2.1 Introduction

There is a continuous loss of faunal diversity globally, largely due to habitat loss caused by encroachments or climate change, forest fires, landslides, developmental projects and over-exploitation of natural resources (Hoffmann et al. 2010). Of all the species, large-bodied mammals are at the greatest risk (Cardillo et al. 2005). It is estimated that about 59% of the world’s biggest mammalian carnivores are listed as threatened with extinction in the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List (Ripple et al. 2016). Like many big animals (for example: tigers, elephants, bears, musk deer, wolves, rhinoceros, spotted leopards, etc.), snow leopards are also threatened, including in the Himalayan region, where most of its important habitats occur (Chetri et al. 2017).

There are many studies on various aspects of snow leopard biology and ecology, such as taxonomy, behaviour, habitat requirements, diet, conflicts, trade, genetic diversity, seasonal movement and conservation issues (McCarthy et al. 2016). Despite an effort to bring all these studies together in a single publication (McCarthy et al. 2016), many studies are still widely scattered in various forms, such as research articles, books, reports, theses, popular articles in magazines, etc. Therefore, we attempt here to compile and summarize the results of the studies done on snow leopards in Nepal, a central Himalayan region with a rich biodiversity, in order to identify the strengths and weaknesses of these studies. It is intended that this review should serve as a baseline for future studies and for the formulation of management and conservation plans for snow leopards in Nepal (Adhikari 2004).

2.2 Data Sampling

2.2.1 Database

We reviewed scientific studies on snow leopards in Nepal published in journals, books, theses and reports. Different electronic databases were searched (ISI Web of Science, Science Direct, Scopus and Google Scholar) using specific search terms such as “Snow leopard”, Panthera uncia”, “Uncia uncia”, “Felis uncia”, “Panthera uncia uncioides”, “Nepal”, “Himalaya” “Himalayas” and “Himalayan region”. We also carried out a library search for hard copies.

2.2.2 Literature

We consulted 93 documents related to snow leopard in Nepal. They consisted of 49 journal articles, 20 reports, 6 books, 3 book chapters, 2 conference papers, 2 magazine articles and 1 conference proceeding. Snow leopard is the topic of research for 5 master degrees (Oli 1991; Adhikari 2004; Conradi 2006; Upadhyay 2010; Bhattarai 2015) and 5 Ph.D. degrees (Jackson 1996; Ale 2007; Aryal 2013; Hanson 2017; Chetri 2018) and also the topic of books based on expeditions (Matthiessen 1978; Hillard 1990). There was a significant increase (p = 0.0003, R2 = 0.3598) in the number of documents on snow leopards published per year from the 1970s up to September 2020 (Fig. 2.1). Similar trends are also recorded for various fields of study worldwide (Laakso et al. 2011).

Fig. 2.1
A scatter plot with x-axis labeled Year and y-axis is labeled Number of documents.

The number of documents on snow leopards in Nepal published each year from 1978 to September 2020

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Different methods are used to study snow leopards. The majority involves field surveys of their status, distribution, diet composition etc., and depends on the markings on snow leopards (e.g. Ahlborn and Jackson 1988; Wolf and Ale 2009; Shrestha et al. 2018) or the use of radio-collars to monitor them over long periods of time (Jackson and Ahlborn 1988; Oli 1994) or camera traps for relatively short periods of time (Ale et al. 2014; Lama et al. 2018). Some of the studies are also based on the literature and review different aspects, such as prey diversity (Lovari et al. 2013a; Lyngdoh et al. 2014; Valentová 2017), threats (Valentová 2017) or current knowledge and status of snow leopards in various parts of the world (McCarthy and Chapron 2003), or people’s attitude towards snow leopard or the conservation of snow leopard (Khanal et al. 2018; Schutgens et al. 2018; Hanson et al. 2019a, b; Kusi et al. 2019).

