A snow leopard has been sighted on digicam in Kashmir, virtually a 12 months after the Jammu and Kashmir authorities began a census of the threatened species discovered within the excessive mountains of the Himalayas.
The sighting has introduced hope amongst wildlife conservationists who mentioned there’s restricted proof of snow leopards throughout the union territory.
An grownup leopard – Panthera Uncia – has been recognized from photos captured utilizing infrared digicam traps, in early October, within the higher Baltal-Zojila axis at a top of 3500-3800 metres above sea stage.
“That is the primary strong proof of a snow leopard in Kashmir on a digicam lure. Earlier, we used to have anecdotal proof or someone would say that they captured the animal on a handheld system,” mentioned Munib Khanyari, Programme Supervisor of Nationwide Conservation Basis (NCF), who’s heading one of many groups J&Okay wildlife authorities have assigned to hint the animal.
Preferring solitary in icy mountains, the cat is never noticed and hardly photographed. Therefore, little is thought about it. Weighing as much as 75 kg (165 lb), the snow leopard has a thick, comfortable gray coat with ringed black spots to assist it camouflage itself amongst rocks. In 2012, two grownup snow leopards had been additionally caught on infrared cameras within the Kargil district, then a part of J&Okay.
“We noticed its pug marks in late October, so we checked the cameras, and its image was captured in early October,” Khanyari mentioned.
Final October, wildlife safety authorities in Jammu and Kashmir began a inhabitants census of snow leopards as a part of the nationwide inhabitants evaluation of the elusive species being carried out on the instructions of the ministry of the atmosphere, forest and local weather change (MoEF&CC).
The J&Okay wildlife authorities shaped completely different groups, together with members from NGOs and Kashmir College, to conduct surveys throughout the 12,000 km potential space of snow leopard of J&Okay overlaying Gurez, Thajwas, Baltal-Zojila, Warwan, and Kishtwar landscapes.
Khanyari and his four-member workforce – Aashiq Dar, Aijaz Raina, Tanzin Thuktan, Rinchen Tobge, and Kesang Chunit – got three landscapes – Gurez axis, Baltal-Thajwas axis and Wardwan axis.
Of the six states and union territories, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand have accomplished the census, whereas the train is on in J&Okay, Ladakh, Sikkim and Arunachal.
The digicam trapping train additionally revealed different necessary and uncommon species, akin to Asiatic ibex, Brown Bear and Kashmir Musk Deer, apart from info relating to different biodiversity elements of such habitats, interactions and threats.