The strikingly beautiful snow leopard remains one of the most mysterious cats in the world.
This roving, high-altitude cat is rarely sighted and because it is so elusive, accurate population numbers are hard to come by, although estimates range from 450 to 500 individuals for India. The Government of India has identified the snow leopard as a flagship species for the high-altitude Himalayas. It has developed a centrally-supported programme called Project Snow Leopard for the conservation of the species and its habitats.
Habitat and distribution
Snow leopards live in the mountainous regions of central and southern Asia. In India, their geographical range encompasses a large part of the western Himalayas including the states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh in the eastern Himalayas. The last three states form part of the Eastern Himalayas – a priority global region of WWF and the Living Himalayas Network Initiative.
Status now
The snow leopard is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN-World Conservation Union’s Red List of the Threatened Species. In addition, the snow leopard, like all big cats, is listed on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species (CITES), which makes trading of animal body parts (i.e., fur, bones and meat) illegal in signatory countries. It is also protected by several national laws in its range countries.
Why save the snow leopards?
The Mighty Himalayas is home to Snow Leopards, the source of most of our freshwater. Five hundred million people in India rely on rivers that originate in these ranges. In order to ensure water security, it is of utmost priority that we conserve the Himalayan ecosystem.
You can help support the cause of protecting Snow Leopards, a vulnerable species that regulate the entire Himalayan ecosystem as an apex predator. Simply put, healthy population of Snow Leopards indicates the health of our Himalayas and its rivers.
Plum’s contribution
For those of you who didn’t know, Plum is a 1% of the planet member. Founded in 2002, 1% for the Planet has grown into a global movement of more than 1200 member companies in 48 countries, all donating at least 1% of annual sales to sustainability initiatives. We at plum donated 1% of our annual sales to saving the snow leopards and their habitat. Thank you for your love and support. Keep picking plums, and we promise to keep doing good.
For any additional support you want to give for this cause head onto https://join.wwfindia.org/save-snow-leopard/index.php
Information Source - wwfindia.org