Substantial numbers of studies are also based on questionnaires, informal discussions, focus group discussions, and key informant interviews on human-snow leopard conflict and attitudes of locals towards snow leopards. Genetic analyses are also used to identify density/population, gender, and the relationship between a population and other populations of snow leopards (Conradi 2006; Aryal et al. 2014a; Karmacharya et al. 2016; Chetri et al. 2017; Janecka et al. 2017).

There is even a discussion of the methods to be used for storing scats for genetic studies (Conradi 2006). A study of samples (48 sun-dried scats and 19 stored in ethanol) revealed that extraction and genotyping quality was much higher for ethanol than for the air-dried samples. Of the dry samples 25% were of sufficient quality to be genotyped, whereas it was 50% for the ethanol-preserved samples. In recent years, cameras have been used to record their status (Ale et al. 2014; Shrestha 2016; Shrestha et al. 2018), in particular, their presence and movements in a region were monitored this way.

2.2.3 Studies: Then and Now

Snow leopard first came to prominence after the publication of “The snow leopard” by Matthiessen (1978). This book was an outcome of a journey by Matthiessen and his fellow naturalist George Schaller through the Dolpo region in Nepal in 1973. Schaller’s aim was to study wild blue mountain sheep and compare them with common sheep in the USA, while for Matthiessen the trip was more of a spiritual exploration. His next aim was to observe snow leopard, a predator of bharal, which had only been seen twice by westerners in the previous twenty-five years, and then to visit the Crystal Monastery in Tibet and the Buddhist lama there. Though they did not see any snow leopards during their journey, Matthiessen wrote “…. it has pale frosty eyes and a coat of pale misty grey, with black rosettes that are clouded by the depth of the rich fur …” and also “… snow leopard is the most mysterious of the great cats; of its social system, there is nothing known. Almost always it is seen alone; it may meet over a kill, as tigers do, or it may be unsociable and solitary, like the true leopard.” The publication of “The snow leopard” not only received a National book award in 1979, but also helped in the establishment of the Shey Phoksundo National Park that partly helped to preserve the native habitat of the snow leopard. Thus, in Nepal snow leopards were of great interest to many academicians and biologists much earlier than elsewhere in the world (Ale and Karky 2002). Following the publication of Matthiessen’s book, the first scientific pioneering work was carried out by R. Jackson in the Dolphu region, in western Nepal. After Jackson, there has been a huge increase in research related to snow leopard and many publications have been emerging day by day (Chetri 2018; Schutgens et al. 2018; Shrestha et al. 2018).

2.3 Distribution of Snow Leopard in Nepal

Snow leopards occur in the northern part of Nepal. They occur in eight mountainous areas in Nepal that are protected: the Annapurna Conservation Area, Shey Phuksundo National Park, Kanchenjunga Conservation Area, Manaslu Conservation Area, Makalu Barun National Park, Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve, Sagarmatha (Everest) National Park and Langtang National Park. Snow leopards also occur in Humla, Jumla, Mugu and Shankhuwasawa regions (Jackson 1996; Lama et al. 2018). Snow leopards that were previously thought to have disappeared from the Everest region were observed there again in 2004 (Shrestha 2004, 2006; Ale and Boesi 2005). Their presence was confirmed by scats and pugmarks observed near Phortse, Namche and Ngozumpa glacier. They even suggest that there should be snow leopard in the area, as there are prey animals there, such as tahr and musk deer. Still a large part of northern Nepal is yet to be explored in detail.

2.3.1 Estimating Snow Leopard Abundance

Snow leopards leave different kinds of marks (scrapes, spray, scat, pugmarks, hair, kills) in their territories. The marks are usually surveyed using transects, as described by ‘The Snow Leopard Information Management System’, known as SLIMS (Jackson and Hunter 1996) or by the incidental method (Ale et al. 2014). See Chap. 3 for details of the types of marks and methods of estimating abundance. Here, we concentrate on the specific conditions in Nepal: when and how snow leopard abundance is to be estimated.

