India’s leopard numbers rose by 8% from 12,852 in 2018 to 13,874 in 2022, according to a report made public by the Environment Ministry on Thursday.
While the highest number of leopards were reported in Madhya Pradesh (3,907), only three other States reported over a 1,000 animals each — Maharashtra (1,985), Karnataka (1,879) and Tamil Nadu (1,070). While Uttarakhand reported a 22% decline in the big cat numbers — reportedly due to poaching and man-animal conflict, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and West Bengal saw a collective 150% rise to 349 animals.
The survey covered 20 States of India, and focussed on about 70% of the animals’ expected habitat, which are India’s tiger reserves and protected forest areas. Unlike tigers, which are largely confined to forest reserves, leopards are far more adaptable and tend to be found in significant numbers, in villages and, sometimes, even in cities. They are also known to prey on cattle and thus be involved in conflict, resulting in higher mortality.
