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THREATS TO SNOW LEOPARDS, WITH A SPECIAL FOCUS
ON TRADE: RANGE STATE ACCOUNTS
This chapter presents country-specific accounts of the present-day threat to Snow Leopards
from trade. Other threats in each range State are outlined briefly, or described at greater length
where there may be a close link with trade in Snow Leopard parts (for example, where killing
by herders may lead to body parts entering trade).
Afghanistan
While there is reported to be a longstanding conflict between herders and Snow Leopards in
Afghanistan (Anon., 2003a), the recent years of conflict have exacerbated this and other threats
to Snow Leopards in the country. Diversion of government attention from environmental
protection and management, an influx of potential ready-customers for Snow Leopard products
in the form of outsiders and increased hunting pressure on wild animals for meat, for example,
are all cited as consequences of unrest and war since the end of Soviet governance of
Afghanistan (Anon., 2003a).
Results of interviews undertaken in 2002, in the Wakhan Corridor, in Badakhshan province,
north-east Afghanistan, suggest that most Snow Leopards are killed in retaliation for livestock
predation (Anon., 2003a). Important differences between Snow Leopards and wolves in
patterns of livestock predation were reported. While wolves took livestock throughout the year
and made their kills in relatively expansive grazing areas, most Snow Leopard kills were
reported in winter and were made by the animal entering a corral. These attacks consequently
resulted frequently in “surplus killing” of livestock (see Conflict with herders). Snow Leopards
are seen as particularly injurious to herders in this way and there have been numerous cases of
Snow Leopards being shot in the Wakhan region (Anon., 2003a).
According to UNEP’s Post-Conflict Assessment in Afghanistan, the inhabitants of the Wakhan
Corridor have responded positively to a call to hand in arms and to stop hunting, issued by the
country’s Transitional Authority (Anon., 2003a). No wildlife parts were observed by UNEP
personnel at the Ishkeshem and Faizabad markets during their field missions in Wakhan (Anon.,
2003a). Although most Snow Leopards in this area are reportedly killed after attacks on
livestock, the skins of such animals are said to be sold to passing traders.
The situation is said to be different in more westerly parts of Badakhshan province, where active
hunting of Snow Leopards takes place. UNEP staff observed that Snow Leopard pelts from
Badakhshan were being offered for sale in fur markets in Kabul, primarily to foreign aid
workers and military personnel (Anon., 2003a). Kabul has allegedly turned into a lucrative
market for Snow Leopard skins, since foreign aid workers and military personnel arrived in the
city following the collapse of the Taliban regime. Consequently hunting of Snow Leopards for
pelts has increased sharply (J. Khan, in litt., 2002). Snow Leopard skins are reported to be sold
in Kabul and in Faizabad for around USD1000 (Harrison, 2003). The skins are reported to
originate from Afghanistan and Pakistan (J. Khan, in litt., 2002). Pakistani traders reported that
Snow Leopard skins fetched considerably higher prices in Kabul than in Pakistan and were
popular among foreign visitors to Afghanistan (Khan, 2002a). In January 2002, a journalist
reported the presence of a Snow Leopard skull in a shop in Jalalabad (about 100km east of
26 FADING FOOTPRINTS: the killing and trade of Snow Leopards