The most suitable time for seeing marks left by snow leopards or snow leopards themselves is from June to September in the Langtang National Park (Adhikari 2004). However, in western Nepal, marks are recorded more frequently during January–March (Jackson and Ahlborn 1988). The marks are found on a wide range of substrates, vegetation, upright boulders, at the base of rocky outcrops and cliffs, on the top of promontories and knolls, in the open, at the base of pine trees, near the edges of riverine terraces/bluffs, on cliff ledges exposed on the crests of ridges, and even in landslides or on river gravel and sandbars (Ahlborn and Jackson 1988). The abundance of marks varies from place to place. Scrapes are the most common type of mark and are often repeated (Schaller 1977; Ahlborn and Jackson 1988). Scat is also important, as it is quite frequently deposited (Ale et al. 2014; Devkota et al. 2017; Chetri 2018; Table 2.1). Although marks eventually disappear, spray marks are sometimes still detectable after more than 60 days and can be 80–100 cm above the ground (Ahlborn and Jackson 1988; Fox 1989).

Table 2.1 Abundance of signs of snow leopard presence in different parts of Nepal
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The distances surveyed varied from 4.023 to 139.3 km. Sometimes there are seasonal differences in the marks left by snow leopards. In the Sagarmatha (Everest) National Park more scats (66) were recorded in autumn than in summer (40) (Lovari et al. 2009). In Mustang, more marks were recorded in spring (112) than in autumn (66) and summer (41). There were more marks recorded in upper Mustang at high altitudes (121) than in lower Mustang at low altitudes (98) (Ale et al. 2014). The occurrence of the different marks also depends on population size, age/sex ratio and also on the type of habitat (Ahlborn and Jackson 1988).

2.3.2 Population Status

In 1972 Schaller estimated that there were three individuals near Lepche in the Bhote Koshi valley in east Nepal (Schaller 1973). Schaller, after surveying about 500 km2 in 1973 at Shey gompa and Phoksundo lake in Dolpa, estimated that there were at least six snow leopards in this area, especially during winter months when they roam around searching for food (Schaller 1977). The first in-depth study was carried out in the Langu valley in western Nepal, where radiometry results were compared with the abundance of signs of their presence (Jackson 1979a; Jackson and Ahlborn 1988). In 1979, it was estimated that there were about 150–300 snow leopards in Nepal (Jackson 1979a) and the most recent estimate (WWF 2009) is that there are around 300–400.

The estimated density is 5–10 individuals/100 km2 in western Nepal (Jackson and Ahlborn 1988), 4.8–6.7/100 km2 in Manang (Oli 1994), 1–3 individuals/100 km2 in the Everest region (Ale 2005, 2007), 9 of which were resident (it is likely that five of them constituted a family group with a resident male and female and three cubs, with the rest most likely roaming animals attracted to the valley during the mating season) in the Phu valley. A subsequent estimate for Manang is 10.4 individuals/100 km2) (Conradi 2006). Similarly, there were 7 individuals/100 km2 in the Everest region (Lovari et al. 2009), 5–6 individuals/100 km2 in the northern part of Langtang National Park (Chalise 2011), 9 individuals/100 km2 in the Shey Phoksundo National Park (Karmacharya et al. 2011), 10–12 individuals/100 km2 in the Langu valley, 4.8–6.7 individuals/100 km2 in Manang (Thapa 2011), 6 (four females and two males) in an area of about 125 km2 in Phu valley (Wegge et al. 2012), at least 3 adults at Mustang (Ale et al. 2014), 5 individuals (3 males and 2 females) in an area of 264.7 km2 with a population density of 1.9 individuals/100 km2 in upper Mustang (Aryal et al. 2014a), 5 individuals in 2007 (10.9/100 km2) and two in 2010 (4.3/100 km2) in Sagarmatha (Everest) NP (Ferretti et al. 2014), 6 in lower Mustang in 2014 and 8 in upper Manang in 2016, based on records of camera traps (Shrestha 2016), and 34 individuals of which 20 were males and 14 were females in the Annapurna Conservation Area (ACA) and the Manaslu Conservation Area (MCA) (Chetri et al. 2019b). Likewise, the density in western Nepal was estimated to be 3.2 individuals/100 km2, in Rolwaling 1.5 individuals/100 km2, in Sagarmatha NP 1.8 individuals/100 km2 and in Kanchenjunga 2.6 individuals/100 km2 (WWF 2009). These figures show that the population status is not uniform throughout the country, it is changing with time and more studies are needed.

