Journal of Threatened Taxa |
www.threatenedtaxa.org | 14 December 2020 | 12(16): 17229–17234
ISSN 0974-7907 (Online) | ISSN 0974-7893
(Print)
doi: https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.6504.12.16.17229-17234
#6504 | Received 31 July 2020 | Final
received 29 October 2020 | Finally accepted 30 October 2020
Clouded Leopard Neofelis nebulosa
(Griffith, 1821) (Mammalia: Carnivora: Felidae) in illegal wildlife trade in
Nepal
Yadav Ghimirey
1 & Raju Acharya 2
1, 2 Friends of Nature, PO Box 23491,
Sundhara, Kathmandu, Nepal.
1 mustela.altaica@yahoo.com
(corresponding author), 2 rajuhugu_13@yahoo.com
Editor: Angie Appel,
Wild Cat Network, Bad Marienberg, Germany. Date of publication: 14 December
2020 (online & print)
Citation: Ghimirey,
Y. & R. Acharya (2020). Clouded Leopard Neofelis nebulosa
(Griffith, 1821) (Mammalia: Carnivora: Felidae) in illegal wildlife trade in
Nepal. Journal of Threatened Taxa 12(16): 17229–17234. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.6504.12.16.17229-17234
Copyright: © Ghimirey
& Acharya 2020. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
International License. JoTT allows unrestricted use, reproduction, and
distribution of this article in any medium by providing adequate credit to the
author(s) and the source of publication.
Funding: None.
Competing interests: The authors
declare no competing interests.
Author details: Yadav Ghimirey has been working
on small wild cats in the
Nepal Himalayas since 2008.
Raju Acharya is interested in conservation of Himalayan wildlife with a particular focus on owls.
Author contribution: YG and RA collected the data and
wrote the article.
Acknowledgements: We thank Rufford
Small Grants, Bernd Thies Stiftung, Rural
Reconstruction Nepal, Panthera, CEPF Grants in
Eastern Himalaya, WWF Nepal for funding our field research during which we encountered
Clouded Leopard pelts. We also thank Prof. Karan Bahadur Shah, Prabhat Pal, Chiranjeevi
Khanal, Badri Vinod Dahal,
Mahesh Poudel, Suman Ghimire for providing Clouded Leopard trade related
information, and Suman Sapkota for helping with the map. Three anonymous reviewers and Angie Appel are
thanked too for constructive comments on the manuscript.
Abstract: We document trade of the Clouded
Leopard Neofelis nebulosa
in Nepal based on pelt seizure reports published in wildlife trade reports and
in newspapers. Just 27 cases in three
decades seem little to suggest targeted illegal trade of the species, the
seizure information in recent years indicate that illegal trade of Clouded
Leopard body parts is still taking place.
Hence an in-depth assessment is necessary to understand properly the
intensity and magnitude of illegal trade on Clouded Leopard in the country.
Keywords: Kathmandu, pelts, seizures,
skin trade.
introduction
The Clouded Leopard Neofelis nebulosa is a medium-sized felid native to southern and
southeastern Asia from the Himalayan foothills in
Nepal to China in the east and the Malay Peninsula in the south (Grassman et al. 2016).
It inhabits primary forests (Ghose 2002; Grassman et al. 2005; Borah et al. 2010; Gray & Phan 2011; Shafi et
al. 2019), but was also recorded in secondary and logged forests (Azlan & Sharma 2006; Mohamad et al. 2015; Grassman et al. 2016).
In the Himalaya, the Clouded Leopard has been recorded up to an
elevation of 3,720m (Sathyakumar et al. 2011; Than Zaw et al. 2014; Penjor et al.
2018; Can et al. 2019; Letro & Duba 2019).
