Amur Leopards

The leopard is rarely found in cold environments and exists mostly in the savannas of Africa and the jungles of Southeast Asia where populations are relatively stable. However, in the extreme northern part of the leopard’s range, a rare subspecies of this cat lives in the temperate forests and harsh winters of the Russian Far East. Known as the Amur leopard, it is the most endangered big cat with only 25-40 left in the wild. In the north, the extreme cold and deep snows prevented successful colonization and in the south, the intensive development in China had destroyed leopard habitat. Thus, leopards occur only along the Russia-Chinese border, with the majority being found in Southwest Primorye, Russia.  A few leopards may still exist in North Korea but attempts to conduct surveys there have not been successful.

The Human Aspect
High human populations and intensive use of forest resources has largely excluded leopards from northeast China. Due to the poor economy in southwest Primorye, people there have been forced to rely on local forest products as a source of income and food. Poor economic conditions create a strong incentive for poaching and its close proximity to China and major seaports have made wildlife smuggling to Asian medicinal markets easy. Despite a significant proportion of Amur leopard range being protected, the total habitat available for this population is extremely limited. Fires set by humans in fall and spring to clear and generate growth in meadows and fields often burn into forests. The long-term consequences of such fires have been devastating, preventing regeneration of trees and shrubs. Consequentially, as large trees die, forests are converted to open grasslands, which is totally unsuitable for leopards.

Threats
Amur leopards experience various threats.  First, the area is politically sensitive because of its borders with China and North Korea.  Second, Amur tigers coexist with amur leopards, which are also critically endangered. This poses a difficult conservation challenge because competition from tigers may significantly impact the leopard’s chances for survival.  Third, the area is subject to habitat loss and fragmentation through logging, frequent human-caused fires, and planned and ongoing development projects, such as a major oil pipeline. Fourth, leopards are endangered by poaching and ‘retaliation killing’ on local deer farms. Poaching of wild boar and sika deer, its primary prey, pose as great a threat as poaching of leopards themselves. Last, because leopards are found in one small population, they are threatened by inbreeding depression, introduced diseases, and catastrophes such as major fires.  Data are urgently needed on which to base recommendations to minimize the impact of development, logging, and other human activities and to develop a more detailed protected areas plan that includes defined movement corridors between Russia and China.

WCS Activities
WCS cooperates with Russian authorities in an attempt to increase the chance for this cat’s survival in the region. Our research and conservation activities are focused on population monitoring and working with local hunting groups, which are responsible for wildlife management, to identify ways to increase compatibility of human activities with leopard conservation. In the mid-1990’s, WCS’s field team of Russian and American biologists fitted five leopards with radio-collars in Kedrovya Pad Reserve to obtain key information on movements, home range size and habitat needs. Presently we are attempting to extend this work to other regions to better understand leopard ecology. 

Currently, WCS monitors population trends annually, using remote cameras set in the forest each winter. This provides us with information on leopard distribution and because each leopard has unique spot patterns, photos provide us with information on individual movements, population densities, and rates of population turnover. In the mid to late 1990s, WCS conducted surveys for tigers and leopards in Russia and China and developed a plan for a network of transboundary protected areas and management zones.  This led to the creation of the Hunchun Tiger-Leopard Reserve on the border with Russia in China’s Jilin Province. Recognizing the importance of hunters in determining the fate of Amur leopards and tigers, WCS has launched a wide-scale program aimed at improving wildlife management in hunting leases, and reducing conflicts between leopards, tigers, and people. Our program attempts to:

1) Increase ungulate densities on hunting leases by improving anti-poaching activities and better habitat and population management.
2) Increase management capabilities. 
3) Seek financial stability for hunting leases so they can fully meet their responsibilities and properly manage wildlife resources;
4) Educate hunters, managers of hunting leases, and the general public about wildlife management issues;
5) Assist in legal support of hunting leases. We are presently attempting to devise economic incentives for hunters and local communities to support leopard and tiger conservation, which represents a precedent in the Russian Far East.

Important Next Steps
Little is known about the ecology and natural history of Amur leopards.  Data are needed in a number of areas including habitat use and movements, particularly in relation to international boundaries and development projects, reproductive rates, incidence of disease, the degree of inbreeding within the population, and conflicts between leopards and tigers.  Plans for Amur leopard conservation include the development of a captive breeding center and establishment of a second, separate population.  However, we have much to learn about leopard ecology before we can hope to successfully establish a second population. To this end, we intend to begin a new research project in southwest Primorye aimed at collecting detailed data on leopard ecology and their relationship with tigers, as well as with people.  Radio-tracking will further help us to identify movement corridors between Russia, China, and perhaps North Korea, allowing us to better link protected areas and strategically position new protected areas.