Field update from April 24
We collared a new female snow leopard a couple of days ago, but we weren’t able to match her to any of our known females from the cameras. She is most likely in the database; we just haven’t found her yet. It would be a bit surprising if the cameras didn’t detect her. Her ID is F19, and we suspect that she is pregnant.
A quick update on our ibex trapping: we’re seeing lots of ibex activity at Buren’s well, where our cage trap is. This is a small well in a ravine where Buren usually waters his horses. Over the years, the ibex have learned there is often leftover water in the troughs. They go in and out of the specially-designed trap and seem completely habituated to it now.
About 500 meters from our camp, there’s another water hole which has a solar-powered pump that brings up about 500 liters of water per day. We have already set up the poles for the dropnet at that location and the ibex don’t mind them at all. Our dropnet was custom-made in Sweden with mesh small enough to prevent ibex hooves or horns from getting caught.
Unfortunately, it rained a couple of days after we arrived. There haven’t been any ibex visits since. We’re hoping that there isn’t enough green grass yet and that the ibex will return before we pack up camp. It’s great to see that they have gotten used to the cage trap and do not show any fear of the poles for the net. It would be nice to test if they accept the net, too. Unfortunately, all it takes is one rain shower for the entire trapping season to fail. If that happens, we will have to adjust our plans.
Field update from April 28
The same female snow leopard ended up getting caught again this morning and we got better photos of her. We can now confirm that she is the cat known as ‘Guierrero Cub 2’, born in 2020. This makes her a sister (or half-sister) to One-Eye (F14) and grandcub of Suhder (F1). She has definitely had cubs before, but I don’t think we have detected her with cubs on the cameras, which is a little strange.
Today, we tried to catch an ibex for the first time during this trip. It didn’t work. We hid in the wrong place, the ibex passed by close to us and saw us. An old female simply laid down and stared at us, waiting for us to leave before they went into the trap. Clever girl.
Bird side note #1 – There has been a bit of pied wheatear drama surrounding our capture site. We caught F19 early in the morning on the 28th. But halfway into the capture, the sun rose, and a pair of pied wheatears began flying around us, seemingly upset that a snow leopard was in their territory. They circled us for at least half an hour, landing and making lots of noise until we left. We were joking that they probably were trying to tell us “That the thing in front of you is a snow leopard. They’re bloody lethal for Pete’s sake!” Poor birds arrived not long ago, established their breeding territory, and now there is a darn snow leopard in it.
Field update from April 29
We collared another cat this morning. This one is F16, Oluula (which means Together in Mongolian). She is the daughter of F12 Wilian and grandcub of Anu. She and her siblings dispersed from F12 sometime this winter. Her aunt F11 used to reside just west of where we caught F16, but the cameras didn’t detect her this past autumn. We’d also like to be able to collar F11, too, if she is still around.
Our data shows that F16’s mother, F12, moved around a lot this winter but is now back in her territory. Perhaps she was just out on ‘vacation’ in the few months when she was without cubs. She will likely give birth to a new litter in a few weeks. It will be exciting to see if she uses the same cave den as she did for her last litter (F16 and her siblings).
Bird side note #2: We caught F16 in the early morning, and the same thing happened with the birds as last time. When the sun rose, the wheatear pair noticed the snow leopard and again flew around protesting loudly. Poor birds must have cursed their bad luck—the same three nitwits had brought another snow leopard to their territory.
When we left, we saw the tiny birds diving in towards the cat. I guess they saw an opportunity to scare it away. I feel kind of bad for the birds. If we catch a third cat in that snare, we may have to carry it away a bit. Otherwise, they’ll probably pack up and leave for a new territory that is not infested with snow leopards.
Note – pied wheaters are very small birds, like a sparrow, and can’t do any harm to a snow leopard.
Field update from May 1
We tried with the ibex again today but had no luck. In the afternoon, it started raining and thundering, so we gave up and hurried back to camp to save our trap monitoring system from any nearby lightning strikes. Now, there are small puddles of water everywhere in the mountains, so the ibex won’t come and drink for a couple of days.
To be continued in June . . .
NOTE: Why we collar cats
Tracking snow leopards reveals crucial information about these elusive animals that we couldn’t learn any other way. The collars, typically programmed to detach after 20 months, provide valuable information that directly shapes our conservation strategies to protect this endangered species.
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Photos: SLCF-Mongolia
Acknowledgments: This long-term ecological study is in collaboration with Snow Leopard Conservation Foundation in Mongolia and Snow Leopard Trust, with special thanks to the Ministry of Nature, Environment and Tourism, the Government of Mongolia, and the Mongolian Academy of Sciences for their support.
We would also like to acknowledge: Acton Family Giving, Bioparc Zoo de Doue la Fontaine, David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation, Idaho Falls Zoo at Tautphaus Park, John Ball Zoo, Kolmårdens Zoo, Korkeasaari Zoo, National Geographic Society, Nordens Ark, Parco Zoo Punta Verde, Play for Nature, Tierpark Berlin, The Big Cat Sanctuary/Wildlife Heritage Foundation, Tulsa Zoo, Whitley Fund for Nature, Zoo Basel, Zoo Dresden, Zoo New England and the many incredible partners who have supported programs like our Long-term Ecological Study and research in Mongolia since it began in 2008. We could not do this work without you.