A photo exhibition, dubbed In the Footsteps of Snow Leopard, which kicked off at Dushanbe’s art-café Mazza today gives stat to a week of educational and cultural events dedicated to the International Snow Leopard Day, which is marked on October 23.
Ms. Tatiana Novikova, Field Coordinator for Knowledge Management, Protecting Snow Leopard and Promoting Sustainable Livelihoods of Local Population Project, says the main purpose of the event is in quickening Tajikistanis interest in problems of protecting snow leopard.
Snow leopards specialize in one of the harshest and most remote habitats on Planet Earth. Well-adapted to the cold, dry conditions, snow leopards roam the high mountains of Central and South Asia up to elevations of 3,000-4,000 meters or more. Steep slopes, rocky crags and rugged terrain provide ideal hunting grounds for snow leopards.
In Tajikistan, the total habitat area for snow leopards is about 85,700 km, which represents 60% of the total territory of the country. According to local experts, Tajikistan now contains around 250-400 snow leopards primarily within the Pamir Mountain range.
However there are significant threats to snow leopards in Tajikistan including loss of prey, poaching, lack of awareness among decision makers and local population on importance of snow leopard conservation and poor implementation of legislation which protects snow leopards and other endangered wildlife in the country.
October 23, the International Snow Leopard Day, is a reminder to the international community, civil society and the private sector that extends beyond the 12 countries where snow leopards are found, that it is our collective responsibility to conserve the species and its ecosystem.
International Snow Leopard Day is an annual holiday celebrated in different countries across the world. It is dedicated to saving one of the rarest wild cats on the planet.
International Snow Leopard Day was initiated by the countries that encompass the snow leopard’s range. They include Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. On October 23, 2013 they signed the Bishkek Declaration on the conservation of snow leopard at the First Global Snow Leopard Forum that took place in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan.
The first International Snow Leopard Day took place on October 23, 2014. Its main goal was to raise awareness of the importance of snow leopard conservation, consolidate effort of environmental organization in the countries of the snow leopard range, and emphasize the importance of taking measures to prevent poaching.
