BHUBANESWAR: After the tiger enumeration, it is the leopard population count which has raised hackles of the State Wildlife Wing. Even as the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) reports that there are just 345 leopards in Odisha, the State wonders where the numbers came from.
While the leopard head count has been arrived from the tiger and co-predator enumeration analysis, results of which were announced earlier this year, the State is not one bit happy with the outcome. Chief Wildlife Warden Dr SS Srivastava on Thursday said the Wildlife Wing has no information about a leopard census, let alone the outcome of the estimation.
“I had a talk with the Member-Secretary, National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) but there is no information about any leopard census,” Srivastava said.
Official announcement has not irked the State Wildlife Wing, the process of census has. Since the leopard numbers have been computed on basis of the dual sampling method used during the tiger census, the Wildlife Wing thinks it will not be an accurate representation of the cat’s population in the State.
Since the NTCA-WII had carried out the tiger enumeration only in Similipal and Satkosia, the two designated tiger reserves, the Chief Wildlife Warden said, it can not give a correct picture of leopards in Odisha.
“Leopards avoid the tiger territories and live in the fringe areas of reserves whereas the sign surveys and camera trap captures were carried out in the prime tiger activity zones. How can it give a true picture?” he said.
Besides, the leopards are known to live close to human habitations which results in conflict. The tiger enumeration did not take such areas into account as a result of which, large pockets of their habitats may have been left out.
Interestingly, the last time pugmark method was used for tiger census in Odisha in 2004, leopard population too was calculated. The leopard population then was pegged at over 480. Plain mathematics would put the population trend as negative but the Wildlife Wing is in no mood to accept it.
Wildlife experts also feel that the WII report is flimsy at its best. “All the enumeration reports are supposed to give clear picture of the species, their habitats and prey-base so that conservation strategies can be drawn up. Mere number means nothing. How can any State formulate its own conservation measures basing on such a report?” an expert said.
As it is the camera-trap technology method used by the NTCA-WII has been faulted by major tiger experts and Odisha too has expressed its reservation on the population projected by the Centre. The State is planning to hold its own census early next year using expertise of experts such as Dr Ullas Karanth.