Research. Educate. Act.

November 2013Features

27 ResearchCoral Reef in DangerThe coral reed is in danger due to pollution, fishing

impacts, and climate change.

55 EducateYellowstone grizzliesGrizzly bear numbers have tripled in Yellowstone since the 1980s, recolonizing much of their former habitat.

99 ActBeach Nesting Bird ProjectConserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ tirelessly works to monitor and protect beach nesting birds in New Jersey..

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107 ActAction in Central AmericaWCS’s uses a landscape-scale approach to conserve the habitats of the region’s penguins, pumas, monkeys, guanacos, and other iconic wildlife.

135 EducateThe Story of PantheraPanthea has many projects all around the world and they are working with seven of the largest, most endangered wild cats.

ABOUT THE COVERThe Photograph on the cover was taken by Nick Jewell of a Leopard in Namibia.

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Research Educate

Act

21 Animal FactsCheetah Facts

32 NewsRhino Trade in Viet NamViet Nam starts to understand the serverety of Rhino trade.

51 EcosystemLow Ice in the ArticGlobal action must be taken as a result of the record low ice .

15 Questions“Reaching Out”How can I help with conservationin my local community?

66 Fundraising Fundraising to VolunteerThese 10 tips will help you sucessfully raise money to volunteer in other countries .

103 Conservationist David AttenboroughtDavid Attenborougt’s career as the face and voice of natural history programmes has endured for more than 50 years

12 StoriesAdventures in the JungleLeora Winkler travels to Peru on a life changing volunteer trip.

44 PhotographyForeign PhotosThe Umky Patrol supports and promotes conservation to protect the walruses in Russia.

78 ProjectsImpact in the AndesVolunteers travel to the Andes every month to support animal conservation and eco-tourism.

84 DonatingDonating to OrganizationsTop 10 wildlife conservation organizations to give donations.

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the highest canopy in all of South Amer-ica. From there, you could see tree tops for what seemed like forever, and look down at the Madre De Dios river, with all her twists and turns.Unfortunately, not all responsibilities at Taricaya were ones I looked forward to. One of the daunting tasks was the infamous Trail Clearing. I remember the first time I had to perform this mammoth task.

Alejandro, one of the staff, handed me and the other volunteers machetes, and then began to walk off into the great abyss that is the Amazon. All seemed well until we learned that we would have to be getting down on our hands and knees and hacking away at the many weeds and shrubs that are constantly growing into the of labyrinth of trails around the area. continued on page 111...

Left: Leora Winkler preparing for boat ride, Below: Boat ride on Madre De Dios River

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ADVENTURES IN THE PERUVIAN JUNGLE

Leora Winkler Travels to Taricay Lodge, Peru for a volunteer conservation project

In today’s world, our environmental state is a hot topic and one that many do not know what to do about. Al-

though I had joined my school’s “eco club”, I knew I wanted to do more, which was what led me to decide to make the arduous journey to the Amazon, and see just how much I could do!

Luckily I was able to get an overnight flight, and was therefore fresh faced and lively upon arrival in Puerto Maldonado. The immense wave of heat hit me like a brick wall. As I was stepping off the plane it became clear to me I would not need the jumpers I had so carefully packed. Nando, one of the founders of Taricaya, and Maria, his daughter and one of the volunteer coordinators, took me and the other volunteers from the airport to their home for a quick lunch. It was then off to the Taricaya Lodge!

The boat ride there had all of us new volunteers observing our surroundings

with a look of sheer amazement paint-ed across our faces. The towering trees, colourful birds, and silky-brown waters truly made me realize that this was not Toronto, and there was much adventure to come.

From the first day at Taricaya, it was clear this was not going to be a walk in the so called “Amazonian park”. We would receive the day’s plan and tasks the night before, and the anticipation would start to build. One of my favourite tasks for those 5:45am wakeup calls was bird watching, as it allowed you to take in the gorgeous sunrise that blessed the area, while looking at anything from Macaws, to Hummingbirds, to the oh-so-popular Yellow Rumped Casique. If you were lucky, you would be able to undertake this activity up at the Canopy Walkway,

Endangered Animals in Peru

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and asked a multitude of questions. My time at Taricaya seemed to zoom by in what I thought could have been mere seconds. Whether it was feeding the ani-mals, putting up bird nets, or becoming a skilled wielder of both a machete and

Sunrise on the Madre De Dios River

Stuart was at wrestling wildlife. His flair for caiman catching was soon revealed, when he pulled a 1½ foot long caiman from the banks of the river with his bare hands, and held it with what looked like no strain at all while we all snapped shots

...continued from page 12 For what seemed like hours upon hours, I hacked, chopped, and dismembered many a plant, with buckets of sweat and many machete blisters as proof of my commitment to the job. Although it was something I was not totally gung-ho about, I am comforted in knowing that I helped better the area, and was doing what I set out to do- make a difference in some small way.

