First Ever Survey Shows India Home To 718 Snow Leopards

NEW DELHI, (IANS) – There are 718 snow leopards in India, per a report on the Status of Snow Leopards in India.

An Indian official added that the Snow Leopard Population Assessment in India (SPAI) Program is the first scientific exercise that reports a snow leopard population of 718 in India.

Based on data analysis, the estimated population in different states is: Ladakh (477), Uttarakhand (124), Himachal Pradesh (51), Arunachal Pradesh (36), Sikkim (21), and Jammu and Kashmir (9), the official said.

The Ministry said that the SPAI systematically covered over 70 percent of the potential snow leopard range in the country, involving forest and wildlife staff, researchers, volunteers, and contributions from knowledge partners.

Covering approximately 120,000 km of snow leopard habitat across the trans-Himalayan region, including the UTs of Ladakh and J and K, and states such as Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh, the SPAI exercise was conducted from 2019 to 2023 using a meticulous two-step framework.

During the SPAI exercise, the 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. The snow leopard occupancy was recorded at 93,392 km, with an estimated presence of 100,841 km.

Until recent years, the snow leopard range in India was undefined due to a lack of extensive nationwide assessment for this vulnerable species.

India said that recent status surveys have significantly increased understanding, providing preliminary information for 80 percent of the range (about 79,745 km), compared to 56 percent in 2016. To gather robust information on snow leopard numbers, the SPAI exercise surveyed habitats using a substantial network of camera traps.