The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) is advancing efforts to safeguard snow leopards in Pakistan through an innovative use of artificial intelligence (AI). WWF’s Global Tiger Initiative is working to protect these majestic animals and their role within their local ecosystems. They want to stop poaching and maintain the fragile balance between wildlife and livestock in the area. Digital Green The organization has begun piloting these new AI-powered cameras in three villages of Gilgit-Baltistan. These villages are perched high in the picturesque mountains, some nearly 3,000 meters (9,843 feet) above sea level.
Given the escalating dangers, conservation group the WWF is asking for a legally enforceable promise from individual farmers. Today, this promise serves as a promise to safeguard harvests from illicit poaching. It protects against anyone using the video footage from the new cameras against a victim. Asif Iqbal, a conservationist with WWF Pakistan, emphasizes the importance of these agreements, stating, “It’s a mother leopard, looks like she’s marking her territory,” while displaying footage recorded by the cameras.
As apex predators, snow leopards are important to keeping their ecosystems healthy, largely due to their primary prey of ibex and blue sheep. Without regular control, these high prey density species can easily overgraze. By keeping their populations in check, protecting these grasslands, snow leopards indirectly protect the livestock that are so important to local villagers. The push and pull between wildlife conservation efforts and agricultural interests has often been felt. One local farmer lamented, “We used to have 40 to 50 sheep, now we’ve only got four or five, and the reason is the threat from snow leopards and from ibex eating the grass.”
The WWF has found some very concerning trends that make the future for snow leopards look bleak. Concerningly, scientists believe that hunters kill up to 450 snow leopards each year. This shocking pace has led to a 20% decrease in their worldwide populations over the last twenty years. Unfortunately, recent estimates suggest that as few as 4,000-6,000 snow leopards remain in the wild. In Pakistan, nearly 300 of these magnificent animals call home, comprising the third largest population of this charismatic endangered species.
The WWF has spent the last three years developing a highly complex AI model. With this model, we can more reliably find snow leopards, humans, and other animals to continue fighting these dangers. In addition to monitoring wildlife, the organization is trialing various deterrents, smells, sounds, and lights, at camera sites to discourage snow leopards from encroaching on nearby villages.
Despite their efforts, challenges continue to arise. Reports allege that a person or persons unknown has winterized the camera sites by cutting wires at the installation sites. This opens the door to tampering and/or poaching operations. In 2020, provincial authorities imprisoned three men for shooting a snow leopard in Hoper Valley. This tragedy is a painful reminder of the threats that these majestic creatures still endure.
The WWF works hand-in-hand with Pakistan’s Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) to improve its monitoring capabilities through cutting-edge technology. Their scientific and technical brilliance has consistently resulted in the invention of batteries. These batteries are able to resist the extreme cold weather found in the hilly landscape. Today, these ten AI-powered cameras have been installed at study sites in Pakistan, India, and Nepal, observing and recording the at-risk behavior of snow leopards.
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