News - Page 14 of 43 - Iranian Cheetah Society

The latest WildTalk Seminar held

by مدیر سایت February 25, 2016

written by مدیر سایت 1 minutes read

ٰOn February 23th 2016, the 25^th WildTalk Seminar was held with guest speakers from the ICS-supported Persian Leopard Project in Northeastern Iran. Running in collaboration with University of Oxford’s WildCRU, Iran Department of Environment, and Panthera, the project senior researchers discussed 10 lessons learnt from the past 3-year of this project.

Using a combination of the cutting-edge GPS-satellite telemetry, remote camera-trapping, genetic sampling, field surveys, and questionnaire surveys with local people in three different leopard reserves in northeastern Iran, the project team presented for the first time the preliminary results about: (1) spatial distribution of leopards and c-predators on this landscape using occupancy modeling; (2) density estimation of leopards in two key reserves using remotely-triggered camera traps; (3) training a team of Iranian biologist for all procedures of trapping and handling leopards for fitting GPS collars; (4) movement ecology and spatial distribution of leopards using GPS-satellite collars; (5) fine-scale feeding ecology of Persian leopards; (6) Transboundary dispersal of leopards between Iran and Turkmenistan; (7) Intraspecific competition between and killing of Persian leopards; (8) facilitating co-existence between local people and leopards; (9) creating a specialist a rescue team for leopards; and (10) awareness campaign and environmental education focusing on the Endangered Persian leopards.

latest WildTalk

February 25, 2016 0 comments

Leopard Program

A leopard calendar for people living with leopards

by مدیر سایت February 16, 2016

written by مدیر سایت 1 minutes read

In collaboration with ICS, the Persian Leopard Project in Northeastern Iran has designed and produced a leopard wall calendar for the coming Persian New Year 1395 (starting on March 10^th 2016). Supported by more than 40 private donors and friends of ICS, this calendar is going to be distributed in several villages located with or in periphery of key leopard reserves in northeastern Iran where the project team works, including Tandoureh National Park (Razavi Khorasan Province), Salouk and Sarigol National Parks (both in North Khorasan Province), and Ors & Sistan Protected Area (Razavi Khorasan Province).

This calendar features photo-trapped pictures of Persian leopards from the above reserves, and some basic information about aspects of biology, ecology, and status of leopards in Iran has been provided within. Besides of being a daily reminder of the passion for the leopards and their habitats, the project team hopes that this calendar can act as an environmental education tool for local communities coexisting with leopards on this landscape.

February 16, 2016 0 comments

ICS News work shop

An introduction to “carnivore tracks and signs” held at ICS

by مدیر سایت February 10, 2016

written by مدیر سایت 1 minutes read

On January 26th 2016, a workshop was held at ICS to introduce tracks and signs of Iranian carnivores to a group of over 22 ICS volunteers and supporters. The main topics of this workshop were:
(i) where to search for carnivore tracks and signs; (ii) an introduction to the mammalian carnivore species in Iran; and (iii) how to identify and differentiate different species’ track and signs.
The ICS is running monthly capacity-building workshops for its members and volunteers, covering different topics all related to research and conservation of the Iranian wildlife.

carnivore tracks and signs workshop

February 10, 2016 0 comments

Asiatic Cheetah Conservation Program Asiatic Cheetah Population Monitoring Program

New cheetah death highlights the importance of identifying and preserving biological corridors

by مدیر سایت February 6, 2016

written by مدیر سایت 1 minutes read

On February 1st, 2016, Semnan Department of Environment discovered a carcass of an adult male cheetah in vicinity of Touran Protected Area. A preliminary necroscopy examination suggested that this cheetah has been unfortunately killed by humans. While further investigations are underway, ICS researchers compared the unique coat pattern of this individual with our country-wide dataset of identified Iranian cheetahs. Our team could identify this adult male cheetah as an individual previously camera-trapped as a cub by our team in Miandasht Wildlife Refuge in North Khorasan Province, back in summer 2012 and again in 2013.

dead cheetah of Touran

There is no empirical data about dispersal and movement ecology of Asiatic cheetahs in Iran. However, Iranian cheetahs are known to move long-distances within and between the known cheetah nuclei in south-central Iran. This incident confirms past speculations about emigration and immigration of cheetahs from and to Miandasht and Touran, highlighting the urgent need for identifying and preserving biological corridors for the Critically Endangered Asiatic cheetah in Iran. Read more about ICS research on cheetah movements in central Iran.