Something that everyone looked forward to was the legendary caiman hunt that Stuart, one of the founders of Taric-aya, took us on one night. We all piled into the boat to see just how talented

pickaxe, I will not soon forget the many memories I have from there. I truly be-lieve that Taricaya is at the forefront of fighting our current environmental crisis and I am happy I was able to take part in such a valiant effort.

-Leora Winkler

Andean Mountain Cat

The Andean Cat is considered critically endan-gered. Its size is about the size of a house cat with a longer tail and its fur is soft and thick. It is believed that the main reason for its decreased population is the reduction of populations of its main prays and hunting by humans. Andean cats are hunted for traditional ceremonial purposes.

Yellow Tailed Wolly Monkey Andean Condor

Condors in the Colca CanyonAndean cat. Photograph Jim Sanderson Yellow tailed monkey. Photo: Noga Shanee

The condor is the most majestic of the birds found in the Andes. They nest on mountain ledges in the Andean Range and have a low reproductive rate as they lay eggs every other year. Air, water and soil pollution due to mining and industrial develop-ment is affecting its population as well as a reduc-ing its food supply.

According to the International Primatological So-ciety and Conservation International this species is considered one of the world’s 25 most endangered primates. There are less than 250 left in the wild. Loss of habitat due to economic development, log-ging, agriculture and mining are the main reasons for its lower population.

“It was clear this was not going to be a walk in the so called ‘Amazonian’ park.”

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STATUS: EndangeredPOPULATION: An estimated 9,000 to

12,000 cheetahs remain in the wildRANGE: Once found throughout

Africa and Asia, cheetahs are now confined to parts of eastern and

southwestern Africa.

BehaviorCheetahs are typically solitary creatures. Females raise their cubs for about a year. Males sometimes live with a small group of brothers from the same litter. Cheetahs hunt in late mornings and early evenings. Chases last from 20 to 60 seconds. Cheetahs reach sexual maturity in 20 to 24 months. Mating season is throughout the year. The cheetah can live over twenty years, but their life is often short, for they lose their speed with old age. Unlike other felines, the adult females do not have true territories and seem to avoid each other, though some mother/daughter pairs have been known to continue for small periods of time. Females live alone except when they are raising cubs. The females raise the cubs on their own. The first 18 months of a cub’s life are important; cubs learn many lessons because survival depends on knowing how to hunt wild prey species and avoid other predators such as leopards, lions, hyenas, and baboons. At 18 months, the mother leaves the cubs, which then form a sibling group, that will stay together for another 6 months. At about 2 years, the female siblings leave the group, and the young males remain together for life. Males live alone or in coalitions made up of brothers from the same litter. Life span is up to 12 years in wild.

21 November 2013

CHEETAHSIN SOUTH AFRICA

BY: Paul Janssen

Cheetah in natural habitat; South Africa

Map of current cheeath habitat

Cheetah Family; Masi Mara Kenya

DescriptionThe fastest land animal in the world, the cheetah is a marvel of evolution. Capable of running up to 70 miles per hour, the cheetah’s slender, long-legged body is built for speed. Its spotted coat, small head and ears, and distinctive “tear stripes” from the corner of the eyes down the sides of the nose make the cheetah highly recognizable among the large cats of Africa. It is not an aggressive animal, using flight versus fight. With its weak jaws and small teeth--the price it paid for speed, it cannot fight larger predators to protect its kills or young.

ThreatsThe future of the cheetah is doubtful because of increasing loss of habitat, declines in prey, high cub mortality rates and conflict with ranchers.Cheetahs were formerly, and are sometimes still, hunted because many farmers believe that they eat livestock. When the species came under threat, numerous campaigns were launched to try to educate farmers and encourage them to conserve cheetahs. Cheetah cubs have a high mortality rate due to genetic factors and predation by carnivores in competition with the cheetah, such as the lion and hyena. Some biologists now believe that they are too inbred to flourish as a species.