In Nepal, the Clouded Leopard was photographed for the
first time in Chitwan; the individual was radio collared and monitored for a
few days before it was lost (Dinerstein & Mehta
1990). The first camera trap photographs
were obtained in Shivapuri Nagarjun
National Park in 2010 (Pandey 2012). It
was also photographed in Annapurna Conservation Area (Ghimirey
et al. 2013, 2019), Chitwan National Park (Lamichhane
et al. 2014), Parsa National Park (Poudel et al.
2019), and Langtang National Park (Can et al. 2019).
The Clouded Leopard is listed as Vulnerable in the
IUCN Red List (Grassman et al. 2016). In Nepal, it is protected under the National
Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 1973 and Forest Act 1993 (Aryal 2004) and listed as Endangered in the National Red
List of Nepal (Jnawali et al. 2011). Until at least 2006, a person found guilty of
killing protected wildlife in Nepal was punishable with imprisonment from five
to 15 years, a fine of 50,000–100,000 Nepali Rupees, or both (Aryal 2004; Banks et al. 2006). The fine was increased to 500,000–1,000,000
Nepali Rupees in 2017 (Government of Nepal 2017).
Body parts of Panthera
species felids detected in the illegal wildlife trade between 1996 and 2008
constituted about 26% of mammal product seizures during this period (Rosen
& Smith 2010). China was identified
as one of the major destinations for the illegal trade in body parts of Tiger Panthera tigris and
Leopard P. pardus (Banks et al. 2006; Oswell 2010; Nijman & Shepherd 2015; Nijman et al.
2019). Body parts of Clouded Leopards
were also found in wildlife markets in Myanmar (Oswell
2010; Nijman & Shepherd 2015). In
Nepal, occasional seizures of Clouded Leopard skins and other body parts were
reported indicating the presence of an illegal trade (Shakya et
al. 1999; Shrestha 2012). China is
considered to be the possible destination for body parts of many other species
(Shakya et al. 1999).
Here we present a compilation of
cases of Clouded Leopard pelts found in Nepal.
Materials and Methods
We carried out a search of both
published and grey literature on illegal wildlife trade in Nepal. Newspapers
and digital portals were also searched for relevant information on illegal
trade of Clouded Leopards. Photographic
evidence was sought to confirm the seizure of the target species. Publications on illegal wildlife trade like
Wildlife Conservation Nepal (WCN)’s newsletters and South Asian Wildlife
Enforcement Network (SAWEN) Bulletin were also searched. Any information available was cross-checked with
available photographs and also by contacting relevant people related with the
cases. We also contacted experienced
field biologists regarding any possible Clouded Leopard related trade
incidents. We were not able to contact
the convicted poachers and relevant law enforcement personnel for individual
cases due to the logistical difficulty at the time of COVID-19 pandemic.
Results
We found a total of 27 cases of
Clouded Leopard traded between November 1988 and March 2020 (Table 1; Figure 1). Eight of these were reported in newspapers
and digital news portals, four in trade survey reports and five in trade
related newsletters. Two records
involved trade of six live cubs, and the remaining cases involved the trade of
Clouded Leopard pelts.
Clouded Leopard pelts were seized
in a total of nine districts in Nepal, including Dang, Kanchanpur,
Kathmandu, Kavrepalanchowk, Lamjung,
Sankhuwasabha, Siraha, Tanahu, and Taplejung districts
(Figure 2). In two cases (8% of all),
Clouded Leopard body parts were offered for sale, and three pelts (12% of all)
found in rural houses were not explicitly offered for sale. In 21 cases (80%), body parts were seized,
and poachers and traders arrested.
Discussion
Our search yielded 27 cases of
body parts encountered in Nepal in 32 years.
Assuming that at least three skins were needed to make one coat, we
reason that these 27 cases comprised at least 51 individual Clouded Leopards. This result indicates that the Clouded
Leopard may be threatened in the country by illegal hunting. The figure is not extremely high, however, it
is thought that seizures happen only in less than 9% of total cases in wildlife
trade (Niraj 2009), which points to the fact that the actual number in the
trade might be much higher than the cases presented. While our collation of data seems to be a
small sample size, the true number of Clouded Leopards poached in Nepal is
possibly grossly under-estimated.