February 6, 2016 0 comments

Capacity Building Education and Capacity Building Publications

Socio-economic consequences of livestock predation by the Endangered Persian leopard

by مدیر سایت February 1, 2016

written by مدیر سایت 2 minutes read

Wild carnivores have been persecuted as pests by humans throughout history. The underlying factors leading to the persecution of large predators are complex and are also linked to local perceptions and cultural values. In rural communities where livestock has high economic and social importance and is an important source of income, livestock losses affect local attitudes towards, and acceptance of, large carnivores. Understanding the factors that contribute to the complexity of conflict issues is crucial if conservationists are to facilitate the development of appropriate mitigation strategies.

Iran is a stronghold for leopards in southwestern Asia, including the Caucasus Ecoregion. In the Caucasus the Endangered Persian leopard has been persecuted to the verge of extinction, primarily as a result of conflict with people over livestock predation. In 2011, the Iranian Cheetah Society launched a capacity building project for local communities in and around Dorfak No-Hunting Area, a key leopard reserve in Gilan province along the southern Caspian Sea coast. During a two-year intensive investigation of the extent of cattle predation by leopards and how this influences people’s attitudes towards leopards among village residents of eight villages, the ICS team revealed an alarming level of leopard-cattle conflict and very negative local attitudes towards the large predator. This study as the first quantitative analyses of human-leopard interactions in the Caucasus region, has recently published in Oryx as a peer-reviewed article .
The ICS team has presented the results of this study together with recommendations to decision makers and local stakeholders in a detailed report of the project outcomes (for the English version click here). Consequently, our team has focused their attention on addressing the underlying conflict using a human–leopard coexistence framework, considering that only a locally sustainable mitigation scheme in an institutionally and environmentally dynamic context would benefit all parties.

February 1, 2016 0 comments

Asiatic Cheetah Conservation Program Education and Capacity Building

The Asiatic cheetah inforgraphic poster: call for collaboration

by مدیر سایت January 6, 2016

written by مدیر سایت 1 minutes read

The Iranian Cheetah Society (ICS) has used infographic posters as an education tool during the last few years. By combining “information” and “graphic”, infographic posters can act as innovative educational tools for a variety of conservation-oriented purposes to illustrate the knowledge in a simple but comprehensive way for the public.

Our team is now working on a new poster about the Critically Endangered Asiatic cheetah. We would like to produce this poster in as much different languages as possible, so to raise global awareness about the vanishing Asiatic cheetah. To date with the help of our supporters and friends, we have been able to translate the poster into 15 languages, including English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Hindi, Arabic, Swedish, Dutch, Catalan, German, Italian, Polish, Russian, and Turkish.

We still need your help! We need volunteers who are either skilled in, or their mother tongue is, one of the following languages highlighted in the below link: https://poeditor.com/join/project/dMWS4rRlcW

Please join us in this effort to spread the word about the Critically Endangered Asiatic cheetah in its last stronghold!

January 6, 2016 0 comments

Asiatic Cheetah Population Monitoring Program Research

New camera-trap photos from Miandasht Wildlife Refuge

by مدیر سایت January 5, 2016

written by مدیر سایت 1 minutes read

The Iranian Cheetah Society (ICS) is monitoring Miandasht Wildlife Refuge, one of the key cheetah reserves in northeastern Iran, since 2004. Following the second phase of ICS’ nation-wide cheetah monitoring program in 2014-15, we continued to monitor important water sources in this reserve with the aid of camera traps. Here you can see a sample collection of wildlife pictures from our camera traps, including new photos from a cheetah family, gray wolves, striped hyena, gazelles, and several pictures of birds of prey.

ICS’ camera-trapping survey of Miandasht is running in collaboration with North Khorasan Provincial Office of Iran Department of Environment and CACP.

