India Issues Report on Leopard Population Status
India Issues Report on Leopard Population Status
The National Tiger
Conservation Authority (NTCA) and the
Wildlife Institute of India (WII) have published a report detailing the
situation of leopards in India. The report offers valuable insights into
leopard distribution, population trends, and the challenges of conservation,
drawing from data collected during the fifth cycle of leopard population
estimation in 2022.
Survey Methodology
The leopard survey was conducted as part of the four-yearly
assessment to monitor tigers, co-predators, prey, and their habitats across
tiger range states. It concentrated on forest habitats in 18 tiger states,
covering major tiger conservation areas.
Field teams traversed 641,449 km of trails to assess leopard
signs and prey abundance. Camera traps were installed at 32,803 locations,
resulting in 85,488 leopard photographs from 470,881,881 images. The survey
employed scientific methodologies, including habitat evaluation, camera
trapping, and population modeling.
Key Findings
The estimated leopard population in India stands at 13,874
(with a range of 12,616 to 15,132), signifying stability in comparison to the
2018 estimate of 12,852 leopards.
Madhya Pradesh hosts the largest leopard population with
3,907 individuals, followed by Maharashtra (1,985) and Karnataka (1,879).
Protected areas and tiger reserves like Nagarjunsagar
Srisailam Tiger Reserve (Andhra Pradesh), Panna Tiger Reserve (Madhya Pradesh),
and Satpura Tiger Reserve (Madhya Pradesh) sustain high densities of leopards.
In Central India, there is a stable or slightly increasing
trend, whereas the Shivalik-Gangetic plains have witnessed a 3.4% annual
decline between 2018 and 2022.
Population Trends
The latest leopard census indicates an overall stable
population at the national level since 2018.
Although a marginal growth rate of 1.08% is observed in the
specific areas sampled in both 2018 and 2022, this does not include
approximately 30% of leopard habitats not surveyed, such as arid regions,
higher Himalayas, and non-forest areas.
Conservation Challenges
Escalating human-leopard conflicts present significant
conservation and societal challenges. Leopards thrive better in protected
areas, but their survival in unsecured habitats is crucial for long-term
population viability.
Habitat fragmentation, poaching, prey depletion, retaliatory
killings due to livestock depredation, traffic accidents, and illegal wildlife
trade are key threats. Climate change impacts may worsen resource pressures in
the future.
It is imperative to address gaps outside protected areas
through government-community partnerships while enhancing reserve management
for landscape-level connectivity. Implementing rapid response protocols for
emergency situations is also necessary.
Recommendations
Enhance protection in tiger corridors and buffer zones to
facilitate movement across reserves.
Promote community stewardship models in multiple-use
forests, offering incentives for coexistence.
Develop early warning systems utilizing technology to
anticipate conflict scenarios.
Strengthen coordination between central and state agencies
by formalizing response protocols.
Incorporate habitat parameters and conflict hotspots in
predictive distribution and abundance modeling.
Expand monitoring to unsurveyed areas in forthcoming census endeavors wide through public-private partnerships.
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