Furthermore, it is difficult to assess the temporal trend of this trade
as the seizure data is dominantly consistent across most years. In view of three pelts detected in rural
houses, we surmise a lack of awareness among rural people about the Clouded
Leopard’s legal status as protected species and the penalties in place against
poachers and traders.
The low frequency of observations
of Clouded Leopard body parts might be due to our opportunistic survey or to
actual low intensity of trade in Clouded Leopard in Nepal. Nepal Police only recently established a
special wing that exclusively deals with illegal wildlife trade. The non-existence of an enforcement agency in
the past decades might explain the low frequency of Clouded Leopard seizures in
the past. In contrast, open sales of
Clouded Leopards and pelts in wildlife markets of Myanmar and Laos are fairly
common (Shepherd & Nijmann 2008; Oswell 2010). During
surveys in 1991 to 2006, Shepherd & Nijman (2008) observed 301 Clouded
Leopard parts in wildlife markets in Myanmar.
Oswell (2010) observed 149 Clouded Leopard
pelts at Mong La and Tachilek markets in Myanmar
between 2001 and 2010.
We did not find any report of a Clouded Leopard pelt
and body part openly displayed for sale in a market or in the vicinity of an
international border. Banks et al.
(2006) neither reported a case of Clouded Leopard parts confiscated in India,
Nepal and Tibet. We, however, stress
that the lack of evidence for cross-border smuggling of Clouded Leopard parts
between Nepal and Tibet is not a proof for the absence of such a trade. As described by Li et al. (2000), illegal
trade of body parts of mammals and birds continued in China’s Himalayan region
across the borders with Pakistan, India, Nepal, and Myanmar at least until the
late 1990s.
The detection of Clouded Leopard cubs apparently
brought from India seems to be an exceptional case. However, with only two
incidences of live trade and no live seizures after 1996, we assume that the
trade in live Clouded Leopard is opportunistic.
Understanding the origin of pelts will be an important step forward in
understanding the spatial pattern of the trade in the country. The origin of most pelts, however, is
difficult to trace due to the logistical difficulty to track down convicted
poachers. One pelt seized in Dang
District in 2019 was supposedly brought from Pyuthan
District based on the statement provided by the person arrested with the
pelt. Provided this statement is true,
the westernmost occurrence of the Clouded Leopard in Nepal would be around
100km farther west of Annapurna Conservation Area. This protected area is currently the
northwesternmost known area with photographic records of the species in Nepal (Ghimirey et al. 2018). In 2011, one pelt was confiscated in
Kanchanpur District, the southwesternmost
district in Nepal, but the origin of the pelt could not be determined. One pelt observed in Sankhuwasabha
District was presumably bought in a village of the same district, which
indicates a possible trade within Nepal.
We do not have any information regarding price dynamics of Clouded
Leopard pelts and body parts.
Illegal trade on Clouded Leopard and its body parts is
not a well-researched topic in Nepal. In
2017, all seized wildlife trophies were destroyed including two Clouded Leopard
pelts, 4.5kg decayed pelts and 0.19kg of bones (Dhakal
et al. 2018). This action was supposed
to ensure that these products do not enter the market in any way and served as
a message to wildlife traders that wildlife derivatives have no value (Dhakal et al. 2018).
Other aspects of this trade like origin, price range
of pelts and body parts and people involved in the trade are equally important
to understand the dynamics of this trade.
Hence, we strongly recommend to keep track of trade related records of
Clouded Leopard to understand the trend of this trade, possible trade routes
and destinations in order to guide strategic enforcement efforts on the species
in the future. Further concerted effort
on status survey of the species is also essential.
