Rise in Leopard population

Recently, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) has released the Status of Leopards report.

According to the report, there has been an increase in Tiger, Lion & Leopards numbers over the last few years.

India now has 12,852 leopards as compared to the previous estimate of 7910 conducted 2014.
More than 60% increase in population has been recorded.
The highest concentration of the leopard in India is estimated to be in Madhya Pradesh (3,421) followed by Karnataka (1,783) and Maharashtra (1,690).
Sampling in forested habitats: The leopard was estimated across forested habitats in tiger range areas of the country but other leopard occupied areas such as non-forested habitats (coffee and tea plantations), higher elevations in the Himalayas, arid landscapes and majority of North East landscape were not sampled.

The leopard (Panthera pardus) is one of the five extant species in the genus Panthera, a member of the Felidae.
It occurs in a wide range in sub-Saharan Africa, in small parts of Western and Central Asia, a small part of European Russia, and on the Indian subcontinent to Southeast and East Asia.
It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List because populations have declined following habitat loss and fragmentation, poaching for the illegal trade of skins and body parts.

https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1682421
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/indias-leopard-population-increases-by-60-in-4-years/articleshow/79841610.cms

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