Snow leopard field tool kit
Field training tool kit to promote snow leopard conservation
Lack of adequate conservation training and robust monitoring are important challenges for the conservation of the endangered snow leopard across its range in Central Asia
Snow leopard tool kit
Lack of adequate conservation training and robust monitoring are important challenges for the conservation of the endangered snow leopard across its range in Central Asia. Even in places where conservation programmes are being implemented by local institutions or governments, inadequate monitoring makes it impossible to assess their performance and thereby enable course corrections. This breakdown in monitoring is primarily due to a lack of adequate training among field personnel responsible for on-the-ground snow leopard conservation.
The project aims at development and effectuation of a field training tool kit to promote snow leopard conservation and monitoring across its range. This largely self-contained tool kit will include a set of field equipment (for demonstration), and friendly audio-visual materials including presentations, spreadsheets, necessary software and manuals/booklets. This tool kit will be used for training a wide range of target groups by adjusting the level of detail and technicality.
People
Partners
- Snow Leopard Conservation Foundation, Mongolia
- Snow Leopard Trust
Funding
Publications
- Journal Article2015Status assessment of snow leopard and other large mammals in the Kyrgyz Alay using community knowledge corrected for imperfect detectionOryxDownload
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- Journal Article2014Vigorous dynamics underlie a stable population of the endangered snow leopard Panthera uncia in Tost Mountains, South Gobi, Mongolia 12Plos ONE 9(7): e101319. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0101319
Population monitoring programmes and estimation of vital rates are key to understanding the mechanisms of population growth, decline or stability, and are important for effective conservation action. We report, for the first time, the population trends and vital rates of the endangered snow leopard based on camera trapping over four years in the Tost Mountains, South Gobi, Mongolia. We used robust design multi-season mark-recapture analysis to estimate the trends in abundance, sex ratio, survival probability and the probability of temporary emigration and immigration for adult and young snow leopards. The snow leopard population remained constant over most of the study period, with no apparent growth (l = 1.08+20.25). Comparison of model results with the ‘‘known population’’ of radio-collared snow leopards suggested high accuracy in our estimates. Although seemingly stable, vigorous underlying dynamics were evident in this population, with the adult sex ratio shifting from being male-biased to female-biased (1.67 to 0.38 males per female) during the study. Adult survival probability was 0.82 (SE+20.08) and that of young was 0.83 (SE+20.15) and 0.77 (SE +20.2) respectively, before and after the age of 2 years. Young snow leopards showed a high probability of temporary emigration and immigration (0.6, SE +20.19 and 0.68, SE +20.32 before and after the age of 2 years) though not the adults (0.02 SE+20.07). While the current female-bias in the population and the number of cubs born each year seemingly render the study population safe, the vigorous dynamics suggests that the situation can change quickly. The reduction in the proportion of male snow leopards may be indicative of continuing anthropogenic pressures. Our work reiterates the importance of monitoring both the abundance and population dynamics of species for effective conservation.
