In early January an important paper was published in the international journal, Biodiversity and Conservation. The paper presented the results of the first large-scale assessment of snow leopard population in China. Led by scientists at ShanShui Conservation Center and Peking University’s College of Life Sciences, in partnership with other Chinese and international organisations, the paper used data from camera traps collected from 12 sites between 2015-2021 to estimate the snow leopard population at 1,002 individuals in an area of 360,000 km2 on the Tibetan Plateau (a density of 0.9 animals per 100km2).
The abstract of the paper is below:
“Abundance estimation of large carnivores is essential for their effective conservation plan- ning, yet estimating population size is challenging due to their elusive and wide-ranging nature. China is estimated to encompass 60% of the snow leopard Panthera uncia habitat, making it a crucial pillar for global snow leopard conservation. However, no large-scale population assessment has been conducted despite scattered survey effort accumulating rapidly in recent years. This study combined and standardized existing camera trap survey data from 12 sites collected by four organizations during 2015 ~ 2021 to estimate snow leopard population in an area of 360,000 km2 on the Tibetan Plateau, China. The representativeness of existing survey was evaluated based on two habitat stratification approaches to achieve less biased population assessment. Spatially explicit capture-recapture (SECR) models were applied for snow leopard density estimation and the top-ranked model showed a significant positive correlation between conservation priority strata and density. An average snow leopard density of 0.90 /100 km2 (95% CI: 0.68~1.21 /100 km2) and a population size of 1,002 (95% CI: 755~1,341) individuals was estimated for the defined snow leopard habitat. Two more conservative estimates of 971 (95% CI: 732~1,287) and 978 (95% CI: 737~1,267) individuals were generated within two defined survey regions, in which our data had higher representativity. This study presents a practical approach to synthesize existing population survey data for large-scale population assessments of individually identifiable species. The estimated number represents 11~21% of the global snow leopard population, indicating high conservation value of this region.”
The snow leopard is a flagship species in the mountains of Central and South Asia and understanding their population status is crucial for conservation planning. In China’s Sanjiangyuan National Park (similar in size to England), the snow leopard is the jewel in the crown.
Importantly, much of the data used in this population assessment came from infrared cameras set up and maintained by local people, such as the community in the Valley of the Cats.
Setting up an infrared camera in the Valley of the Cats. Footage courtesy of ShanShui Conservation Center.
It is heartening to see how their local knowledge, combined with their collaboration with scientists at ShanShui Conservation Center and Peking University, has played an important part in building the first large-scale picture of the snow leopard population in China.
Huge congratulations to the brilliant authors – it is wonderful to see so many familiar names – and to everyone who has contributed to this study. It is an important milestone in the conservation of this magnificent big cat.
The full paper is available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-024-03007-4
Title image: a female Snow Leopard in the Valley of the Cats, July 2019 (Terry Townshend)
Terry, this is good news indeed. I was just with George Schaller last week at his home in New Hampshire. He’s not getting out much at 91 now but I sent him the article and the delightful video. He was of course a leader in the Snow Leopard surveys and will be pleased to know if this progress. Jabe
Thank you so much, Jane! I know the authors will be thrilled to know that George has seen their paper. He has been a pioneer for the conservation of this species, and for so many other species, too. I last saw him in 2019 at China’s National Park conference in Xining, Qinghai Province, so I am happy to hear he is well and still hosting friends such as you! Thanks again and with very best wishes, Terry