Elusive and critically endangered leopard caught on camera

Leopards are “near threatened” worldwide, and listed as critically endangered in Bangladesh. That’s why staff members at the country’s non-profit organization Creative Conservation Alliance (CCA) were so excited when their camera traps captured photos of leopards. The big spotted cats were observed in the forests of the Chittagong Hill Tracts, a hilly region in Bangladesh on the border with India and Myanmar. 

“These photos provide evidence that these elusive big cats still persist in the region,” the organization wrote in a Facebook post. The post’s images feature a leopard (perhaps two different leopards) prowling through a leafy underbrush. The Chittagong Hill Tracts is also home to a number of Indigenous tribes. The leopard’s “survival depends on the crucial support of local communities, who share their habitat,” the post continued.

According to a 2023 study, leopards inhabited most of Bangladesh until the end of the 19th century. Hunger and starvation from habitat fragmentation, continuous human disturbances, and diminishing prey have since greatly decreased their populations, with poaching, killing, and smuggling only making matters worse. 

Monirul Khan, a zoologist at Jahangirnagar University in Bangladesh’s capital, told CBS News that earlier reports on the presence of leopards had relied on brief sightings and paw prints. “As an extremely rare and secretive species, the latest sighting is very significant,” Khan explained. “It highlights the importance of the remaining natural forest in the Chittagong Hill Tracts as a reserve of wildlife habitat.”

The 2023 study also suggested conservative initiatives such as establishing wildlife corridors, increasing bush coverages, and pursuing environmental justice.

“CCA and partner organizations are working on the ground to protect these magnificent creatures and ensure a future where leopards and people coexist,” the CCA concluded. 

[ Related: Northern India’s elusive snow leopards get their close up. ]

Coexistence hasn’t been easy, however. According to the University of Kent, Bangladesh and India are notable examples of countries with large human population densities close to major predators—a proximity that leads to problematic encounters, including human-leopard conflicts that often end with the leopard’s death.

Nevertheless, these recent photographs provide hope that there might still be enough leopards around for a coexistence to exist in the first place. 

 

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