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SAVE THE LEOPARD
Save the spectacular “Caucasus” or “Persian” leopard.Elusive creatures, living in low population densities in remote and often hard to access regions, the beautiful Caucasus leopards are very hard to count. But scientists agree that they are highly endangered, with fewer than 1,500 left in the wild. Of these, less than 100 still roam the Caucasus Ecoregion: including something on the order of 50 in Northern Iran, 15 in Azerbaijan, 10 in the North Caucasus regions of Russia, 7 in Armenia, and perhaps a few in Georgia. Most of the rest are found in Central Asia and non-Caucasus Iran.
But all is not lost. The worldwide population is large enough to be saved, and there is some evidence that the small population in the Caucasus has stabilized over the last 25 years.
To ensure its survival, we must safeguard both the animal and its habitat. Protected areas and the corridors that connect them are critical to the leopard’s life cycle. The size of an adult’s home range varies widely depending on prey density and habitat. In the Lesser Caucasus, the required range is estimated to be about 250 square km—an area that could be home to an adult male and two or three females.
CNF and its partners are taking a number of steps to save this dramatic big cat before it’s too late:
Adequately funding existing protected areas and designating new ones.- Creating and maintaining corridors between protected areas to ensure genetic diversity in the wild population.
- Establishing and funding anti-poaching efforts.
- Monitoring leopards and their habitat in the field.
- Instituting school education campaigns.
- Offering informational meetings and seminars.
- Enforcing laws against poaching.
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