In the windswept landscapes of Ladakh, where the Himalayas cut across the sky and silence hangs heavy over snow-dusted valleys, a rare and mysterious predator still prowls. The snow leopard, often called the “ghost of the mountains,” is an animal most people will never see. It moves silently, hidden by its thick camouflage, and has remained largely untracked for decades. But recent years have brought about a shift, not only in how we study these elusive cats, but in how the people of Ladakh live alongside them.

Tracking the elusive predator

According to India’s most extensive snow leopard survey to date, reports Mongabay, Ladakh is home to an estimated 477 snow leopards. That is nearly 68% of the country’s entire snow leopard population, of around 718. This two-year study, covering 59,000 square kilometres of the trans-Himalayan region, marked a major milestone for snow leopard research.

Researchers walked more than 6,000 kilometres, recorded nearly 10,000 signs of snow leopard presence, and installed 956 camera traps in high, medium, and low-density zones. These traps captured over 26,000 images.

Using the artificial intelligence software called CaTRAT, trained specifically to recognise Himalayan wildlife, scientists identified individual snow leopards by the unique patterns on their foreheads, more reliable than side markings, which can be distorted by wind-ruffled fur. From 126 identified individuals, the team used spatial capture-recapture models to estimate a total population of 477 snow leopards in Ladakh.

A vision........

© The Better India