Results of monitoring of the Far Eastern leopard for 10 years summed up in Primorye
About three million images of wild animals were processed, of which about 140 thousand were with the Red Book leopard. The photos were obtained using the largest photo monitoring network in Russia and became the basis of unique research. The Land of the Leopard Reserves has one of the rarest cats in the world, the Far Eastern leopard. The core of the world’s only population of this beast is located in the national park “Land of the Leopard” in the south-west of Primorye. The main method that allows scientists to study the spotted predator is photomonitoring. Scientists have summed up the interim results of photomonitoring in the south of Primorye - the results of the data analysis are presented in a special report of the Department of Science "Lands of the Leopard".
For 10 years of research, images were obtained not only of large felines, but also representatives of other groups of mammals, such as ungulates, bears, canines and kunyas. Scientists have traveled thousands of kilometers across rough terrain to collect this amount of data. An important role was played by the skill developed over the years to determine places where a camera trap will accurately capture the beast. Tens of thousands of photos with leopards occupy a huge place in the total data array.
Only in 2023, spotted predators were noted in more than 80% of all Leopard Land photo traps. And at some points, five, six and even seven different adults were recorded per year. In total, 129 adult leopards and 14 kittens were recorded last year. A network of 500 cameras not only helps to count rare cats, but also assess other parameters of the population. So, scientists have found that the Far Eastern leopard and the Amur tiger get along and do not conflict in a common area. The question of the territoriality of the Far Eastern leopard was studied: it turned out that two adults, namely the mother and the grown daughter, can regularly meet within one hunting area. It has been established that there are more female predators in the population than males – a good reproductive indicator. Specialists can also track population density, study individual relationships, and count kittens. But it doesn’t have to be about cats. For example, with the help of photomonitoring, the number of brown and white-breasted bears in the national park was established, the presence of the Amur goral was confirmed.The processing and systematization of such a data array is a very laborious process. Recently, we are moving towards automation, introducing technologies based on artificial intelligence. The collected data are unprecedented for Russian science in terms of volume and serve as a source of valuable observations about the life of rare animals, said Viktor Bardyuk, director of the FGBI "Land of the Leopard."
The Far Eastern leopard is one of the rarest large predators on the planet. He lives only in the southwest of Primorsky Krai – not far from Vladivostok – and in a small area of neighboring China. The population almost disappeared as a result of poaching and habitat destruction, but thanks to the creation of the Directorate of the Land of the Leopard Reserves, the number of the Red Book predator has more than tripled since the beginning of the century - from 35 to 129 individuals.
Material and photos prepared and provided by the national park.