2.3.3 Habitat Ecology and Home Range

Snow leopards were generally found in the areas with low rainfall at between 3000 and 5000 m and sometimes recorded even up to 5600 or 6000 m in Nepal (Jackson and Ahlborn 1984; Jackson 1996; Upadhyay 2010; Aryal et al. 2014a). The widest altitudinal range was recorded in upper Mustang and that between 2900 and 6000 m (Aryal 2011). Most snow leopards occur at altitudinal ranges of between 4000 and 4500 m and rarely at lower altitudes (Aryal et al. 2014a).

In Nepal, snow leopards normally occupy rugged mountainous terrain (Jackson and Ahlborn 1988). Such terrain is characterized by rocky outcrops, ridges, cliffs, gorges, stream beds of gravel and sandbars, vegetation dominated by grasses and sedges, shrubs or trees, broken or very broken ruggedness, rolling and flat ruggedness, with grassland, shrub land and both grass and shrub land, mixed and barren habitats without any vegetation or less grazed areas, forest borders or open shrub land/alpine meadows, and sometimes cultivated fields and areas subject to landslides (Figs. 2.2, 2.3 and 2.4) (Jackson and Ahlborn 1988; Adhikari 2004; Lovari et al. 2013a; Aryal et al. 2014a; Upadhaya 2017). However, snow leopards avoid agricultural areas, glaciers and human settlements, and instead use barren land and grassland in Mustang (Aryal et al. 2014a). Of all the different types of habitats, ridgelines, narrow valleys, trails and cliff-edges are most frequently used by snow leopards for moving about their home range (Jackson and Hunter 1996). Snow leopards are active during the night, bedding in different places each day unless searching for prey (Jackson and Ahlborn 1989; Jackson 1996).

Fig. 2.2
A photograph of a rough terrain that overlooks the Mustang mountains.

Snow leopard habitat in high mountains in Mustang district, Nepal. Photo by M. Rokaya

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Fig. 2.3
A photograph of foothill shrubland in Yak kharka.

Snow leopard habitat in high mountains in Yak kharka in Manang, Nepal. Photo by M. Rokaya

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Fig. 2.4
A photograph of a rugged mountain slope in Thorong La mountain pass.

Snow leopard habitat in high mountains in Thorang La in Manang, Nepal. Photo by M. Rokaya

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Total range of snow leopards is about 30,000 km2 in Nepal (Fox 1989) and the estimated potential range is 27,432 km2, of which 26.7% is in protected areas (PA). However, snow leopards depend on an abundance of food, enough cover for shelter, availability of escape routes, enough food for reproduction and absence of hunting.

There are concerns that the current increase in temperature will result in a reduction in the area of suitable habitat. Habitat modelling of snow leopard in six countries (Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Pakistan and Nepal) indicate that about 30% of snow leopard habitat in the Himalayan region may be lost due to an upward shift in the tree line and consequent shrinking of the alpine zone, mostly along the southern edge of its range and in river valleys.

However, a considerable part of the snow leopard habitat and corridors are likely to be resilient to climate change, and it is these that should be protected (Forrest et al. 2012). Similarly, Aryal et al. (2016) predict the effect of climate change on the distribution of snow leopards in the Himalayas using previously and recently collected data on their distribution. This study indicates that 11.6% (17,190 km2) of this area is currently suitable for snow leopards and will be reduced by 14.57% due to climate change by 2030 and by 21.5% by 2050. They suggest that conservation should concentrate on establishing new protected areas high up in the mountains in order to mitigate the possible effect of climate change (Aryal et al. 2016).