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SIR DAVID ATTENBOROUGH

By: Jason Jenkins

David Attenborough is one of the most widely respected TV broadcasters and has become

known as the face and voice of natural history documentaries. His career in broadcasting has stretched over more than a half a century to 1952. David is the younger brother of actor, Richard Attenborough.

David was brought up in Leicester and went to Clare College, Cambridge to study Natural Sciences; after graduat-ing in 1947, he was called up for 2 years national service in the Navy.

On leaving the Navy he briefly worked as an editor for a children’s book for a publishing company. However, in 1950 he applied to the BBC for a job. Initially he was rejected, but, his CV remained on file and shortly afterwards was given a 3 months training schedule to work

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Born 8 May 1926 (age 86)

Isleworth, London

Nationality British

Alma mater Clare College, Cambridge

(natural sciences)London School of Economics

(social anthropology)

Occupation Broadcaster

Naturalist

Title Member of the Order of Merit

Companion of Honour

Commander of the Royal Victorian Order

Commander of the Order of the British Empire

Fellow of the Royal Society

Fellow of Zoological Society of London

Spouse(s) Jane Elizabeth Ebsworth Oriel

(m. 1950–1997, her death)

Children Robert AttenboroughSusan Attenborough

as a BBC broadcaster. He proved to be a good worker and quickly progressed through the ranks of the fledgling BBC TV service. He became in charge of all non-fiction broadcasts and was soon associated with various natural history programs such as The Pattern of Ani-mals and Zoo Quest.

From 1965 to 1969 Attenborough was controller of BBC2. He initiated a wide range of programs including live Snooker, Match of the Day, the Likely Lads and Mastermind. David later said he felt BBC2 should maintain a good range of diversity.

However, David Attenborough is re-membered primarily for his natural his-tory series that he wrote and produced. These used ground breaking filming techniques and his ease of presentation made the material very accessible and of

David Attenborough with eagle

David Attenborough with parrot early in his career

interest to a new generation of viewers. His major series included: The key to David’s appeal is his ability to share his genuine enthusiasm and love for wild-life. His distinctive and calming voice have become synonymous with wildlife broadcasting. Interestingly a reader’s survey of Readers’ Digest found that David Attenborough was the most trusted of British celebrities.

Life SeriesThe opening episode of a landmark series, The Infinite Variety was the first of thirteen installments in David At-tenborough’s pioneering natural history production, Life on Earth. Redefining wildlife television, the thorough and in-depth approach used was a massive hit with viewers, its success paving the way for future serious ecological documenta-ries. Filming in locales all over the world this first episode highlights the immense diversity found on our planet. Exam-

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ining the origins of everything from cyanobacteria to sponges, The Infinite Variety is a hugely educational produc-tion, providing interesting and thought-provoking explanations of biodiversity and a range of evolutionary theories. Giant tortoises of the Galapagos Islands bring Charles Darwin’s natural selection theory to life and fossilized jellyfish in Australian mountain ranges raise questions about the earliest multi-celled organisms.

Placing nature centre stage, the BBC’s Natural History Unit used groundbreak-ing photographic techniques to capture the outstanding beauty of our rich environment. Cementing their position as world leaders in wildlife cinematogra-phy, time-lapse, micro-, and high frame speed photography are combined in unerringly breathtaking sequences.

Described by Attenborough as the production he is most proud of, the

stunning visuals are underpinned by a logical structure and the sense of time, having in his words an “unparalleled effect on the audience”.

Environmental IssuesAttenborough’s programmes have often included references to the im-pact of human society on the natural world. The last episode of The Living Planet, for example, focuses almost entirely on humans’ destruction of the environment and ways that it could be stopped or reversed. Despite this, he has been criticised for not giving enough prominence to environmental messages. Some environmentalists feel that programmes like Attenborough’s give a false picture of idyllic wilderness and do not do enough to acknowledge that such areas are increasingly en-croached upon by humans. However, his closing message from State of the Planet was forthright:continued on page 121...

“"An understanding of the natural world and what’s in it is a source of not only a great curiosity but great fulfillment."”

