Toledo Zoo Involved in GPS Tracking Snow Leopard Conservation Project
7 Feb 2017
For the second consecutive year, Dr. Ric Berlinski, director of animal health and nutrition at Toledo Zoo has taken part in some exciting new field research on wild snow leopards. Recently traveling to Kyrgyzstan in central Asia, he assisted in conservation efforts for these beautiful big cats.
The endangered solitary and elusive cats live at high altitudes on cliffs and above the tree line on rocky outcroppings. Because they’re perfectly camouflaged and are secretive by nature, the animals are notoriously difficult to locate by sight alone. In fact, even some local people have never seen a snow leopard and have named them “mountain ghosts” for that reason.
To uncover the habits of the snow leopard, a year ago, Dr. Berlinski placed a GPS tracking collar onto a solitary female, in the Sarychat-Ertash State Nature Reserve in the Tien Shan mountains, collaring another two males this year.
The project, primarily sponsored by international big cat conservation group Panthera, is currently tracking five snow leopards in the area. Another 35 cats have also been collared close to areas of human settlement.
Dr. Berlinski and his team have found that the cats’ territories overlap a great deal more than believed previously. Also, the leopards make many smaller kills, rather than remaining with larger kills for long periods.
The sheer range that the animals travel is vast, from between 100 to 400 kilometers. With this in mind, it’s challenging to snare and collar cats as they might pass through the same area only once every few months.
Data from the males shows that the eldest hunts wherever he wants to and frequently wanders into the territory of other cats. This male was estimated to be around 7 or 8 years old and has fur that’s faded with age. He also bears many scars, which, along with his behavior, indicates that he’s the dominant male in the area.
As to the future, the zoo fully intends to keep working on the project in conjunction with Panthera. In fact, the team is currently making plans to return on a yearly basis and continue to monitor the leopards.
As a high profile endangered species, this is an important project utilizing GPS tracking technology that can help scientists to understand the snow leopard and potentially help save it from extinction.
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