Table 1. Details of Clouded Leopard trade documented
between 1988 and 2020
|
Year |
Parts |
Circumstance
and location of case |
Source of
information |
|
1988 |
Four coats and one
hat |
Shop catering to
tourists in Thamel, Kathmandu |
Barnes (1989) |
|
1991 |
One pelt |
Discovered with a
hunter in Sunumla, Sankhuwasabha
District |
Ghimirey & Acharya (2017) |
|
1992 |
Two coats |
Shop catering to
tourists in Thamel, Kathmandu |
Van Gruisen et al. (1992) |
|
1994 |
Three live cubs |
Confiscated at
Tribhuvan International Airport, Kathmandu; trader was arrested. |
Shakya et al.
(1999) |
|
03.iii.1996 |
Three live cubs |
Confiscated at Bagbazar, Kathmandu; offender was sentenced to five years
prison and a fine of 100,000 Nepali
Rupees. |
Shakya (2004) |
|
2006 |
One pelt |
Killed in
retaliation at Zhongim, Taplejung
District; skin was kept in private house. |
Badri Vinod Dahal in litt. 04 February 2010 |
|
2007 |
One pelt |
Kathmandu |
Wildlife
Conservation Nepal Seizure Database (2017) |
|
13.vi.2008 |
One pelt |
Seized in Malekhu on the highway to Kathmandu; three people were
arrested. |
WCN (2008) |
|
2009 |
One pelt |
Kathmandu |
WCN (2017) |
|
xii.2009 |
One pelt |
Found in a local
house in Chyamtang, Sankhuwasabha
District |
Ghimirey et al. (2012) |
|
xii.2009 |
One pelt |
Found in a local
house in Hatiya Village, Sankhuwasabha
District (Image 1) |
Ghimirey et al. (2012) |
|
2011 |
One pelt |
Confiscated in Shuklaphanta, Kanchanpur
District; four traders were arrested. |
DNPWC (2011) |
|
2011 |
One pelt |
Seized in
Kathmandu; one person was arrested. |
Shrestha (2012) |
|
2012 |
One pelt |
Seized in Manamaiju, Kathmandu; one person was arrested. |
WCN (2017) |
|
2013 |
One pelt |
Seized in Khadbari, Sankhuwasabha
District; one person was arrested. |
Prabhat Pal in litt. 13 February 2014 |
|
10.vi.2014 |
One pelt |
Seized in Bhakundebesi, Kavrepalanchowk
District; two poachers were arrested. |
Adhikari (2014) |
|
2014 |
One pelt |
Kathmandu |
WCN (2017) |
|
06.i.2015 |
One pelt |
Confiscated in Gongabu, Kathmandu; poacher was arrested. |
Baral (2015) |
|
19.x.2016 |
One pelt |
Seized in Kirtipur, Kathmandu; one person was arrested. |
Baral (2016) |
|
2017 |
One pelt |
Seized in Besisahar, Lamjung District;
one person was arrested. |
Mahesh Paudel pers. comm. 28 July 2020 |
|
18.i.2018 |
Three pelts and
bones |
Seized in Aabukhaireni, Tanahu District;
two people were arrested |
Paudyal (2018) |
|
iii.2018 |
One pelt |
Found in a local
house in Topke Gola, Taplejung
District |
Sandesh Lamichhane pers. comm. 27 October 2020 |
|
21.ix.2018 |
One pelt |
Seized in Boudha, Kathmandu; three people were arrested |
Baral (2018) |
|
23.ix.2018 |
One pelt |
Seized in Mhepi, Kathmandu; trader was arrested. |
Koirala (2018) |
|
26.ix.2019 |
Two pelts |
Seized from poacher
in Lahan, Siraha
District; one person was arrested. |
Yadav, S. (2019) |
|
12.v.2019 |
One pelt |
Seized in Bhalubang, Dang District; three people were arrested. |
Sharma (2019) |
|
09.iii.2020 |
Two pelts |
Seized in Phaktanglung, Taplejung
District; one man was arrested. |
Koirala (2020) |
For figures
& images - - click here
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