Rare sighting of four snow leopards together sparks frenzy of excitement

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Footage of four, rarely-seen snowfall leopards clambering up snowy cliffs successful bluish Pakistan has created a frenzy of excitement among conservationists.

Snow leopards are among the world’s astir elusive creatures successful the chaotic and it is hard to drawback adjacent 1 connected camera, fto unsocial four, with the sighting being celebrated arsenic a occurrence communicative for Pakistan’s conservation efforts.

Sakhawat Ali, a gamekeeper and photography enthusiast from the distant colony of Hushe, captured the footage connected March 13 aft what helium described arsenic “two weeks of tracking their pawprints” done the snow-covered Central Karakoram National Park - adjacent to K2, the world’s 2nd highest mountain.

Ali told CNN the 4 snowfall leopards were a parent and her 3 cubs.

“In the colony we are utilized to seeing snowfall leopards but, nobody, not adjacent the elders that I spoke to, person ever seen 4 snowfall leopards successful 1 go,” helium said.

He spotted the parent first, past started noting further pawprints. He aboriginal “got lucky” sighting the animals unneurotic portion observing a adjacent cliff, done binoculars, from the rooftop of his house. He them scampered retired with his camera to movie them, from a region of 200 meters.

Ali said neighbors from his colony are celebrating the sighting - adjacent though they person immoderate concerns that their livestock could beryllium successful danger.

Snow leopards are presently listed arsenic “vulnerable” connected the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. Known locally arsenic the “ghost of the mountains,” they camouflage easy successful their earthy situation of the Karakoram Mountain scope successful Pakistan’s Gilgit Baltistan region.

Environmental anthropologist Shafqat Hussain says the rocky terrain successful the northbound of Pakistan is possibly the “best snowfall leopard situation successful the world.”

They lone inhabit precocious alpine areas of the Himalayas and portion their situation spreads implicit 12 nations, including China, Bhutan, Nepal, India, Pakistan, Russia, and Mongolia, sightings are exceedingly rare.

Dr Zakir Hussain, Chief Conservator Parks and Wildlife for Gilgit-Baltistan told CNN that the sighting was a “win” for the enactment being done to summation consciousness amongst section communities astir the value of protecting snowfall leopards. He said eighty percent of assemblage members are present progressive successful conservation, tracking and consciousness activities.

The World Wildlife Fund for Nature, Pakistan, said it was optimistic astir the sighting but stressed snowfall leopards stay an endangered taxon inactive facing “numerous threats.”

In a statement, it said it’s important that section communities “work unneurotic to support and conserve these unthinkable large cats, ensuring aboriginal generations tin witnesser their splendor successful the wild.”

According to the United Nation’s Environment Program “human activities and increasing livestock herds successful immoderate areas person led to the degradation of pastureland and wildlife habitats,” affecting the snowfall leopards nutrient supplies.

Other threats according to the UNEP see poaching and the fragmentation of the animal’s situation owed to monolithic caller infrastructure projects successful summation to clime alteration - which is “expected to aggravate these existing threats.”

In 2023, Pakistan was ranked arsenic the 5th astir susceptible state to clime alteration according to the World Bank’s Global Climate Risk Index.

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