Footage of a snow leopard Photo: Screenshot from media reports

Footage of a snow leopard, a first-class nationally protected wild animal, was captured again at the Siguniang Mountain national nature reserve, Southwest China's Sichuan Province. The footage was taken in an adjacent zone, years after the reserve first recorded snow leopard sightings back in 2019, chinanews.com reported.

The footage was recently retrieved by conservation staff while extracting data from infrared camera traps deployed across the reserve. The crystal-clear clip features a robust, healthy adult snow leopard walking along steep rocky cliffs.

This sighting follows the reserve's first capture of snow leopard imagery in 2019 and represents the first subsequent sighting in an adjacent area in several years, chinanews.com reported. 

The discovery also indicates continuous activity by snow leopard individuals or populations in the area, rather than transient appearances, according to the report.

A flagship species of alpine ecosystems, stable activity ranges and healthy physical condition among snow leopards serve as a clear indicator of an intact food chain, minimal human disturbance and steadily improving habitat quality across the reserve, chinanews.com reported.

The latest sighting also marks phased progress in local biodiversity conservation efforts, according to the report.

Known as the "king of the snow mountains," the snow leopard is listed as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, per the Xinhua News Agency.


Global Times