The home range of snow leopards in the Langu valley, western Nepal, varies from 12 to 39 km2. The patterns of movement of males and females are different, with males moving an average distance of 1.16 km/day and females 0.64 km. Both take a zig-zag route, when moving in their home ranges (Jackson and Ahlborn 1988). The movement slightly differs when recorded using radio-collars and following their movement for 18 months. The daily movement distance of males (n = 3) is 1.3 km and 1.0 km of females (n = 2) (Jackson and Ahlborn 1989). Similarly, based on the movement of 3 radio-collared snow leopards (1 male and 2 females) at Manang, winter home ranges vary between 19.9 and 22.3 km2, and home ranges overlap extensively within and between both sexes. The core habitat area is around 8.1 km2 (Oli 1997). In upper Mustang, however, snow leopards patrol an area of 264.7 km2 and females tend to roam more (59.3 km2) than males (52.9 km2) (Aryal et al. 2014a).

2.4 Diet of Snow Leopard in Nepal

Bharal/nayur (Pseudois nayaur), also called the blue sheep, is the most preferred prey in the Langu valley (Jackson and Ahlborn 1988), Mustang (Aryal 2011; Aryal et al. 2014a; Shrestha et al. 2018), Manang (Oli et al. 1993; Wegge et al. 2012; Shrestha et al. 2018), the Shey Phoksundo National Park (Devkota et al. 2013) and west Nepal (Shrestha et al. 2019). Himalayan tahr (Hemitragus jemlahicus) and musk deer (Moschus chrysogaster) are preferred prey animals in the Everest (Ale 2005; Lovari et al. 2009; Shrestha et al. 2018) and Langtang regions (Chalise 2011). However, small animals like pika (Ochotona roylei) are also reported as the most preferred prey in the Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve (Aryal 2009) and west Nepal (Shrestha et al. 2019). Different studies report a wide range of different species of prey (wild animals, domestic animals, birds and unidentified prey) in Nepal. There are also reports of vegetation or grass in scats (Table 2.2). The species of prey in the scats are identified by direct observation, questionnaires, interviews and analysing scats both microscopically (Oli et al. 1993; Shrestha et al. 2018) and genetically (Karmacharya et al. 2016; Chetri et al. 2017; Shrestha et al. 2018).

Table 2.2 List of the animals, birds, plants and unidentified items recorded in snow leopard diet
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There is seasonal variation in the types of prey. In the Sagarmatha (Everest) National Park, Himalayan tahr is the main prey in summer (48%) and less so (37%) in autumn (Lovari et al. 2009). Wild ungulates are the most frequent prey in the cold season (78%) and less so in the warm season (33%) in the Manaslu Conservation Area. In contrast, small mammals/birds are more frequently caught in summer (74%) than in winter (22%) (Chetri et al. 2017). Likewise, in the Sagarmatha National Park (SNP), the most frequent species of prey is Himalayan tahr in both winter and summer, followed by cow and musk deer in winter, and cow and yak in summer; weasel sp. and dog are also consistently recorded in both seasons and some small prey occur only in summer, whereas in the Annapurna Conservation Area, the main prey is blue sheep in winter and yak and goat in summer. Snow leopard prefers large prey and avoids small prey in summer, but not in winter. In Sagarmatha National Park, wild prey is eaten only in winter (Shrestha et al. 2018).

For snow leopards, medium-large prey weighs 51–75 kg and small prey 2–25 kg (Lovari et al. 2009). The relation between snow leopard and its main prey, blue sheep, in terms of weight was 1:113–181 in 1989–1990 (Oli 1991) and 1:114–159 in 1990–1991 (Oli 1994). In the upper Mustang region, there are 0.86 blue sheep per km2 and a total biomass of approximately 38,925 kg. This could support nearly 19 snow leopards (1.6 snow leopards/100 km2) (Aryal et al. 2014b). The density of blue sheep is much higher at Chhekampar VDC, Gorkha and Manaslu Conservation Areas (3.8 animals/km2) and thus these areas could support more snow leopards (Devkota et al. 2017).

