Persian Leopard

Photo By: Wildlife Conservation Society Aghanistan Program

This photo, from a camera trap in Afghanistan's central Hindu Kush highlands, shows a Persian leopard, a species thought to be extirpated from this region before scientists set the traps. From this photo, it seems the cat wasn't happy to be discovered.

"The presence of leopards and lynxes in Afghanistan tells us that these big cats are finding enough prey to survive," said Ghani Ghuriani, Afghanistan's Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock. "This means that the rangelands can still support ibex, urial, and other species, which is a good sign for both wildlife and the people of this region who also depend on these grasslands for grazing."

The camera trap study is a piece of a wide-ranging effort Wildlife Conservation Society is supporting, with money from the U.S. government, to support Afghanistan's efforts to preserve wildlife and wild places.

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