Amur leopard steps back from the brink - Courtesy of WWF Russia
April 2013. Specialists of Far Eastern Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, "Land of the Leopard" National Park, WWF and Wildlife Management Department of Primorsky Province have finalized the results of snow track leopard census
Best hopes exceeded
The census produced four happy results, and one alarming development. In general the results exceeded all expectations - 48-50 individual leopards were detected, or 1.5 times more than 5 years ago.
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A MOTHER LOOKING AFTER A GROWN-UP CUB IN THE FORESTS
OF FAR EASTERN RUSSIA in 2011.
KEDROVAYA PAD NATURE RESERVE,
PRIMORSKY PROVINCE, RUSSIA.
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The first bit of good news was that, according to census results, minimum leopard numbers were determined as 43-45 adult individuals and 4-5 cubs. In 2007, 27-34 leopards were recorded. Thus, if the slogan "Only 30 left in the wild!" was recently true, today we can say with confidence that not less than 50 Far Eastern leopards now live in the Russian Far East. Although good news, 50 is still a critically small number for the long term survival of the population.
The second piece of good news, the leopard has moved northwards. For many years the Krounovka River was the northern border of the leopard's range. Three years ago a lonely male left his tracks on the territory of Poltavsky Provincial Wildlife Refuge to the north of that river. This winter a female with a cub was found there. The appearance of the new northernmost cat family is the leopards' response to the successful organization of proper control over the Poltavsky Refuge bylocal authorities. Under the new management the reserve became part of the network of protected areas known as "Land of the Leopard".
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