatment
R.14 Snow leopard poaching levels
R.15 Illegal trade in wildlife parts – market demand,
sources and routes, value, etc.
R.16 Livestock depredation rates
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