Islamabad, 8 August 2006 (IUCN/WCS/WWF/Embassy of the United States) – At a ceremony attended by a large gathering of environmentalists, wildlife specialists, diplomats, academics and the media, an orphaned snow leopard named Leo was handed over to officials from the Wildlife Conservation Society/Bronx Zoo for participation in a captive breeding programme in New York, USA. The Minister of State for Environment Malik Amin Aslam was the chief guest and the US Ambassador His Excellency Ryan C. Crocker was the guest of honour.

The elusive snow leopard or Uncia uncia, which inhabits a mixture of remote areas scattered throughout the vast Central Asian deserts, plateaus and long narrow mountain chains up to 5,500m above sea level, has been listed on the IUCN Red List of Threatened SpeciesTM globally as an endangered species and on the Pakistan Red List as Critically Endangered. In addition, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora or CITES, to which Pakistan has been a signatory since 1976, has listed the snow leopard as an Appendix I species since 1975, resulting in strict prohibition on international trade in the animal and its body parts. Furthermore, the killing and use of snow leopard parts is prohibited in all the range states. Current global estimates on the population of the snow leopard range between 3,500 to 10,000 animals, with Pakistan being home to some 300 animals.

Unfortunately, even though the plight of this animal has been known for the better part of 30 years, the global population of the snow leopard appears to be declining. This is due to weak implementation and enforcement of legislation within the range states and the species often face serious threats due to economically-driven human activities such as livestock grazing, habitat fragmentation, reduction in the population of suitable prey, illegal trade of animal parts for medicinal purposes and poaching for pelts.

Leo’s story began on July 14, 2005 when the Gilgit office of the World Wide Fund for Nature-Pakistan (WWF-P) was informed by a shepherd in Naltar Valley, Northern Areas (NA) that he was in possession of a male snow leopard cub. The WWF-P team travelled to Naltar and brought back the cub for veterinary inspection to their office. The cub, who was estimated to be around seven weeks old at the time, was found to be in healthy condition.

The NA Forest and Wildlife Department and the federal government were immediately notified about the presence of the cub. For their part, the authorities decided to move the cub to a more appropriate facility near the Khunjerab National Park and deputed Kamal-ud-din, a keeper from the NA Forest and Wildlife Department to look after it. However, with the onset of summer and the resultant increase in temperature, the young animal was shifted back to Naltar Valley (and based on the urgent advice of WCS-Pakistan) and has since remained there under Kamal-ud-din’s care. The animal is now 13 months old, stands 21 inches tall and weighs about 25 kilogrammes. The Government of Pakistan and the Northern Areas Administration have been involved with the snow leopard since its capture and have provided the highest support and attention to ensure not only the survival of the cub but also the development of a long-term rehabilitation programme for snow leopards and other foundling animals needing assistance in the future .

Snow leopard cubs in the wild normally stay with the mother until the age of about 18 to 22 months, learning all the basic skills necessary for survival in the extreme environment they inhabit. Given that Leo had been completely dependant on humans virtually since birth, it was not practical to release him back into the wild. This necessitated looking at other possibilities to ensure his long-term survival. Among the various ideas being floated at the time, one was to transfer Leo to a zoo in Pakistan and possibly use him in a captive breeding programme. While this idea looked fine on paper the fact remains that zoos in Pakistan lack the scientific expertise and resources to undertake such an effort. Moreover, since the snow leopard is listed on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as an endangered animal, Leo’s case was no longer a national issue but one of global biodiversity conservation.

Consequently, the US Embassy in Islamabad was informed about the cub’s situation and submitted a proposal to the Government of Pakistan suggesting that the snow leopard be loaned for captive breeding to an international facility as part of a long-term conservation and rehabilitation programme. Noting the existence of state-of-the-art snow leopard facilities in the US, namely the world renowned facility at the Bronx Zoo, IUCN Pakistan (IUCNP) backed this proposal and worked tirelessly to persuade all parties. Once identified as a potential home for the cub, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS)/Bronx Zoo enthusiastically took on the venture.

