This post (as well as other updates) is at Facebook if you wish to comment.
LIVE THE LIFE, Never give up... I write these posts to bring some reality, the good,the bad and the ugly. Obviously there is not time to update on everything going on plus there is stuff that has to stay behind closed doors.
The leopard in the image died a couple of hours after the photo was taken. You can see her lifting her head but had she been ok she would never had let me get that close without attacking the side of the cage. She died of internal injuries caused by severe blows. I'm about to see another leopard, he is on his last legs, he won't last much longer, his eyes tell a tragic story. Later I'll be in the transit zone to check cameras monitoring the leopard Dipnani, they will hopefully show progress as I indicated in the post on Facebook (I've appended that post below on this page). I don't know how many dead or dying leopards I have seen now, it's a lot, I have to clear the mind, I have the tools to do that but...
There will be the day's data, how many leopards (reported incidents) have died in the last 48 hours or so. More leopards die every day in South Asia than tigers,rhinos and elephants put together. As I mentioned yesterday,a colleague doing work in Africa is coming up with equally grim data, it goes well beyond trophy hunting.
Deep inside I know we can turn this thing round but I am tired of the politics, the promises, the lack of overall care. We're working hard to have measures to sustain the fight so that those three factors have less effect.
Regarding all this someone once said to me "Live the Life" ... it is a very Nepali expression because life for so many here is a real struggle. Her words have stuck with me, essentially it means do what you can for what you really believe in, the sacrifices are just part of that. Never give up and good can happen. Asis, bro, we can win this thing... Jai Chituwa.
The post below (referenced above) was posted on Facebook a couple of days ago talking about the rehab of the leopard Dipnani:
LEOPARD IN TRANSIT
LEOPARD IN TRANSIT... This image brings me great joy. It's one of a series from fixed cameras watching the leopard Dipnani during her rehab. We have an information protocol and I'm soon to give a report to the Chief Warden but just quickly, Dipnani is in good physical condition, her awareness levels high, her aggression levels strong. It is now her behaviour I am monitoring intently but in a non invasive way using cameras watching her three zones. Only Game Scout Dhaman Thapa and I go into the perimeter for the feeding process and camera check but we do not see the cat directly unless there is an emergency, that is how I have things set up. It has been a lot of work getting to this point, Dipnani has had a difficult start losing her mother so young and I virtually had to build the facility around her, which was not easy in these conditions. In the image Dipnani is checking out a small hunting area. Facilitating a leopard to hunt is an ...er... um..."organic" experience... but not in the way a vegan goes vegetable shopping.
There is progress. We are learning. Reintroduction for ecosystem rebuilding is the goal. There are no guarantees but you can be rest assured the effort is going in.I want to dedicate this image to two people today, firstly Dr Asis Gurung, he and I spent hundreds and hundreds of hours working out these programs. We have both made big sacrifices. It will all work out in the end but "bro, you are right here in this and everything you have done has made a difference, we keep going forward despite everything..."
The second person is Debbie, and she will kick me for this, but there is no one on the planet who understands and works harder to combat the trade in tiger parts than she does. But Deb works hard for the leopard within that, she treats the trade as the big cat trade, she understands my deep concerns with what is happening to the leopard, so on Global Tiger Day, I salute you mate.
I wear my heart on my sleeve with this stuff. Yes I have been disappointed in the drop off in support since the Asa project. I busted my gut on that mountain and I thought doing so it was for his species. But leopards have had a raw deal from the masses.
"Wild Leopard", (2 posts back) honey from Nepal is helping slowly change that. Poverty alleviation so people can live more safely in leopard conflict hotspots thus less retaliation is one element, the other is that it can help fund our projects. Sometimes you have to think outside the square, do what you have to do. But look at Dipnani, it's worth it.
Today being Global Tiger Day there will be a lot of noise, big orgs will milk it for every dollar. Fair enough. I am optimistic for the tiger. I believe the figure of 4000 can get to about 6000, there is enough habitat within protected areas through the range, there is a lot of effort going in.
But the leopard faces huge challenges because of its habitat use, particularly in non PAs. Already in India there has been talk of the leopard going extinct before the tiger.
The leopard needs loyal supporters. Watch this space too...
