The Snow Leopard Population Assessment in India systematically covered over 70 per cent of the potential snow leopard range in the country, involving forest and wildlife staff, researchers, volunteers, and contributions from knowledge partners.
Union Minister of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change, Bhupender Yadav released the report on the Status of Snow leopards in India during the National Board for Wildlife meeting held in New Delhi today. The Snow Leopard Population Assessment in India (SPAI) Programme is the first-ever scientific exercise that reports Snow leopard population of 718 individuals in India.
The Wildlife Institute of India (WII) is the National Coordinator for this exercise that was carried out with support the support of all snow leopard range states and two conservation partners, the Nature Conservation Foundation, Mysuru and WWF-India.
According to the Wildlife Institute of India, Project Snow Leopard, a national project for conservation of high altitude Himalayan wildlife, will address a very important and urgent need to promote conservation efforts this biologically, socially, and nationally significant landscape. Project Snow Leopard, by focusing on one biologically important landscape in the first five years in each state, aims to demonstrate on-ground conservation in a time-bound manner, and, at the same time, to draw lessons from successes and limitations of the initial effort to enable better informed programmes in the other sites to be undertaken in the next phase.
The Snow Leopard Population Assessment in India (SPAI) systematically covered over 70 per cent of the potential snow leopard range in the country, involving forest and wildlife staff, researchers, volunteers, and contributions from knowledge partners. Covering approximately 120,000 square kilometres of crucial Snow leopard habitat across the trans-Himalayan region, including Ladakh, J & K, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh, the SPAI exercise was conducted from 2019 to 2023 using a meticulous two-step framework.
The first step involved evaluating Snow leopard spatial distribution, incorporating habitat covariates into the analysis, aligning with the guidelines of the National population assessment of snow leopards in India by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) in 2019. This systematic approach included assessing the spatial distribution through an occupancy-based sampling approach in the potential distribution range. In the second step, Snow leopard abundance was estimated using camera traps in each identified stratified region.
During the SPAI exercise, total efforts included 13,450 km of trails surveyed for recording Snow leopard signs, while camera traps were deployed at 1,971 locations for 180,000 trap nights. The Snow leopard occupancy was recorded in 93,392 square kilometres area, with an estimated presence in 100,841 square kilometres area. A total of 241 unique Snow leopards were photographed. Based on data analysis, the estimated population in different states are as follows: Ladakh (477), Uttarakhand (124), Himachal Pradesh (51), Arunachal Pradesh (36), Sikkim (21), and Jammu and Kashmir (9).
Until recent years, the snow leopard range in India was undefined due to a lack of extensive nationwide assessments for this vulnerable species. Before 2016, approximately one-third of the range received minimal research attention, reduced to just 5 per cent in pockets like Ladakh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand, and Himachal Pradesh. Recent status surveys have significantly increased understanding, providing preliminary information for 80 per cent of the range (about 79,745 square kms), compared to 56 per cent in 2016. To gather robust information on Snow leopard numbers, the SPAI exercise surveyed habitats using a substantial network of camera traps.
The report also mentions the need for establishing a dedicated Snow Leopard Cell at WII under the MoEFCC is proposed, with a primary focus on long-term population monitoring, supported by well-structured study designs and consistent field surveys. Consistent monitoring is essential to ensuring Snow leopards’ long-term survival. For the same, states and UTs can consider adopting a periodic population estimation approach (every 4th year) in the Snow leopard range. These regular assessments will offer valuable insights for identifying challenges, addressing threats, and formulating effective conservation strategies.
With its inclusive and participatory approach to conservation that fully involves local communities, conservationists, conservation scientists, and the civil society, the project’s approach of local involvement on the one hand and strong protection on the other, and its strong emphasis on rigorous science and monitoring, Project Snow Leopard aims to set up model conservation programmes which would achieve wildlife conservation alongside broad-based public support for conservation.
