Moscow Zoo will receive a kitten and a female snow leopard from Pakistan
At the International Conference "Study and conservation of the snow leopard in the world. Joining Forces" Honorary Wildlife Ambassador of Pakistan, GSLEP Emissary Sardar Muhammad Jamal Khan Leghari spoke about poaching and hunting of these animals in the country. As an example, he cited the case last year when a snow leopard cub was discovered in the wild, whose mother died due to the activities of hunters and poachers. In October 2024, he met in Dushanbe with the director of the Interregional Association "Center for the Study and Conservation of the Snow Leopard "Irbis" Daria Petrova, who spoke about the aging problem of snow leopards living in the Moscow Zoo.
Despite the fact that about 150 individuals live in Pakistan, Mr. Khan Leghari proposed to the country's Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif to transfer this cub to the Moscow Zoo as a gesture of goodwill, as a result of which it was decided to transfer an adult female snow leopard. Thus, the zoo will receive two animals at once.
"I call this process snow leopard diplomacy. It is very encouraging to see the deep interest of the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin in the fate of the snow leopard in Russia, as well as his kind attitude towards our country. In recent years, relations between Russia and Pakistan have been actively developing. It is very important for us to preserve the snow leopard and make sure that it is not hunted in any country in the world," said Sardar Muhammad Jamal Khan Leghari, Honorary Wildlife Ambassador of Pakistan, GSLEP Emissary.
He identified several reasons for the disappearance of the snow leopard. The first, in his opinion, is that people in Pakistan are very poor. If a snow leopard attacks livestock, they try to kill this predator. The second reason is that killing this animal is an act of courage. He said that a cattle insurance program is currently being created in the country so that people can receive compensation after being attacked by a snow leopard.
At the moment, the animals that are planned to be transferred to Russia are in the center for the maintenance of snow leopards in Pakistan.
"We are currently awaiting the completion of all documents, the Moscow zoo must issue a permit for the import of the animal into Russia. After that, we will receive permission to export our snow leopards," Khan Leghari replied when asked about the timing of the transfer of snow leopards to Moscow.
International Conference "Study and conservation of the snow leopard in the world. Joining Forces" takes place on March 13-15 in Kazan. It is attended by 180 people from 12 countries – Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. 11 regions of Russia – Moscow, Altai Republic, Tyva Republic, Irkutsk Region, Perm Territory, Krasnoyarsk Territory, Republic of Buryatia, Republic of Khakassia, Novosibirsk Region, Rostov Region, Republic of Tatarstan.