David Attenborough with iguanas in Wildlife Specials

Filmography

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Attenborough is known foremost for writing and presenting the ten Life series, which are presented in chronological order below:

Life on Earth (1979)

The Living Planet (1984)

The Trials of Life (1990)

Life in the Freezer (1993)

The Private Life of Plants (1995)

The Life of Birds (1998)

The Life of Mammals (2002)

Life in the Undergrowth (2005)

Life in Cold Blood (2008)

First Life (2010)

His voice is synonymous with wildlife documentaries for British audiences, and the principal series with which his narration is associ-ated include:

Wildlife on One (1977–2005)

BBC Wildlife Specials (1995–2008)

The Blue Planet (2001)

Planet Earth (British version) (2006)

Nature’s Great Events (2009)

Life (2009)

Frozen Planet (2011)

...continued from page 104The future of life on earth depends on our ability to take action. Many indi-viduals are doing what they can, but real success can only come if there’s a change in our societies and our eco-nomics and in our politics. I’ve been lucky in my lifetime to see some of the greatest spectacles that the natural world has to offer. Surely we have a responsibility to leave for future genera-tions a planet that is healthy, inhabit-able by all species. Attenborough has subsequently become more vocal in his support of environmental causes. In 2005 and 2006, he backed a BirdLife International project to stop the killing of albatross by longline fishing boats. He gave public support to WWF’s cam-paign to have 220,000 square kilometres of Borneo’s rainforest designated a protected area.He also serves as a vice-president of BTCV, vice-president of Fauna and Flora International, president of Butterfly Conservation and president of Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust. In 2003 he launched an appeal to create a rainforest reserve in Ecuador in memory of Christopher Parsons, the producer of Life on Earth and a per-sonal friend, who had died the previous year. The same year, he helped to launch

ARKive, a global project instigated by Parsons to gather together natural his-tory media into a digital library. ARKive is an initiative of Wildscreen, of which Attenborough is a patron. He has writ-ten and spoken publicly about the fact that, despite past scepticism, he believes the Earth’s climate is warming in a way that is cause for concern, and that this can likely be attributed to human activ-ity. He summed up his thoughts at the end of his 2006 documentary “Can We Save Planet Earth?” as follows:

“In the past, we didn’t un-derstand the effect of our actions. Unknowingly, we sowed the wind and now, literally, we are reaping the whirlwind. But we no longer have that excuse: now we do recognise the consequences of our behaviour. Now surely, we must act to reform it — individually and col-lectively, nationally and internationally — or we doom future generations to catastrophe.”

Cover for BBC’s Life narrated by Attenborough

David Attenborough with snake early in his career

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Awards

1970: BAFTA Desmond Davis Award1974: Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE)1980: BAFTA Fellowship1983: Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS)1985: Knighthood1991: Commander of the Royal Victo-rian Order (CVO) for producing Queen Elizabeth II’s Christmas broadcast for a number of years from 19861991: Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences1996: Companion of Honour (CH) for services to nature broadcasting1998: International Cosmos Prize2003: Michael Faraday Prize awarded by the Royal Society2004: Descartes Prize for Outstanding Science Communication Actions2004: Caird Medal of the National Mari-time Museum2005: Order of Merit (OM)2005: Nie-renberg Prize for Science in the Public Interest2006: National Television Awards Spe-cial Recognition Award2006: Institute of Ecology and En-vironmental Management - Institute Medal in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the public perception and understanding of ecology2006: The Culture Show British Icon Award2007: British Naturalists’ Association Peter Scott Memorial Award2009: Prince of Asturias Award2010: Fonseca Prize2010: Queensland Museum Medal2011: Society for the History of Natural History Founders’ Medal2012: IUCN Phillips Memorial Medal for outstanding service in international conservationDate unknown: RSPB Medal

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He later became patron of the World Land Trust, and an active supporter. He supported Glyndebourne in their successful application to obtain plan-ning permission for a wind turbine in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and gave evidence at the planning in-quiry arguing in favour of the proposal. Attenborough has repeatedly said that he considers human overpopulation to be the root cause of many environmen-tal problems. In The Life of Mammals, he made a plea for humans to curb population growth so that other species will not be crowded out. In 2009, he became a patron of Population Matters, (formerly known as the Optimum Pop-ulation Trust), a UK charity advocating sustainable human populations.

In a 2005 interview with BBC Wildlife magazine, Attenborough said he con-sidered George W. Bush to be the era’s top “environmental villain”. In 2007, he further elaborated on the USA’s consumption of energy in relation to its population. When asked if he thought America to be “the villain of the piece”, he responded:

“I don’t think whole populations are villainous, but Americans are just extraordinarily unaware of all kinds of things. If you live in the middle of that vast continent, with apparently everything your heart could wish for just because you were born there, then why worry? [...] If people lose knowledge, sympathy and understanding of the natural world, they’re go-ing to mistreat it and will not ask their politicians to care for it.”

