22 November 2006

WWF fits collar on Snow Leopard for the first time ever!
 
Chitral: A female snow leopard was captured and collared in Chitral Gol National Park, in northern Pakistan, on 17th November 2006.  In the first of its kind study, the 35 kg (78 pound) leopard was fitted with a GPS-Satellite collar that will provide researchers with an unprecedented amount of precise data on snow leopard movements and habitat use.  The collar contains a GPS which will calculate the cat’s exact position several times each day and then uplink the data via the Argos satellite system and back to the researchers by email.

The study, being carried out jointly by the International Snow Leopard Trust, the NWFP Wildlife Department, and WWF, was kicked off on 31st October 2006. The study is funded through the Protected Areas Management Project (PAMP) with funding from UNDP-GEF.   It seeks to collar up to 5 cats with the high-tech collars over the next several months.

The female snow leopard was captured high on Purdum Mali ridge (which means cave of the snow leopard in Chitrali).  This is the same ridge where Dr. George Schaller took his first picture of a wild snow leopard some 3 decades ago.  Tom McCarthy, Project Leader, said it was a fitting place for another first in the study and conservation of these magnificent yet secretive cats.

The morning after the capture, the signal from the leopard’s collar indicated she was moving and had traveled a substantial distance overnight.  The collar was also successful in making several GPS locations during that period which showed the technology is working as planned.

The name selected for the snow leopard is Bayad-e-Kohsaar, which in Urdu means In Memory of Mountains, to honour the many conservationists who recently lost their lives in a tragic helicopter accident in Nepal. The snow leopard is a magnificent predator and flagship species for one of the last, great wilderness regions on earth – the spectacular mountain ranges of Asia, including the Himalayas, Karakorams, Hindu Kush, Pamirs, Tien Shans, and Altai ranges. Yet the snow leopard faces pressures that are bringing this species closer to extinction and populations of the cat are in decline in many parts of its range.

Click here to get images

For further information:
Amjad Aslam, WWF – Pakistan, Ferozepur Road, Lahore.
Tel: +92 42 5862360, 5869429, Fax: 042 5862358, e-mail: aaslam@wwf.org.pk