Status, distribution and conservation of leopard panthera pardus fusca in Rajasthan

Abstract

This chapter describes the present status and distribution of the second important big cat, the Leopard, which is an Endangered animal as per Appendix-1 of CITES and Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Act, 2006. Worldwide, eight subspecies of Leopard are identi fi ed based on DNA studies. The Indian subspecies, Panthera pardus fusca, is distributed all over the country, being absent only in the arid desert and above the timber line in the Himalayas. The latest available fi gures based on pugmark census the status, population and conservation issues of Leopard in 16 protected areas are discussed. Leopard is one of the least studied species in Rajasthan. The text discusses the feeding behaviour, adaptability for diverse diet including domestic livestock, man-leopard conflict and ability to withstand anthropogenic pressure and decline in its natural prey-base. Habitat destruction, loss of wild prey, poaching for skins, bones and claws and poisoning carcasses of livestock killed by leopard are signi fi cant threats to this species. Under these circumstances, the need for basic research on Leopard ecology, for example, movement, range, feeding ecology, habitat utilisation and man–animal conflict, have been stressed upon for the conservation of this magnificent animal in Rajasthan.