In 2012 Attenborough was quoted as saying that the planet has always and will always look after itself but:what worries him most about the future of the natural world is that people are out of touch with it ... over half the world is urbanised; some people don’t see any real thing except a rat or a pigeon ... ecosystems are incredibly complex and you fiddle with them at your peril.”

DVD for BBC’s Life on Air

David Attenborough with reptile in desert

Photograph by James Stanfield

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Coral reefs are threatened by an increasing array of impacts—primarily from global climate change, unsustainable fishing, and pollution. For deep-sea coral communities, bottom trawling is considered the major threat in most US regions where such fishing is allowed. Additional threats include: other bottom-contact fishing gear (e.g. traps and bottom-set gillnets and longlines); coral harvesting; oil, gas, and mineral exploration and extraction; marine debris; submarine cable/pipeline deployment; invasive species; climate change; and ocean acidification.

corals and other marine life, especially other important reef builders. Warming seas and ocean acidification are already affecting reefs by causing mass coral bleaching events and slowing the growth of coral skeletons. Bleaching and infec-tious disease outbreaks are likely to be more frequent and severe as temperatures rise, increasing coral mortality.

Climate changes will have other impacts on marine sys-tems such as sea level rise; altered frequency, intensity, and distribution of tropical storms; altered ocean circulation; and others. All of these impacts will combine, often synergisti-cally, to eliminate important ecosystem function and reduce global biodiversity.

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BEFORE AFTER

Climate ChangeClimate change impacts have been identified as one of the greatest global threats to coral reef ecosystems. As tempera-ture rise, mass bleaching, and infectious disease outbreaks are likely to become more frequent. Additionally, carbon dioxide (CO2) absorbed into the ocean from the atmosphere has already begun to reduce calcification rates in reef-building and reef-associated organisms by altering sea water chemistry through decreases in pH (ocean acidification). In the long term, failure to address carbon emissions and the resultant impacts of rising temperatures and ocean acidification could make many other coral ecosystem management efforts futile.

Climate change and ocean acidification have been identified by many groups as the most important threat to coral reefs on a global basis. Global ocean temperature has risen by 0.74°C (1.3°F) since the late 19th century causing more frequent and severe bleaching of corals around the world. At the current increasing rate of greenhouse gas emissions, a tem-perature rise of up to 4.0°C (7.2°F) this century is a distinct possibility. These changes have already had harmful im-pacts on coral reef ecosystems and will continue to affect coral reef ecosystems globally over the coming century.

At the same time, the ocean absorbs ap-proximately one-third of the additional CO2 generated every year by human activities, making the ocean more acidic. The resulting change to ocean chem-istry has important consequences for

“An average of 600 square miles of living coral

have died each year in the Pacific Ocean since

1968. Coral reef destruction has doubled to 1200

square miles a year after 1995.”

Above: Bleached Coral

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PollutionImpacts from land-based sources of pollution (e.g. agricul-ture, deforestation, storm water, impervious surfaces,coastal development, road construction, and oil and chemical spills) on coral reef ecosystems include increased sedimentation, nu-trients , toxins, and pathogen introduction. These pollutants and related synergistic effects can cause disease and mortality in sensitive species, disrupt critical ecological functions, cause trophic structure and dynamics changes, and impede growth, reproduction, and larval settlement. It is now well accepted that many major coral reef ecosystem stressors originate from land-based sources, most notably, toxicants, sediments, and nutrients. The importance of identifying the extent of and reducing these effects has now become crucial, as land-based pollution and coastal development put 22 percent and 30 percent, respectively, of coral reefs on Earth at risk.

In addition to sediment, land-based sources of pollution to coral reef ecosystems include pesticides, petroleum hydrocar-bons, pharmaceuticals, heavy metals, pathogens, and excess nutrients. These pollutants can cause or exacerbate the delete-rious effects of watershed transport of pollutant constituents onto coral reefs.

Fishing ImpactFishing impacts in coral reef areas, when ecologically unsus-tainable, can lead to the depletion of key functional groups of reef species in many locations, with cascading impacts on coral reef habitats and associated species and ecosystems. Coral reefs and associated habitats provide important com-mercial, recreational and subsistence fishery resources in the United States. Fishing plays a central social and cultural role in many island communities and can represent a critical source of protein. But coral reef fisheries, though often relatively small in scale, may have disproportionately large impacts on the ecosystem if conducted unsustainably.

