Arunachal Pradesh Captures Glimpse Of Snow Leopard For The First Time

WWF India has reported photo evidence of snow leopards in Arunachal Pradesh, capturing on in a camera it set up at Thembang. It said this highlights the importance of engaging the community in conservation efforts.

There’s big news for snow leopards. A few weeks after the snow leopard was bumped up from the Red List of endangered species by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), WWF India has found photo evidence of the illusive beast in Arunachal Pradesh. The large cat was found in a survey conducted by WWF India and the state forest department.

The camera that captured the leopard was set up in the Thembang Community Conserved Area. These areas are so categorized because they are managed by the local communities. The photo evidence is big news for a few reasons. For one, it is possibly the first time that a snow leopard was spotted on camera within the state.

Another reason is that Thembang lies outside the protected Namdapha National Park and Dibang Biosphere Reserve. Only a small part of snow leopard habitat falls within these two reserves, and the presence of the cat outside them shows how important Community Conserved Areas can be.