A leopard count with a missing benchmark number
Updated:
Updated:
January 01, 2021 01:14 IST
Assessing numbers of cats in select sites and monitoring areas they occupy over swathes will ensure a better overview
Share Article
AAA
Assessing numbers of cats in select sites and monitoring areas they occupy over swathes will ensure a better overview
“India’s leopard population increases by 60% in 4 years” [since 2014] is what most newspapers highlighted when a first-of-its-kind report on leopard numbers in the country was released recently. Unlike the fanfare and debates that would have rolled out with tiger numbers, there was hardly any discourse about this species. Like always, the leopard loses out to its larger cousin. However, to get a population estimate of an elusive carnivore at the geographical scale of 21 States in India is tricky and requires colossal effort. On this front, the entire research team has to be congratulated for completing this massive task.