Wildlife officials in Arunachal Pradesh await results of a survey to ascertain the presence of the elusive snow leopard in the Namdapha National Park and Tiger Reserve.
About:
The snow leopard has never been spotted nor recorded in the Namdapha National Park and Tiger Reserve in Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh.
The belief that the national park is also the habitat of the snow leopard is based on the claim of a hunter from the Lisu ethnic community that he possessed the skin of the snow leopard.
Snow leopards:
Snow leopards are native to the alpine regions of Central Asia.
The 12 snow-leopard range countries are – Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, India, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Nepal, Tajikistan, Pakistan, Russia and Uzbekistan.
In India, snow leopards inhabit the higher Himalayan and trans-Himalayan region at an altitude between 3,000-5,400 metres.
Snow leopard states are Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh.
Conservation:
It is listed as ‘Vulnerable’ on the IUCN red list of threatened species.
It is protected under Schedule I of Wildlife Protection Act, 1972
Also, it is listed on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species (CITES).
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