Livestock also makes up an important part of the diet of snow leopards. Domestic animals such as goat, yak and cows are reported as food for snow leopard (Shrestha et al. 2019). Figures have shown that 42% of snow leopard’s diet consists of domestic animals in the Phu valley, Manang (Wegge et al. 2012) and 54.54% in the Sagarmatha (Everest) region (Shrestha 2008). Chetri et al. (2017) report that livestock are killed more frequently by male snow leopards (males: 47%, females: 21%) and wild ungulates more frequently by female snow leopards (males: 48%, females: 70%).

2.5 Human-Snow Leopard Conflict and Public Attitude to Conservation in Nepal

Killing of livestock by snow leopards is quite common in Nepal (Ikeda 2004; Shrestha et al. 2012; Wegge et al. 2012; Aryal 2013; Devkota et al. 2017). Generally, during alpine winter (December–April) livestock on pastures is the most vulnerable, especially young calves (1–3 years of age) (Ikeda 2004). They are also more at risk in areas, where there are bushes, forest, boulders, crevices and depressions (Khatiwada and Ghimirey 2009; Sherchan and Bhandari 2017). The losses vary from place to place. In the Lelep VDC, it increased from 17.2% in 2005 to 28% in 2014, whereas at Yampdhudin it decreased from 8.9% in 2005/06 to 6% in 2014/15. Both of these villages are located inside the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area (Sherchan and Bhandari 2017). Annual percentage losses due to depredation by snow leopards ranged from 1.29 to 63%, and the number of domestic animals killed ranged from 12 to 412. Although in the Annapurna Conservation Area (ACA) and the Manaslu Conservation Area (MCA) the predation percentage was low (0.9%), the snow leopard was responsible for more than a half of it (61.9%) (Chetri et al. 2019a; Table 2.3).

Table 2.3 Animals killed by snow leopard in Nepal (1991–2017). Dash (–) Data not available
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The killing of livestock by snow leopards is costly for the herders in Nepal, and most of them favour extermination of snow leopards as the best way to resolve this problem (Poudel et al. 2008; Khatiwada and Ghimirey 2009; Ale 2010). In Rowaling, people have a mixed response towards snow leopards, with over half of the livestock owners (57%) with no specific desire to minimize livestock killing by snow leopards and 23% in favour of eradicating snow leopards. Only 10% of the herders favoured mitigation measures, while the rest (10%) believed it could be reduced by performing religious ceremonies (Ale 2010). In the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area, local herders think that if the killing of snow leopards is to be banned, then they should be compensated for their loses and management in terms of reliability, and transparency should be tested before the initiation of such a livestock insurance policy (Ikeda 2004).

Study in the Sagarmatha National Park carried out by Hanson et al. (2018) have examined how local communities that responded to the idea of translocation of the prey species—blue sheep into the Sagarmatha National Park in Nepal to reduce the predation of livestock by snow leopard. The result showed that herders were reluctant because they feared crops would be damaged and competition for pasture more than the loss of livestock.

In the Sagarmatha National Park and the Annapurna Conservation Area, Hanson et al. (2019b) found a high percentage of local people had positive (60.5%) attitudes towards snow leopard, 19.0% were neutral, 16.5% were negative and 4.1% were very negative. Positive attitudes because of cultural and religious values were the most common and negative reasons because of the challenges of coexisting with a predatory species and its real or perceived danger to livestock. Kusi et al. (2019) conducted a survey of people’s perception of snow leopard conservation in upper Humla, upper Dolpa, and Kanchenjunga Conservation Area in Nepal. They found that overall attitudes were more positive towards snow leopard than the Himalayan wolf Canis sp., which commonly attacks livestock.

