How many snow leopards in India? Which UT has highest population, check here

Snow leopards in India: The snow leopard (Panthera uncia), commonly known as the ounce, is a species of large cat in the genus Panthera of the family Felidae. The species is native to the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia. 

As per the first-ever scientific exercise that was carried out by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), as many as 718 snow leopards were reported in India. 

The first-ever scientific exercise report was released by the Union Minister of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change, Bhupender Yadav during the National Board for Wildlife meeting held in New Delhi on Tuesday.

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This is the first-ever scientific exercise conducted on snow leopards. The exercise was conducted from 2019 to 2023 using a meticulous two-step framework. Snow leopard abundance was estimated using camera traps in each identified stratified region.

Which UT has highest population of snow leopards? 

The first-ever scientific exercise covered over 70 per cent of the potential snow leopard range in the country, covering approximately 120,000km2 of crucial snow leopard habitat across the trans-Himalayan region, including the Union territories of Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir, and states such as Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh.

During the exercise, total efforts included: 13,450 km of trails surveyed for recording Snow leopard signs, while camera traps were deployed at 1,971 locations for 180,000 trap nights. Snow leopard occupancy was recorded in 93,392 km2, with an estimated presence in 100,841 km2. A total of 241 unique snow leopards were photographed.

The estimated population of snow leopards in different states/ UTs

Until recent years, the snow leopard range in India was undefined due to a lack of extensive nationwide assessments for this vulnerable species. Before 2016, approximately one-third of the range (around ca. 100,347 km2) received minimal research attention, reduced to just 5 per cent in pockets like Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand, and Himachal Pradesh.

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For the same, states and UTs can consider adopting a periodic population estimation approach (every 4th year) in the snow leopard range. These regular assessments will offer valuable insights for identifying challenges, addressing threats, and formulating effective conservation strategies. 

The Wildlife Institute of India (WII) is the National Coordinator for this exercise which was carried out with support the support of all snow leopard range states and two conservation partners, the Nature Conservation Foundation, Mysuru and WWF-India

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