DECLINE OF THE INDIAN LEOPARD

TAG: GS 3: ECOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT

THE CONTEXT: The Indian leopard (Panthera pardus fusca) is facing significant challenges, with recent assessments by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) indicating a substantial decline in its population.

EXPLANATION:

• This trend is reflective of the broader struggles faced by various leopard subspecies across the globe.
• According to the IUCN’s latest assessment, the Indian leopard population has declined by approximately 24.5% over the past three generations.
• This assessment, based on extensive research by Shivakumar et al. (2023), places the Indian leopard in the “Near Threatened” category under Criterion A2cd.
• The suspected population reduction is attributed to factors such as habitat loss, exploitation, and poaching.
• Despite these declines, there are regions within the Indian leopard’s range where positive population trends have been observed.
• The IUCN notes an increase in the known range of the subspecies, likely due to more intensive surveys in previously unstudied areas.

Key Threats to the Indian Leopard

• The Indian leopard faces several critical threats that continue to jeopardize its survival:
  • Poaching: Illegal wildlife trade remains a significant threat. Studies indicate that an average of four leopards are poached every week over the last decade.
  • Human-Wildlife Conflict: As human populations expand into leopard habitats, conflicts between leopards and humans increase, often resulting in retaliatory killings.
  • Decline in Prey Base: Continuous decreases in wild prey negatively impact leopard populations. Regions with reduced prey availability see more significant declines in leopard numbers.
• While detailed population trends in India’s tiger landscapes are well-documented, there is a lack of comprehensive data for non-tiger states and non-forested habitats.
• This gap in data hinders effective conservation planning and efforts.

Global Leopard Subspecies Trends

• The decline in leopard populations is not confined to India. Other subspecies are experiencing similar, if not more severe, declines:
  • Middle East, East and South-East Asia, and Africa:
    • Leopards in these regions have seen substantial population decreases of over 30% in the last three generations.
    • Major causes include habitat fragmentation, forest clearing, prey reductions from bushmeat trade, illegal harvesting for skins, and human-wildlife conflict.
  • North Africa:
    • The leopard has completely disappeared from this region, marking a significant loss in biodiversity.

Conservation Efforts and Regional Successes

• There are regions where concerted conservation efforts have led to improvements:
  • Java: Surveys have identified 22 subpopulations of leopards, indicating a more comprehensive understanding of their distribution.
  • Caucasus: Improved survey methods and conservation efforts have either maintained or increased leopard populations.
  • Russian Far East and North East China: The transboundary population and range of leopards have increased significantly due to the creation of large national parks with effective protection measures.

Status of Other Leopard Subspecies

• Various leopard subspecies are classified under different threat levels by the IUCN:
  • Critically Endangered: Indochinese leopard (Panthera pardus delacouri), Arabian leopard (Panthera pardus nimr), and North China leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis – though not individually assessed).
  • Endangered: Persian leopard (Panthera pardus tulliana) and Javan leopard (Panthera pardus melas).
  • Vulnerable: African leopard (Panthera pardus pardus) and Sri Lankan leopard (Panthera pardus kotiya).

Indian leopard (Panthera pardus fusca)

• The Indian leopard (Panthera pardus fusca) is a subspecies of the leopard (P. pardus) widely distributed on the Indian subcontinent.
• It is threatened by illegal trade of skins and body parts, and persecution due to human-leopard conflict and retaliation for livestock depredation.
• Indian Leopards are good climbers and rely on trees for cover, so are found in various forested habitats, including rainforest, dry deciduous forest, temperate forest and northern coniferous forest.
• The Indian leopard is distributed in India, Nepal, Bhutan and parts of Pakistan. Bangladesh has no viable leopard population but there are occasional sightings in the forests of Sylhet, Chittagong Hill Tracts and Cox’s Bazar.
• The Indian leopard (Panthera pardus fusca) is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List.

SOURCE: https://www.downtoearth.org.in/wildlife-biodiversity/indian-leopard-suspected-to-have-decreased-by-245-over-last-3-generations-iucn