In the past, herders often killed snow leopards at Manang (Oli et al. 1993, 1994) and in the Langu valley (Jackson 1979a). However, after the establishment of the Annapurna Conservation Area, the residents at Mustang and Manang became more reluctant to hunt snow leopards for fear of being reported or fined by the government and instead of killing them they chased them away (Jackson et al. 1996). In other places in Nepal, such as in the Langtang National Park (Adhikari 2004) and at Humla (Khatiwada and Ghimirey 2009), retaliatory killing and poaching of snow leopards continues.

Despite the existence of people-snow leopard conflicts, there are also reports of a positive attitude towards snow leopards in the Manaslu Conservation Area, Gorkha (Ale et al. 2014; Devkota et al. 2017). This is because most of the people in this area are Buddhist. They believe that snow leopards are ambassadors of god and that the presence of snow leopards in their area is a matter of dignity. Traditionally, killing and hunting is strictly forbidden in the restricted zone. If anyone uses violence against snow leopards, this goes against their social norms, and must be punished by Lamas (local priests).

Recently, Schutgens et al. (2018) surveyed willingness to pay for conservation of snow leopard in the Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal. Out of 406 foreign tourists, it was found that 49% of visitors stated that they would pay additional fees for conservation of snow leopard. However, the majority of visitors were unwilling to pay additional fees, as they thought that the fee paid to the Conservation Area was already expensive. Similarly, tourists also expressed their views in supporting snow leopard conservation in Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal. This shows that wildlife tourism could be employed as an important tool to conserve snow leopard (Hanson et al. 2019a).

2.6 Threat and Trade in Nepal

The threats in the Dolphu region and Shey Phoksundo National Park are due to weak enforcement of the law, unregulated livestock grazing and human pressure. Moreover, there is a great human pressure on snow leopard habitat, especially during the collection of Ophiocordyceps sinensis (formerly known as Cordyceps sinensis) or yartsa gunbu (Poudel et al. 2008). Decrease in natural prey and increase in the use of alpine pastures by humans and their livestock in the Langu valley also threatens the survival of snow leopards (Jackson 1979a). Livestock and wild ungulates spatial overlap and grazing competition are responsible for habitat degradation (Shrestha 2006; Shrestha et al. 2012). Depletion of its prey population (such as blue sheep, Himalayan tahr, Himalayan musk deer) is the main reason for the decrease in the abundance of snow leopards (Kyes and Chalise 2005; Chalise 2011; Ferretti et al. 2014). Deforestation, habitat fragmentation, unmanaged use of pastures and tourists (Adhikari 2004; Upadhyay 2010), along with hunting and killing snow leopards for their pelts and bones, which can be sold for high prices (Jackson 1979b; Jackson and Ale 2009), are the main threats to snow leopard survival. In addition to this, Khanal et al. (2018) found that human disturbance and habitat degradation associated with extraction of non-timber forest products, livestock grazing and poaching are major threats to snow leopards in the Api Nampa Conservation Area (Khanal et al. 2018).

There is no formal record of snow leopards’ skin and bones trade in Nepal that was mainly carried out by Kashmiri traders in Kathmandu until 1980. Despite the increase in the publicity directed at conserving snow leopards, this trade continues, but surreptitiously. Currently, there is a trade of body parts of snow leopards and tiger bones with Tibet, but no evidence of a trade of live animals (Dexel and Deutschland 2002). Recently, during a monitoring of data for snow leopard from 2003 to 2014, Maheshwari and Niraj (2018) showed that in Nepal there were five cases of trade of snow leopard parts. Of the 5 cases, 3 were recorded in the literature and 2 were based on questionnaire surveys.

