A week after its rescue, officials are still searching for the reason – did the snow leopard stray into the warm plains of the Terrai or did it escape trafficking or was it abandoned.

By Rabin Bhattarai

On the afternoon of 23 January 2024, an adult male snow leopard was found in Morang district in the Terrai plains of Nepal. The area is 146 meters above sea level.

While the first line of investigations is the veterinary staff at the Kathmandu zoo, an investigation into how the snow leopard that roamed the mountains arrived in the plains has experts divided. The government is preparing to conduct study/research by forming a study task force with experts who are submitting arguments based on their own studies and assumptions. The snow leopard, which hunts on prey for food at an altitude of 2,000 to 6,000 meters above sea level is now in the suffocating cold of an air conditioned room in the zoo, surviving on chicken.

Experts left guessing

Snow leopards fall under the sensitive category of IUCN and are included in Schedule-1 of the sites and figure in the protected list of Nepal’s fauna. Its numbers are constantly decreasing. It is difficult to spot it in its Himalayan habitat. Even the experts are surprised when it was suddenly found in the middle of the plain at a time when the government is investing crores in its research by connecting cameras and GPS.

The snow leopard, which was brought to the zoo room after being found injured in a bamboo grove in Morang as an adult, is raising questions and experts are divided. Karan Shah, a wildlife expert who has researched for a long time in the Kanchenjunga conservation area of Taplejung, the main area where snow leopards are found in Nepal, says, “Snow leopards may know the real answer.” Guessing is the problem. Such an incident has never happened in Nepal before, he says.

Expert Shah speculates that it may have escaped while being smuggled somewhere. “This is an unnatural incident. I do not agree that it can come by itself. Because I am knowledgeable about that geographical situation,” he said. Morang to Taplejung, the closest habitat of the snow leopard is long distance. Shah does not see any possibility of coming to the Terai by itself. He says, “It lives only two thousand meters above. It takes five days to reach the Taplejung headquarters area even if you go down the road. Even after that, one has to cross the hilly districts of Panchthar, Ilam, Tehrathum or Dhankuta and big rivers, forests and villages.”

Shah feels that the animal cannot reach Morang naturally and he feels that the possibility of smuggling of such animals is high in Nepal. Not very long ago, chimpanzees were found in Bagbazar located in Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal. Wildlife trafficking is prevalent in the region and this is an important lense to see this through, experts say.

According to expert Shah, the snow leopard stays with its mother until the age of two and then wanders off to find food on its own. Even if he walks alone like this, he feels that there is no possibility of reaching this low.

Another reason, he says is that it may have been kept from somewhere closer to the plains since its childhood and when it grew up, it may have left or ran away when it started showing its aggressive nature.

To strengthen the argument, he says, “An adult snow leopard’s tail is long (as long as its own body). While walking, the tail crawls on the ground and the tip turns towards the sky – however, in this case, the captive snow leopard’s tail is short,” he says, adding, “The development of hair is also not according to age and weight. That’s why it might have been reared.”

He says that since he is still doing serious research on snow leopards, he says that this incident shows a different picture than what he has seen, read and experienced before.

Other opinions

Madhu Kshetri, a zoologist from Nepal, speculates that this snow leopard may have reached here by crossing the road after being separated from its mother. He says, “Its teeth are yet to be seen. Although it is an adult in terms of weight and age, it does not look very mature. It may have walked overnight to get here. Because the vertical direction from Himal to Terai is only 50-60 km. I also looked at the mapping. This is a species that can walk a hundred kilometers in one night.”

He says that the possibility of snow leopard coming here naturally cannot be ruled out. He claims that this possibility will remain when he talks to the world’s scientists. “At first he was walking with his mother. When it is separated from its mother, it may have wandered down to see a new place.” He presents an example of walking for a thousand kilometers without returning.

Crucial evidence lost

The snow leopard was found in the forest on the afternoon of 23 January. On the same evening, he was rescued and brought to the zoo after traveling about 600 kilometers by car overnight. It was not provided any food until that time.

A test of its feces could reveal if it came directly from that mountain to the Terai, was brought up in the Terai from a young age or was smuggled.

Zoologist Chhetri expresses concern about the loss of the pollen as it can be investigated based on what it has eaten by examining the snow leopard’s faeces. Now they have brought water and chicken to the zoo. Even if some evidence is found while examining the feces, the probability is very low. Earlier, his feces should have been collected and investigated,” he said.

Is it climate change?

In recent times, every phenomenon of disruption and change in nature is viewed in connection with the effects of climate change. As this snow leopard is now found in the Terai, some are linking this phenomenon with the effect of climate change. Didn’t the snow leopard also come to the lower areas after the extreme cold in the cold season? Some have questions and arguments. Secretary of the Ministry of Forestry and Environment of the Government of Nepal Dr. Deepak Kumar Kharal also says that this possibility should not be ruled out.

The discovery of snow leopards living in Morang, the hot spot, can be the first ‘indicator’ of the effects of climate change in Nepal. Kharat says. He also said that the need to go up in the calculation of the habitat should be made a subject of study because the snow leopard has fallen from the mountains to the Terai.

On the other hand, experts like Madhu Chhetri and Karan Shah are of the opinion that the argument that the snow leopard came to the lowlands due to climate change cannot make sense. The effect of climate change is an increase in temperature. It does not like hot places. “Due to the effects of climate change, he will have to climb even higher. This argument does not fit in this case at all,” said expert Chhetri.

Expert Shah also adds to Chhetri’s argument and says, “Recently everything has started to be seen as the effect of climate change.” There is a lack of study, he says, because when the snow leopard is cold, the sun doesn’t come down to warm it. Instead, he climbs mountains looking for snow. It hunts there. In the absence of prey, some will descend to the lower settlements.”

This piece has been sourced from Nature Khabbar.

Image: After the rescue, the snow leopard kept in a cage at Sadar Zoo in Lalitpur, Kathmandu. Credit: Rabin Bhattarai