Poaching and intensifying human-wildlife conflicts are major threats to snow leopards in Kyrgyzstan, and across the cat’s range it’s believed that roughly 2-10% of the population could be poached annually. Localized extinctions are believed to have occurred in some areas of the former Soviet Union, including Kyrgyzstan. Their general population trend is thought to be decreasing. Snow leopards are officially recognized as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Globally, as few as 3,500 snow leopards may remain in the wild and an estimated 150-200 are believed to remain in the stronghold of Kyrgyzstan’s Tien Shan and Alai Mountains. As of spring 2020, IUCN Save Our Species is partnering with the Snow Leopard Trust on an ambitious and innovative 18-month project to protect even more habitat through community partnerships in this prime region. Kyrgyzstan also sits at the crossroads of north and south snow leopard range, and boasts a high diversity of species, including the iconic snow leopard as a flagship. Dominated by soaring mountains, over half of the country is considered prime roaming grounds for the big cats. Learn more about the IUCN Save Our Species snow leopard conservation activities in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan.There is no place for snow leopards quite like Kyrgyzstan. “We need to align the inevitable urbanization processes with the needs of this iconic species and the ecosystem as a whole.”įinancial support for the coordinated conservation work across snow leopard’s natural habitats was mobilised through the SOS Central Asia initiative and sums up to 220,000 eur over around 18 months. “Our goal is to create a positive-minded society supportive of preserving the living symbol of our city,” announces Alexei Grachev, Institute of Zoology of Kazakhstan/WWB. To help address this issue, experts will conduct new research on the snow leopard’s lifestyle in the context of urbanization. Almaty’s growing population and infrastructure development are encroaching on this cat’s habitat. Therefore, the survival of most of the Kazakhstani population, estimated at 150 individuals, largely depends on its citizens. In Kazakhstan, snow leopards practically live within the borders of its largest city, Almaty. Greater respect for this species and awareness should lead to improved conditions for these threatened cats, along with social, economic, and ecological benefits to humans. By reviving these cultural practices, Snow Leopard Conservancy is working to integrate traditional knowledge and indigenous conservation in conservation action, involving the national coordinators of the established transboundary programme the Land of the Snow Leopard Network, in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. Traditionally, indigenous peoples saw the snow leopard as a sacred animal, the protector of the mountains, unifying force and source of spiritual power. Snow leopard, Kazakhstan Photo: Wildlife Without Borders It serves as a crucially important corridor, hosting around 200 cats. The mountains of Kyrgyzstan are at the heart of the snow leopard range, connecting its north populations in Russia and Kazakhstan with the southern ones in Pakistan and China. They will help communities understand the importance of snow leopard conservation, and offer economic and livelihood improvements as well as buffers against livestock predation, serving as a model that could be scaled-up regionally. Snow Leopard Trust, Snow Leopard Conservancy and Wildlife Without Borders (WWB) have initiated snow leopard conservation projects with this new funding opportunity.īy building partnerships between government and local communities, Snow Leopard Trust works to protect more habitat for this cat in the form of co-managed wildlife conservancies in Kyrgyzstan. This project supports the Central Asian Mammals Initiative (CAMI) created by the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS), and in the first phase of implementation, it has mobilised funding to support the snow leopard and goitered gazelle conservation action. In 2019, IUCN ECARO joined the program to launch SOS Central Asia. In collaboration with experts from the IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC) and relaying on most up-to-date information and recommendations, IUCN Save Our Species is addressing priority issues to ensure the survival of threatened species worldwide. Increased community engagement in the conservation of snow leopards might result in an increase in their safety and numbers. At the same time, the human-wildlife conflict is intensifying. Due to unsustainable forms of hunting, it is losing its main prey – ungulates, such as Siberian Ibex or Argali. The number of snow leopards in the wild is decreasing mostly due to habitat loss, poaching, and the impacts of climate change.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |