In the mountainous Tost Tosonbumba Nature Reserve in southern Mongolia, a few kilometres from the border with China, scientists from the conservation organization Snow Leopard Trust found five snow leopard cubs in their dens.
The snow leopards (Panthera uncia) are considered extremely elusive animals, so they are not easy to observe nor study, especially because they tend to live in hard-to-access areas. As a result, little is known about their reproduction, such as how often females give birth, the size of litters and the survival rates of cubs.
Without these data, it becomes difficult to understand how snow leopard populations cope with pressures such as disease, poaching and declines in their prey. Being a species vulnerable to extinction, according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, knowing as much as possible about how these animals reproduce and the early life stages of cubs is essential.
The use of camera-trapping techniques, a non-invasive method to monitor animals in the wild with cameras linked to motion sensors that automatically capture images, has been important to unravel the secrets of the life of these felids. However, cubs only begin to leave the dens where they were born and follow the mother around five months of age, so until then their lives remain a mystery.
How many are born? How many survive? These are all questions that scientists can only answer by traveling to the dens and counting the cubs in person.
That is why, between late June and early July, Snow Leopard Trust scientists traversed rugged terrain in search of signs of the small snow leopards. They already suspected that two females, code-named F12 and F19, had very likely had cubs. Because they were fitted with GPS collars, the scientists had a rough idea of where their dens would be and set out on the search.
Using radio signal detection equipment, they confirmed that the mothers were out of the dens, probably hunting, before approaching. Not receiving radio signals, they entered F12’s den and found two cubs, a male and a female. They were about 28 days old, weighed around two kilograms and appeared healthy.
Saliva samples were collected for genetic analysis and microchips were implanted in the cubs to allow identification when, years later, as adults, they are recaptured to be fitted with GPS collars.
According to information released by the Snow Leopard Trust, the whole process lasts only a few minutes and the scientists try to cause as little disturbance as possible.
After finishing the examinations, the team headed to F19’s den. The female was with the cubs, so the scientists had no choice but to wait for her to leave again. Three days passed and nothing, but on July 3, F19 went out on a hunt, and the team advanced.
At the den they found three cubs, two males and one female, all weighing 1.7 kilograms and in good health.
In total, five cubs were counted, which can help stabilize the future of a species at risk, but emblematic of Asian wildlife.
Snow Leopard Trust assures that the team confirmed that after their visits the females continued to use the dens, thus confirming that the presence of humans did not cause significant disturbances.
In addition, it says that the exact locations of the dens are not disclosed to protect the animals.
“In a world where snow leopards face growing threats from illegal hunting, climate change, habitat loss and retaliatory killings for livestock predation, every snow leopard cub born in the wild matters,” the organization notes.
Often called “ghosts of the mountains,” for living in high-altitude habitats and being difficult to observe, snow leopards (Panthera uncia) are a species vulnerable to extinction. Human-wildlife conflicts, prey scarcity and habitat loss are among the major threats.
Currently, their distribution area mainly covers Central Asia, extending from the Himalayas in the south to the Altai Mountains in the north, and from Pakistan in the west to China in the east.
