The Russian government has approved a plan to create a transnational park in the Far East, RIA Novosti reports, citing a government source. The park will span across the Russian-Chinese border and include sizeable reserves of Amur leopard and tiger habitat in both countries. The park will be called the Land of the Leopard («Земля леопарда»).
The Land of the Leopard park was proposed by the by the Russian Geographical Society and WWF in an attempt to save the rare and endangered species of the Far Eastern leopard, or the Amur leopard, Voice of Russia reports.
The number of animals in the population of this northernmost leopard subspecies has reached a critical level. According to the most optimistic estimates, there are no more than 50 Amur leopards left on the planet, scientists say. Most of these gorgeous spotted big cats – some 35-40 species – inhabit Russia’s Far East, whereas the nearby Chinese and Korean regions are the home for about a dozen others.
In Russia, the leopard population survived only in the Primorsk Region’s southwestern part, namely in the Kedrovaya Pad (“Cedar Valley”) natural reserve and the leopard sanctuary that is under its management. The Land of the Leopard will be set up here, on surrounding territories plus an impressive taiga area. However, this will hardly be enough, scientists fear, pointing to the necessity of creating a cross-border reserve territory jointly with China. An associated proposal has already been sent to that country. In the future, this will promote the expansion of Far Eastern leopard habitats, WWF-Russia Amur branch biodiversity conservation program coordinator Sergei Aramilev said.
"Appropriate conditions for the Amur leopard’s shift from Russia to China have long since existed only on paper. In the last three years, the Chinese government directed its attention to this issue and created a wildlife reserve adjacent to Russia’s leopard sanctuary. Officials assumed obligations to tighten control over this territory, right down to prohibiting the presence of people there. They intend to build a wall of engineering facilities along the country’s border with Russia to prevent the citizens of China from crossing it. It is therefore necessary to determine the Amur leopard’s routes and provide for the animals’ free travel between the territories of the two countries," Sergei Aramilev pointed out.
Issues concerning specially protected cross-border zones were one of the key points on the agenda at St. Pete’s International Tiger Forum held in November last year. The discussion involved 13 prime ministers of countries which are still inhabited by tigers. Most decisions made as regards the striped wild cats will have a certain positive effect on the leopard population as well, given the two species’ common threats, such as deforestation, wildfires, road construction and uncontrolled hunting of deer and boars, which mainly form these wild cats’ menu. Another challenge here is poaching.
According to Sergei Aramilev, it is rather hard to come across a representative of the cat family’s stealthiest member in the wild. "If you don’t count photos, I have seen a Far Eastern leopard only once in my life. It was an unforgettable sight. The animal was sporting its winter fur – such a fluffy spotted coat resembling a good-natured, albeit cautious and agile, domestic cat. Some 20 or 30 seconds later it was out of sight," Sergei Aramilev recollected.
Russkiy Mir Foundation Information Service
