Snow Leopard

The Indian Snow leopard or White Snow leopard is one of the semi-large cats with the zoological name "Panthera uncia".

It said to be an intermediate of the big and small cats because of its characteristics that it can neither roar nor purr.

It is of the order Carnivora, the family Felidae and the subfamily Pantherinae. There are two subspecies of Snow leopard existing around the world. Snow leopard cats do not fall under the leopard family even though the physical characteristics closely relate to them.

Snow leopards are referred as 'Grey Ghost of Himalayas' because of the color contrast between the camouflage and the mountain environment of bare rocks and snow.

Physical Structure

The snow leopard has the physical traits in such a way as to combat the cold conditions. The fur of these cats are very thick and woolly in order to guard itself from the snow fall. The fur color may vary from gray to yellow with black or brown rounded spots around their neck and lower limbs. They have clean white fur on it's under parts like belly, chin and chest. They have rosettes all over the body right from the head to the tail with the color ranging from dark gray to black. They have small and round ears which help to minimize the heat loss.

Snow leopard have a long furry tail which acts as a blanket to protect their mouth and nose from cold when asleep; it also helps to balance when walking on the rocky terrain area. The fats of the Snow leopard are stored in their tails. They have a small leg with large and wide paws. The paws act as a snow shoe which enables them to climb, walk over rough terrain and snow. Snow leopard has a large nasal cavity which enables them to utilize the oxygen efficiently in their cold and mountainous habitat.

Like other animals the females are smaller than the males. The males weigh about 75 kilogram (170 lb) and the female weighs 25 kilogram (55lb). The length of the body is 0.75 to 1.3 meter (30-50 inches). The length of the furry tail is about 0.8 to 1 meter (32-29 inches). They are 2 meter tall at the shoulder. Even though, the snow leopard cannot roar, they have some vocalizations which include mews, growls, chuffing,wailing and hisses.

Snow leopards are good leapers and can jump upto 15 meters (50 feet) at a stretch. Snow leopards are most dyanmic at dawn and dusk.

Like other cat species, they are solitary animals, could be found in pairs only during the mating season. These species can live at an altitude ranging from 2000 to 6000 meters depending upon the chillness.

Distribution and Habitat

These cats thrive in habitat inhospitable to humans. They inhabit mountainous terrain where exposed rock and deep cut ravines shape the landscape. Snow Leopards are distributed mainly in the high altitude ranging from 9,000 to 20,000 ft (2,800 to 6,000 m) during the summer season and altitude ranging from 4,000 to 6,600 ft (1,300 to 2,000 m) during the winter. They could be spotted in the mountainous or rocky regions of Central Asia where snow fall is common. They are capable of traveling in snow upto 33 inches (85 cm) deep.

In India it could be found majorly in Western Himalayan region which includes various states like Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand and less numbers in Eastern Himalayan region which comprises of Ladakh, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. The other countries with snow leopard population may include Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia and Nepal, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. This solitary animal's habitat includes alpine meadows, treeless Rocky Mountains, steep, rugged terrains and steppe vegetation. This kind of habitat helps Snow leopards to hide amongst the rocks while hunting.

Places Found

Snow leopard can be found in the below national parks :

Nanda Devi National Park:This is the most spectacular national park in Himalayas. It is located in Chamoli, Uttarakhand, India with an area of about 630 sq km. The fauna here comprises of snow leopard, Himalayan Tahr, Bharal, Himalayan Black Bear, Brown Bear, Leopard, Langur, Himalayan Musk Deer, and Brown Beer. The adventure here includes trekking and Mountaineering.

Great Himalayan National Park: This is the newest national park located in Kullu,

Himachal Pradesh, India with an area of about 750 sq km. It is in between three towering peaks of Himalayas. The fauna here comprises of Snow leopard, Bharal, Goral, Brown Bear, Leopard, Tiger, Khalij Cheer and Tragopan. The adventure here includes trekking and camping.

Gangotri National Park: This is the national park located in Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand, India with an area of about 1553 sq km. It is located near Bhagirathi River. The fauna here comprises of Snow leopard, Bharal, Goral, Brown Bear, Blue sheep, Himalayan Tahr, Tiger, etc. The adventure here includes Mountaineering, Jeep safari, Hiking, River rafting, trekking and skiing.

Hemis National Park: This is a high altitude national park located in Eastern part of Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir, India with an area of about 600 sq km. It is located near the banks of the river Indus. The fauna here comprises of Snow leopard, Ibex, Bharal, Wild dogs, wild Ass, Wooly Hares, etc. The adventure here includes Camping, Jeep safari, Hiking, biking,and trekking.

