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Item PAN-India assessment and monitoring of endangered species covered under the Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitat Program (IDWH) - Snow leopard(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2025) WII-MoEFCCIn 2019, the MoEF&CC launched the 'Snow Leopard Population Assessment in India (SPAI)* program, as part of India's active participation in the National and Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Protection Program (NSLEP & GSLEP). India has contributed in three significant landscapes to NSLEP & GSLER viz. Hemis-Spiti, Nanda Devi-Gangotri, and Khangchendzonga-Tawang. Alongside twelve National Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Priorities (NSLEPs), these efforts are aimed at conserving snow leopard and its habitats. The SPAI was designed to generate scientifically robust national and state-wise population estimates of the snow leopard across the high altitude habitats both inside and outside protected areas. Its overarching goal is to gather reliable data to guide effective conservation efforts and policy decisions. Based on the consultations with the Chief Wildlife Wardens (CWLWS) of the states and Union Territories (UTs) the SPAI sampling exercise was effectively executed across the PAN-INDIA Assessment and Monitoring of Endangered Species Covered Under the Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats Program (IDWH) - SNOW LEOPARD Union Territories of Ladakh and Jammu & Kashmir and four snow leopard range states viz. Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh. The SPAI exercise was conducted from 2019 to 2023 following a two-step framework. Within this, the STEP-I involved a meticulous evaluation of snow leopard spatial distribution, incorporating habitat covariates into the analysis. This approach, founded on occupancy modeling, relied on data sourced from sign and interview surveys, comprehensive fieldwork, and precise geospatial mapping. This assessment culminated in the refinement of the snow leopard distribution map and the establishment of a foundational dataset for the stratification of snow leopard population sampling. In the STEP- II, snow leopard abundance estimation was achieved through camera trapping. Furthermore, comprehensive abundance assessments were conducted for the primary prey species at selected sites. Given the constraints posed by the situations of Covid-19, some states such as Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh conducted the STEP-I and II exercises simultaneously. Till 2016, a substantial third of the snow leopard range (spanning ca. 100,347 km2) had not received research attention, which was reduced to just 5%, mainly in small pockets of Ladakh, Jammu & Kashmir; Uttarakhand, and Himachal Pradesh. However; status surveys in the recent years have increased the understanding on preliminary information about snow leopard or prey is available for 80% of the snow leopard range (ca. 79,745 km2), compared to 56% in 2016. To provide robust information on the snow leopard numbers, the SPAI exercise involved surveying the snow leopard habitats using a substantial network of camera traps. In total, the SPAI sampling exercise utilized 1,971 camera trap locations, leading to the identification of 241 unique individuals. These comprehensive findings allow for the estimation of a total snow leopard population of 718 individuals in India. A total of 126 unique snow leopard individuals were identified from the Union Territory of Ladakh, across a total of 956 camera trap locations, yielding an estimated density of 0.34 individuals/100 km2 and a population of477 individuals. Camera trapping efforts in 135 sites in the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir led to detection of 9 unique individuals across the snow leopard range. The estimated density was 0.75 individuals/100 km2 and population of 9 individuals. For the snow leopard range states, Himachal Pradesh recorded a total of 44 unique individuals identified across 284 camera trap locations. The density of snow leopard in the state ranged from 0.08 to 0.37 individuals/100 km2. The exercise was indicative of a mean population size of 51 individuals of snow leopard in Himachal Pradesh. The state of I PAN-INDIA Assessment and Monitoring of Endangered Species Covered Under the Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats Program (IDWH) - SNOW LEOPARD Uttarakhand recorded a total of 40 unique individuals, with a density ranging from 0.7 to 1.04 individuals/100 km2. The population estimates of snow leopard in Uttarakhand was 124. In the eastern Himalayan states, Sikkim, with a total of 99 camera trap locations, recorded a total of 14 unique individuals with an estimated density of 0.40 snow leopards/100 km2. The estimate was 21 snow leopards for this state. On the other hand, in Arunachal Pradesh, 8 unique snow leopards were identified across 115 camera trap locations. The density was 0.26 individuals/100 km2 and the population was estimated as 36 individuals in the state. In the Indian Himalayan region, two prey species dominate the diet of the snow leopard: the bharal or blue sheep (Pseudois nayaur), and the Siberian ibex (Capra sibirica). Bharal exhibit a near-total range overlap with snow leopard across the greater and trans-Himalayan regions, while ibex occupy extensive ranges within the northwestern trans-Himalayan region. In the subalpine and alpine region Himalayan tahr and musk deer form important component to snow leopard diet. Other mountain ungulates, though less prominent, contribute to the diet and hold local importance. Himachal Pradesh is the only snow leopard range state in India where systematic surveys on its primary prey species have been conducted. Conversely, states like Arunachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir remain significantly understudied, while data from Uttarakhand and Sikkim are fragmented and localized. Ladakh, due to its visibility and accessibility, has a relatively well-documented history of ungulate monitoring. Limited long term data suggest a decline in ungulate populations across the Himalaya, except for the Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsoni), which has shown signs of recovery. Markhor (Capra falconeri) habitat shrank from 300 km2 in the 1940s to just 120 km2 by 2004-2005. Similarly, musk deer (Moschus spp.) in Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary (Uttarakhand) have seen a steady decline from 3.7 individuals/km2 (1989-1991) to 1.2 individuals/km2 by 2000. A similar declining trend is evident in ibex (Capra sibirica) populations in Pin Valley National Park, Himachal Pradesh. Density estimates dropped from 2.3 individuals/km2 in 1989 to 1.2 individuals/km2 in 1997, with a further reduction to 0.37 individuals/km2 by 2012. These declines underscore the urgent need for targeted conservation efforts and systematic prey monitoring to ensure the long-term viability of snow leopard populations.Item PAN-India assessment and monitoring of endangered species covered under the Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats Program )IDWH)- Nilgiri Tahr(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2025) WII-MoEFCCThe Nilgiri tahr (Nilgiritragus hylocrius) is an endangered mountain ungulates endemic to the Southern Western ghats of India, predominantly inhabiting montane grasslands. Historically the species occupied a wide range along the Western ghats. However its current distribution has contracted to less than one tenth of its former extent, primarily due to habitat loss, anthropogenic pressure and poaching. Despite its threatened status, comprehensive data on population size, population dynamics and distribution remain patchy and limited. To address this knowledge gap we Standardize double observer method alongside the Bounded count method and also piloted camera trapped based distance sampling in selected sites.