Besides footing the feeding and shelter costs of the snow leopard together with WWF-P and the Government of Pakistan, IUCNP has for the past seven months been actively facilitating a translocation process to enable the cub to enter the Bronx Zoo. To this end, a team of experts from the zoo were in Pakistan since July 30 to ensure the smooth relocation of the animal to the United States. This process has also been instrumental in developing and strengthening the relationship between the Government of Pakistan, the US government, WCS, and WWF-P, all long-standing members of IUCN. The US Embassy in Islamabad has been extremely helpful in ensuring high level support within the US government for the translocation of the snow leopard as well as in the development of the agreement between WCS and the Government of Pakistan. Ministry of Environment particularly the National Council for Conservation of Wildlife (NCCW) has been very proactive and supportive throughout the process. Issuance of export permit for the cub under CITES was a special favour which was not possible without the help of NCCW.

In an effort to ensure the long-term sustainability of such a move, the agreement between WCS and the Government of Pakistan has laid out the need for the development of a rehabilitation facility in Northern Pakistan as well as international training and capacity-building for future staff of the facility. The animal remains the property of the Government of Pakistan and will be returned to the Northern Areas Administration upon completion and approval of the rehabilitation facility. Leo is scheduled to leave for New York on August 9.

Leo’s case clearly illustrates the success of the Mountain Areas Conservancy Project (MACP) in conserving and increasing the wild population of snow leopards and various other species in the Northern Areas and the North West Frontier Province. A seven-year project, the MACP is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the United Nations Development Program and the Government of Pakistan. The Ministry of Environment is the executing agency. IUCNP is implementing the project in close collaboration with the Department of Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries in the North West Frontier Project and the Department of Forests, Parks and Wildlife in the Northern Areas. World Wide Fund for Nature, the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme and the Himalayan Wildlife Foundation are the key civil society organizations collaborating in the implementation of the project.

Since its inception in 1999, the project has focused on creating awareness among the local communities of the value of natural resources. In this context, special emphasis has been placed on sensitizing the communities to the vital role which predators play in the environment. The snow leopard is a particularly important in this respect as it is an indicator species for the health of the environment.

Over the course of the project, there has been a significant change in the perceptions and attitudes amongst local communities concerning the value of predators in general and the snow leopard in particular. Indeed, the snow leopard has morphed from enemy to friend. Besides Leo’s case, there is another example which illustrates this shift. A snow leopard was trapped in a livestock shed in the village of Hushe in the Northern Areas where it managed to kill more than 30 sheep and goats. Despite the huge loss incurred by the community, the village elders invited MACP staff, Forestry and Wildlife Department officials and the district administration to witness the release of the animal the following day. In recognition of this effort, the Snow Leopard Conservancy, an international NGO, honoured the community with a Commendation of Conservation Action certificate and the Disney Wildlife Conservation Fund’s 2004 Conservation Hero Award for Asia.

While it is extremely difficult to document the exact status of and rise in the snow leopard population in Northern Pakistan, both MACP staff and locals believe that the numbers have increased within the project areas. Regular sightings by community guides, filmed documentation of snow leopards by WWF and BBC, photographs from remote sensitive cameras, as well as regular observations of snow leopard dung are factors that serve to reinforce this view.

For more information, contact:

Saquib Hanif, Head, Education, Communication and Knowledge Management Group, tel: ++92 21 5861540/41/42/43;
mobile: ++92 300 8242101, email: saquib.hanif@iucnp.org

Gul Najam Jamy, Head, Islamabad Programme Office, tel: ++92 51 2270686; mobile: ++92 300 8541826,
email: gulnajam.jamy@isb.iucnp.org

Shahzad Ahmad, Coordinator Communication and Knowledge Management, tel: ++92 51 2270686;
mobile: ++92 333 5236060, email: shahzad.ahmad@isb.iucnp.org

Bryan Hugill, Programme Officer, Mountain Areas Conservancy Project, tel: ++92 51 2270686;
mobile: ++92 302 5100355, email: bryan.hugill@isb.iucnp.org