Guwahati: Growing human-leopard conflict in North East Hill and Brahmaputra Floodplains Landscape owing to habitat mosaic and developmental projects is a major concern towards leopard conservation, according to the 2022 Status of Leopards report released today.
“Despite being present all across the landscape, leopards are the least studied species in the landscape and there are very few studies available on population estimates of leopards since last decade published the baseline population estimates of leopard at landscape and individual site level, however, this too was a snapshot of the population of leopard in this landscape. Leopard occupancy, population extent and abundance Leopard signs are recorded from north Bengal Dooars, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Nagaland. However, except north Bengal Dooars where Phase I sampling was carried out outside Protected Areas as well, leopard signs obtained are very sporadic in other states owing to the poor Phase I sampling,” the report says.
The estimated leopard population of this landscape is 349 which has increased from 126. “Although there is an increase in the leopard population as compared to earlier cycles, this is mostly because of the increase in sampling effort in North Bengal Dooars,” the report says.
“For the very first time a leopard was photo-captured in Orang Tiger Reserve,” the report reveals.
Leopard presence was also not confirmed from Dampa Tiger Reserve (Mizoram) from either camera trap image or scat. “A thorough sampling throughout these Tiger Reserves is crucial to understand the status and spatial extent of large carnivores. North Bengal Dooars is situated amidst a mosaic of human land-use patterns and forested patches, managerial efforts are needed to carefully execute the process to minimize human-leopard conflict,” the report says.
In Arunachal Pradesh, a total of 41 individual leopards were identified from 796 photo-captures in Arunachal Pradesh of which four leopards were common between Arunachal Pradesh (Pakke Tiger Reserve) and Assam (Nameri Tiger Reserve). The estimated leopard population of Arunachal Pradesh was 42 which is an underestimation as the leopard population was estimated only from the camera-trapped sites.
There has been a substantial increase in the population density of leopards in Pakke since 2018. “Moderate to high density of leopards can be observed in Pakke Tiger Reserve. As several developmental projects are coming up in Arunachal Pradesh, there is an urgent need for sampling outside Tiger Reserves in the state to understand the spatial extent and abundance of leopards and other wildlife,” the report says.
Low to moderate density of leopards can be observed in sampled forests of Assam, with few parts of Manas and Kaziranga having high density. Population estimate of leopards is limited to the Tiger Reserves, and leopard density could not be extrapolated in the state owing to the extremely poor sampling spread of Phase I.
Many of the forest divisions in upper Assam, western Assam and areas of Karbi Anglong where leopard presence was recorded earlier in 2018, were not sampled in 2022. Although leopards are recorded from most parts of the state, only a few studies have been carried out to assess the status and spatial extent of leopards. The density of leopards in Kaziranga, Manas and Nameri remains stable in comparison to 2018 and 2021.
“Due to the habitat being a mosaic of forests, tea plantations and agricultural lands which serve as excellent cover for leopards, growing human leopard conflict is a major concern towards conservation of leopards in the state. In addition, increased traffic on several state and national highways also causes mortality of leopards in the state. However, a thorough Phase I sampling in the forested habitat of the state along with camera trapping exercises in Protected Areas are essential to identify the spatial extent and status of the leopard in the state. This would also help wildlife managers and policymakers to plan and mitigate negative human-leopard interaction in the state,” the report says.
Also Read: Meghalaya faces rising HIV prevalence amidst low awareness