Cheetah

Fox

Gazella

Golden Eagle

Gray Wolf

hyena

January 5, 2016 0 comments

Research

Where is the lynx of Anguran? The first-ever lynx survey in Iran

by مدیر سایت December 30, 2015

written by مدیر سایت 1 minutes read

The Eurasian lynx has a broad distribution range from Scandinavia in west to China and Russian Far East. The knowledge of the species’ biology and conservation status in southwestern Asia is very limited. In Iran, the only available information about the status of the Eurasian lynx is a preliminary assessment of the Iranian Cheetah Society researchers published in IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group’s Newsletter, Cat News, in 2010. This study suggests that the species should be considered as “Vulnerable” in Iran.
The Iranian Cheetah Society (ICS) started the first lynx survey in Anguran Wildlife Refuge in Zanjan, northwestern Iran, to form a baseline for future conservation monitoring of the Eurasian lynx in Iran. From fall 2009 through spring 2011, ICS researchers used a combination of extensive camera-trapping, questionnaire surveys, and lynx-prey relationships to assess the status of the Eurasian lynx in this perceived key habitat for the species in northwestern Iran. Results of this study have been recently published in Farsi in Iran’s Journal of Animal Environment.

December 30, 2015 0 comments

Research

The rich biodiversity of northeastern Iranian steppes captured by camera traps

by مدیر سایت December 28, 2015

written by مدیر سایت 1 minutes read

During November-December 2015, the Persian Leopard Project in Northeastern Iran was busy with intensive camera trapping survey of Sarigol and Salouk National Parks, both in North Khorasan province. The team is aiming to provide the first reliable population estimation of the Endangered Persian leopards in these two reserves.
Besides several photos of Persian leopards, the project’s camera traps have captured several photos of the rich biodiversity of these reserves, including members of the guild of large carnivores and mountain ungulates. The team has now started to analyze the data.
Led by ICS researcher Mohammad Farhadinia, the Persian Leopard Project is collaborative study between University of Oxford’s WildCRU, Iranian Cheetah Society, Iran Department of Environment, provincial offices of Iran DoE in North Khorasan and Razavi Khorasan, and Panthera. The project aims to answer a number of conservation-based questions about the persistence of the Endangered Persian leopard on human-dominated landscapes in northeastern Iran.

December 28, 2015 0 comments

Wildtalks

Motivations for illegal hunting and status of the Asiatic black bear featured at the 24th WildTalk Seminar

by مدیر سایت December 26, 2015

written by مدیر سایت 2 minutes read

On December 20th, 2015, the Iranian Cheetah Society celebrated the 24th WildTalk Seminar with two guest presenters. Sheyda Ashayeri from Persian Wildlife Heritage Foundation (PWHF) introduced her study on motivations of illegal hunting among local communities in Golestan National Park. PWHF has been running a leopard project in this reserve, and faced a high amount of camera trap theft. Sheyda explained that a reconnaissance survey suggested that local illegal hunters are responsible for the majority of losses. So the team launched a study in 8 villages inside or in peripheral of the National Park in order to reveal the underlying motivations of illegal hunting among local residents through interview-based surveys. Sheyda showed that these motivations can be grouped into five major categories of poverty, pleasure, traditional moral concept, market-related profit, and revenge. Some of these categories are highly correlated and all together may lead to illegal hunting of Golestan wildlife by local hunters. Sheyda recommended that trust building and making local communities to feel that they also share the benefits (e.g. natural resources) of the National Park, controlling the demand for bushmeat in the market, and creating new jobs are among the conservation solutions in their study.
The second presenter was Hadi Fahimi from Mohitban Society. Hadi introduced his team’s long-term study on the ecology and current conservation status of the Asiatic black bear in multiple study sites in southeastern Iran. To this aim, Hadi’s team has been using several techniques including rapid status assessment and species distribution modeling to reveal the potential distribution of the Asiatic black bear in Iran, and diet analysis using feces to shed some light on the feeding ecology of the species in the low productive habitats of southeastern Iran.
WildTalk Seminars are running by ICS and is supported by Entesharat Fanni Publications, Tehran.