2.7 Conservation Measures in Nepal

In Nepal, snow leopards are legally protected under the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 2029 (HMGN 1973). The fourth amendment of this Act 2049 (HMGN 1993) defined the penalties for poaching snow leopards, or acquiring, buying and selling their pelts (Kharel et al. 2001). The penalty is either a fine of Rs. 50,000–100,000 or a prison sentence of 5–15 years, or both. There are also meetings between governmental and non-governmental agencies with an interest in or jurisdictional responsibilities for wild life legalization in this country, which have also boosted interest in conservation (Heinen et al. 1995). The holistic integrated programs launched by the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC), The National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC) (previously the King Mahendra National Trust for Nature Conservation, KMTNC), World Wide Fund For Nature in Nepal (WWF Nepal), International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), Snow Leopard Conservation Committees (SLCC), etc. have also contributed to the conservation of snow leopards in Nepal (Ale and Karky 2002). It is also proposed that prey, such as blue sheep, should be translocated (Aryal et al. 2013), and corridors between different national parks (for example, Makalu Barun and Sagarmatha) maintained (Ale 2010) in order to protect snow leopards. The Government of Nepal has outlined snow leopard conservation plans (2005–2015 and 2011–2021) aimed at consolidating ongoing initiatives and addressing contemporary issues and challenges of snow leopard and their habitats conservation (GoN/DNPWC and WWF Nepal 2013; GoN/DNPWC 2017).

The first community-based Livestock Insurance Scheme (LIS) was initiated in KCA with the support of WWF Nepal in order to mitigate human-snow leopard conflict in 2006 (GoN/DNPWC 2017). This policy aims to compensate affected households for the loss of their livestock caused by snow leopards (Anonymous 2017) and is regulated by the Snow Leopard Conservation Committees (SLCC) in the area. The intention is to enable people to cope with the situation and so reduce the retaliatory killings of snow leopards (Anonymous 2017; WWF Nepal 2007). The government of Nepal has also formulated the 13th plan (2013/14–2015/16) covering the agriculture/livestock development policies, which formalizes the provision of insurance for loses of livestock and agriculture produce (Pradhanang et al. 2015). It is thus necessary to expand LIS to all the places where human-snow leopard conflicts occur.

2.8 Future Perspectives

In Nepal, snow leopards are well established in the northern part of the country in an area of 30,000 km2 at altitudes between 2900 and 6000 m. Despite the remoteness and inaccessibility of the habitats of snow leopards they are relatively well studied in Nepal. The first studies were of their home ranges and movements. The objectives of the studies gradually changed with the advent of camera traps and genetic analysis. However, there is a constant need for development of new and improved methods, as those available today are often not able to determine the gender of snow leopards (Conradi 2006). A considerable number of studies highlight that the killing of livestock by snow leopards results in herders often having a negative attitude towards snow leopards, which leads to retaliatory killing and contributes to the decline in their abundance. The livestock insurance policy, which was initiated in the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area in eastern Nepal, is a milestone in the increase of awareness and development of positive attitudes towards snow leopards, which will ultimately protect them. As most effective conservation measures involve community-based participation, it would be a great achievement if local people could be trained to record marks and store scat or hairs in local repositories prior to making them available to ecologists. This new, but not yet practiced approach could be an important part of public awareness programs.

Studies on snow leopard diet reveal that it feeds on relatively few animals and depends on the availability of small mammals, birds or even livestock. Thus, it is important to protect those areas where the natural prey of snow leopards occurs. Local community-based programs that result in people not killing animals, as at Gorkha (Devkota et al. 2017), is one method of improving the conservation of snow leopards. Other community-based programs, which could help in their conservation, are field patrols, provision of livestock insurance, construction of predator-proof night time corrals and other means of protecting livestock, managed livestock grazing and establishment of a conservation-based tourism program to bring additional income to local communities.

Recording of reproduction, diseases and real time movements of snow leopard using satellite based global positioning system (GPS) are yet to be explored in Nepal. Illegal killing and poaching for trade are important issues yet to be addressed. Competition with other animals for food and habitat (Lovari et al. 2013a), or a simple comparison of the past and present abundance of snow leopards or their prey are also lacking in Nepal (Ghoshal et al. 2017). As emphasized above it is also important to take into account in-situ conservation and minimize conflict while promoting a positive attitude towards snow leopard (Lama et al. 2020).