The Hemis National Park in Ladakh recorded the highest density of snow leopards globally at 477, according to a study published in PLOS One on Thursday.

The number corresponds to 68 percent of India’s total population with a density between 1 and 3 individuals per 100 km2.

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Researchers reported that 61 percent of snow leopards in Ladakh co-exist alongside the human population, making a strong case for the adoption and upscaling of the Ladakh model to boost the feline population in the country.

“The deep-rooted reverence for wildlife among Ladakh’s communities, combined with the economic benefits from snow leopard tourism and conflict management strategies, helps sustain some of the world’s highest snow leopard densities,” said Yadvendradev Vikramsinh Jhala, a senior scientist at the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), Bengaluru, and Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehradun, one of the authors of the study.

Meanwhile gathering the data crucial for the conservation of these wild carnivores, was no small feat. The Himalayan big cats, famously called the “Ghost of the Mountains”, owing to their shy nature and preference for remote and rugged terrain, made data collection a gigantic task.

Researchers from the WII circumvented this problem and performed an intensive survey of the region for evidence of snow leopards, such as footprints, feces, and scratch marks.

Accurate estimates of their populations across the territory were generated by setting up over 950 camera traps in an area of 8,500 km2, which is occupied by these big cats.
At last, individual snow leopards were identified based on the distinctive pattern of markings on their forehead by analyzing photos using artificial intelligence.
Researchers used an interesting method to ensure that each leopard posed for their camera.

“To photograph snow leopards’ foreheads, we had to make them pose in front of our cameras. This was done by spraying a small amount of perfume just below the cameras that were deployed near their favored scent marking rocks on the high ridge tops. The curious leopards lower their heads to smell the novel smell and we have our prized photos,” remarked Jhala.