Specific impacts of fishing on reefs generally include one or more of the following: 1) direct overexploitation of fish, invertebrates, and algae for food and the aquarium trade; 2) removal of a species or group of species impacting multiple trophic levels; 3) by-catch and mortality of non-target species; and 4) physical impacts to reef environments associated with fishing techniques, fishing gear, and anchoring of fishing vessels. Such threats are exacerbated when coupled with other coral reef stressors such as climate change and land-based sources of pollution.

The Story of PANTHERA

all photos: ww

w.panthera.com

Panthera has brought together the world’s leading wild cat experts to direct and implement effective conservation strategies for the world’s largest and most endangered cats: tigers, lions, jaguars and snow leopards. Our approach to wild cat conservation is rooted in science and based upon decades of first hand field experience. We seek a future in which the world’s 37 wild

cat species have the necessary and ongoing protection from human and environmental threats to persist and thrive in the wild. Our vision sees endangered wild cat populations rebounded, critical habitats and core populations connected by genetic and biological corridors, and a global commitment to protect these iconic species through near and distant futures.

BACKGROUND

MEET OUR BIG CATS

The jaguar (Panthera onca) is the third largest cat in the world, after the tiger and lion, but it is the largest feline in the Western Hemisphere. During the 1960’s and 1970’s, the jaguar was heavily hunted for its beautiful coat. Today, their main threats come from habitat loss, hunting, and lack of natural prey. Panthera’s Jaguar Corridor Initiative (JCI) focuses on community outreach to help local communities find solutions to living with jaguars, improve livestock husbandry and reduce conflicts with jaguars.

40%Jaguars have been eradicated from 40 percent of their historic range.

Jaguar

The tiger (Panthera tigris) is the world’s largest cat and is one of the most threatened with extinction. As recently as 100 years ago, there were as many as 100,000 wild tigers living in Asia. Today, fewer than 3,200 remain. Panthera is working to protect and secure key tiger populations, and ensure connectivity between sites so that tigers can live long into the future.

60%The vast majority of the snow

leopard’s habitat, as much as 60%, is found in China.

lion 80%

Lions have disappeared from over 80 percent of their historic range.

The lion (Panthera leo) is synonymous with wild Africa, however few people realize that illegal killing, relentless habitat loss, and habitat fragmentation has left this species teetering on the brink of extinction. Nearly a century ago, there were as many as 200,000 lions living in the wild in Africa. Today, the most recent surveys estimate that there are fewer than 30,000 lions living in the wild in Africa today. Panthera’s objective is to conserve the African lion in key landscapes by mitigating human-lion conflict, and building or restoring connectivity between landscapes that are critical for the lion’s survival.

TIGER

COUGAR

The cougar (Puma concolor), also referred to as mountain lion, puma, deer tiger, red tiger, and “tigre” (Spanish) has the largest geographic range of any native terrestrial mammal in the Western Hemisphere. Cougars are threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation, and over hunting of their wild prey base by humans, often influencing increased attacks on domesticated livestock. Panthera is focused on key activities to address threats to cougars in North America, such as conflict mitigation and education.

28The cougar’s range spans 28

countries, with their presence uncertain in Uruguay.

6Countries where leopards are

now extinct.

The leopard (Panthera pardus) has vanished from almost 40% of their historic range in Africa, and from over 50% of their historic range in Asia. While leopards have the largest distribution of any big cat, data over the last ten years show that populations are declining and are becoming fragmented. In order to reduce leopard killings, Panthera’s scientists worked with local policy makers to create sustainable conservation solutions.

LEOPARD

CHEETAH 25

Number of countries where cheetahs are now extinct.

The cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus), the worlds fastest land animal, is also the least dangerous of big cats — there is no record of a wild cheetah ever killing a human — and they create fewer problems with livestock owners than do many other large carnivores. Cheetahs once inhabited the whole African continent except for the Congo Basin rainforest. Today, they have vanished from over 77 percent of their historic range in Africa. Panthera has been engaged with multiple partners in working to conserve Asiatic cheetahs in Iran since 2006.

Snow leopards (Uncia uncia) are believed to have been extirpated from as much as 15% of their historic range. The main threats to their survival include killing for the illegal wildlife trade market, hunting due to conflict with herders, and habitat loss. Panthera is contributing a wealth of ground-breaking scientific knowledge on how best to conserve this secretive and poorly understood species.

12Number of countries in Asia in which snow leopards are found.

SNOW LEOPARD