Kazakhstan encouraged by rare leopard sighting
by AFP Staff Writers
Almaty, Kazakhstan (AFP) Jan 13, 2025

The endangered Persian Leopard has been spotted in Kazakhstan -- a rare sighting in the Central Asian country, where the feline's presence had not been confirmed before.

There are only around 1,000 Persian Leopards left in the world.

Also known as the Caucasian or Anatolian Leopard, the big cat is known to live in the Caucasus, Turkey, Iran, Iraq and some Central Asian states.

It is considered "endangered", according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, meaning the species is at high risk of becoming extinct in its known native range in the near future.

"The Leopard was sighted four times" by a trail camera between October and late December 2024 in the desert-covered Ustyurt nature reserve of western Kazakhstan, the country's forestry and wildlife committee said.

The IUCN estimates there are between 750 and 1,044 Persian Leopards left in the world, of which up to five may be in Kazakhstan.

The animal has only been glimpsed there around 10 times in the 21st century.

The nature reserve published a video on social media showing the leopard walking into a sandy cave in the desert.

The apex predator's population has been in decline for years due to poaching, the destruction and fragmentation of its natural habitat and a lack of prey.

The Ustyurt nature reserve said it was encouraged by the sighting.

"The return of the Eurasian (Caucasian) leopard is a symbol of the restoration of the ecosystem of the Ustyurt and is a result of our joint efforts," the reserve's team said on social media.

"This success motivates us to continue the work of studying and protecting this rare predator," it added.

While Kazakh cities are extremely polluted, authorities are working to protect endangered species in the country's wild expanses.

They include the Snow Leopard -- Kazakhstan's national symbol, the Saiga Antelope, the Przewalski Horse and the Siberian Tiger.

The number of Snow Leopards in Kazakhstan has doubled in the country in the past three decades, from 80-100 in 1995 to 152-189 in 2023, according to the United Nations Development Programme.

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