 "Uttarakhand: Snow leopards spotted wandering off a bridge in Gangotri National Park, drive wildlife lovers crazy")
Snow leopards avoid venturing into human habitat areas and are also rarely seen crossing a bridge. But in Gangotri National Park in the district of Uttarkashi, many cases of snow leopards crossing an old wood bridge that is considered half a century old have been recorded. Besides wooden bridges, they are even seen using iron bridges and modern bridges for safe passage.
Gangotri National Park installs camera traps in different parts of the park during the winter. The park authorities collect the data, in the form of videos and photos, from the hidden cameras in the summer. This time, the stunning photograph of a snow leopard crossing an old wooden bridge is in the limelight. The snow leopard is captured moving casually and comfortably on the bridge over the Chorgad.
In the latest snow leopard census of India, released earlier this year, there are 718 snow leopards in India. Of which, 124 are in Uttarakhand. The hill state has the second highest snow leopard population in India, after Ladakh (477). The Gangotri National Park boasts a population of 38–40 snow leopards. Rang Nath Pandey, Deputy Director of Gangotri National Park, says, “For regular monitoring of snow leopards and other wildlife species, we install camera traps in the park. This is a routine practice.”
Listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, it is estimated that the global population of snow leopards is less than 10,000. In Uttarakhand, snow leopards are found in Uttarkashi, Tehri, Rudraprayag, Chamoli, Pithoragarh, and Bageshwar districts. Lately, many instances of snow leopard sightings have been recorded in Uttarakhand. The camera traps are helping in identifying many unknown habitats for this species in the Uttarakhand Himalayas.
The camera trap photographs of snow leopards using the bridges as passage have thrilled the Gangotri Park management team. Rightly termed the ghost of the mountains, as they are very hard to spot and find, snow leopards have been captured in Gangotri in a different mood. One photograph shows a snow leopard directly looking at the camera. The sound of the camera becoming active may have attracted the attention of the moving snow leopard.
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More ShortsA top carnivore in the ecological pyramid of the high-altitude ecosystems, the snow leopard is considered the flagship species for the high Himalayas. The bridge on Chorgad is located near the Himachal Pradesh border and is also serving as a link for migration for wild animals. Local resident Madhvendra Rawat says, “It was called Chorgad as villagers from our area used to secretly enter Himachal through this route.”
The Chorgad bridge is rarely used. Leaving occasional tours by security forces and forest department teams for patrolling, the bridge most of the time remains deserted. Local villagers move on the bridge occasionally with their herds to move to high altitude pastures. Camera trap photographs have found unexpected users of the bridge. The 20-metre-long bridge is said to be over half a century old, and despite facing harsh weather, the infrastructure still remains strong and usable.
Pratap Panwar, a retired forest ranger, says, “The Chorgad bridge is located in an isolated place. It is far away from human habitat; that’s why wild animals are using it comfortably.” The first video of a snow leopard crossing a bridge came in 2019. A Jawan of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police was successful in filming a casually strolling snow leopard at Nelong, near Gangotri, through his mobile phone. The video became viral on social media.
The Chorgad bridge photo of the snow leopard moving in the middle of the bridge is something special. A treat for wildlife lovers!
Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost’s views.
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