The other national parks where snow leopard can be found are:

Govind National Park - Uttarakhand, India
Govind Pashu Vihar- Uttarakhand, India
Khangchendzonga National Park- Sikkim, India
Kishtwar National Park- Jammu and Kashmir, India
Namdapha National Park- Arunachal Pradesh, India
Pin Valley National Park- Himachal Pradesh, India
Rupi Bhaba Wildlife Sanctuary- Himachal Pradesh, India

Food Habits

Snow leopards are flesh eating animals and their diet may include bigger preys like Himalayan Thar, wild goats, Boars, languar monkeys, plus deer, Bharal , sheep, gazelles and smaller prey such as marmots, Rabbit, rodents, pikas, chukar, game bird and snow cock. The snow leopard can eat an animal with the size thrice of it. Occasionally snow leopards feed on grass and twigs.

While hunting these cats may first bite the neck of the prey, then drag them to the location and then feed.

Unlike other cats they don't defend themselves when being attacked.

Mating Behaviour:

These species usually mate between January and March during the late winter. Like other cats the female leave sign such as scrapes, urine, faeces and scent-spray along their travel routes to indicate their territory. The male with these smell approaches the female for the courtship. These cats can be seen together only during the mating season. The gestation period lasts for about 90- 104 days. During this period, the female is left alone for parenting. She gives birth in a rocky den from 1-5 cubs.

The cubs are blind and have a thick coat of fur during the birth weighing about 320 to 567 grams. The young ones open their eyes after 7 days and starting walking at five weeks during which they accompany their mother. They are weaned for 10 weeks. When they are 3 months old they become independent from its mother and seek for their own territory. The life span is 15-22 years.

Subspecies of Indian leopard

Two subspecies of Snow Leopard are as below:

• Uncia uncia uncia
• Uncia uncia uncioides

Population of snow leopards in india

The population of Snow Leopards around the world ranges from 4,000 to 6, 590 out of which 200-600 are populated in India. Majority is found in the parts of China.

ince the Snow Leopard is decreasing in population they are listed as 'Endangered' in the IUCB Red list of the Threatened Species. In addition to this, the Snow Leopard is listed on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species (CITES), which involves illegal hunting and trading of animal body parts.

Threats to Snow Leopards

The various threats faced by the Snow leopard in India are:

Poaching: This is the major threat which many animals are facing. These species are illegally hunted for their trade of fur or pelts and bone to various parts of Asia which has medicinal significance.

Habitat and Food Loss: Since more people and their livestock are moved to the Snow leopard areas or habitat, as a result of which their range is getting degraded and fragmented. Since the grasses in the grasslands are being overgrazed by the many livestock, some are left with no food, which leads to the competition between the livestock. Eventually the killed ones become the prey for the Snow leopard.

Lack of effective protection : Since the most protected areas are too small for the snow leopard to live they tend to stray off which leads to Human-snow leopard conflict, resulting in killing of these species.

Lack of awareness and support: The importance of the Snow leopard to the ecosystem lacks among the people who live close to these species who tend to kill them when they approach their live-stock.

Conservation Effort in India

The various schemes that have been brought to conserve the Snow leopard population in India are:

1. Grazing management to reduce the grazing of grasslands and livestock husbandry and to reduce the livestock vulnerability.
2. Funds to various communities to conserve the snow leopard.
3. Improving awareness among the local people.
4. Improve international cooperation and bonding in order to enforce trade bans through adherence to CITES resolutions.

Project Snow leopard

Project Snow leopard (PSL) is a conservation initiative designed with the idea of Project

Tiger and Project Elephant with the intention of conserving the ecosystem to which snow leopards belong through cooperating with local residents, governments, scientists, and NGOs. It is the result of the conference organized by the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India (MoEF) and the Department of Wildlife Protection, Jammu and Kashmir.

Interesting Facts on Snow Leopards:

1. The other name of Snow leopard is Ounce.
2. They can prey upon the animals three times larger than their size.
3. Snow Leopards can jump to a distance of 40 feet at a stretch.
4. The pelt or thick fur of the snow leopard has large demand in various countries.
5. The bones of the snow leopard is believed to have medicinal purpose.
6. Wolves are the main predator of Snow leopard.
7. Unlike most of the cats, Snow leopards cannot roar.
8. The eye color of the Snow leopards is pale green or gray which is not common among cats.