Caught on Camera: Three rare snow leopards in Himachal hills

Getting to see the elusive and rare snow leopard in its natural habitat – the Himalayas – is considered lucky. The viewing of three of these big cats together is indeed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and that is what precisely happened in Pooh town located in Himachal Pradesh’s Kinnaur district.

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Found in the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia, this feline species lives in alpine and subalpine zones in elevations ranging from 9,800 feet to 14,800 feet. Apart from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan and other countries, in India, snow leopards live in Himachal Pradesh, Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir, Sikkim, Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh.

A carnivore, this leopard’s diet includes the Himalayan blue sheep, Siberian ibex, white-bellied musk deer, wild boar, Himalayan tahr, argali, markhor and wild goat. It is known to prey on domestic livestock too.