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SNOW LEOPARD SURVIVAL STRATEGY RESEARCH TOPIC TABLES

The Snow Leopard Survival Strategy incorporates 31 topics in the "Research and Information Needs" section (beginning on page 47 of the SLSS), all of which require further study in order to effectively conserve snow leopards, their habitat, and their prey species. These research tables address the need for five specific areas of snow leopard study: Status and Distribution, Ecology and Natural History, Native Ecosystems, Coexistance with Humans, and Integrated Approaches. The SLSS research topics are organized in these tables according to which umbrella issue they address, giving the significance, examples, and further research needs for each. To reference work that is already being done on these issues, see the "Case Studies" listed under each research topic in the SLSS.

 

Table 2-3: Ecosystems Hosting Snow Leopard
Research Topic
Significance
Examples
Highest Priority Regions
Current Projects
R.6 Agents of habitat degradation & relative impacts Habitats mostly affected by livestock grazing, but also road & pipeline building, mining, & some tourism activities. Review literature, identify degraded areas, conduct impact studies & develop standardized methods.
NRANG
Case Studies R.6
R.8 Prey Species distribution & “hot spots” Knowing prey species abundance helps researchers map range & estimate snow leopard populations in the same areas.  Methods include SLIM surveys, habitat modeling & developing prey distribution database. Standardize techniques.
HIMLY, KK/HK, NRANG
Case Studies R.8
R.9 Prey Population baseline & trends Establish prey trends & threats (especially in most critical snow leopard areas to enable long-term monitoring). Conduct surveys based on results of R.8; repeat at regular intervals in selected areas to establish trends
HIMLY, KK/HK, NRANG
Case Studies R.9
R.10  Dynamics of illegal ungulate hunting (sources, local need, uses, trade, etc.) Understanding effect of illegal & legal hunting of prey species on snow leopard populations important to long-term monitoring. Systematic records of poaching within "hotspots" using standardized framework for documentation. Feed into national database.
CISWC, RW
Case Studies R.10
R.11  Dynamics of legal ungulate harvest & baseline statistics (sex/age, effort, trophy size) Legal ungulate hunting statistics could provide useful information, but this is often overlooked. Develop standardized system for recording prey harvest & gathering pertinent biological information. Catalog information into national database. 
CISWC
Case Studies R.11
R.13  Ungulate disease – type, areas of occurrence, prevalence, virulence, treatment Disease may limit prey abundance or availability, thus limiting snow leopard population numbers Consult experts, conduct literature review to develop list of diseases; link this with prey distribution database & conduct regular prey species health surveys. 
KK/HK
Case Studies R.13

 

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