For the first time in Nagaland hills, mysterious clouded leopard observed at record heights

The photographs collected by the researchers' camera trap reveal the highest clouded leopard sightings ever in India.

As said in a report by researchers, "'Local communities in Nagaland own and manage a large majority of the region’s forests, with a range of village-specific management regimes. Our surveys found these community forests to host a high diversity and abundance of several globally threatened taxa."

Clouded leopards have short, strong legs with turning rear ankles and are known to be the greatest climbers in their class. They can use their huge paws and keen claws to not only climb very quickly but also hang upside down. 

According to National Geographic, they hunt primarily on the ground, eating deer, pigs, monkeys, and smaller game such as squirrels and birds.

Their huge canines assist in hunting, but there is no proof of their behavior in the wild. This species can be found throughout Asia, from the Indonesian rain forests to the Himalayan foothills. Because little is known about their population size, they are considered a vulnerable species.

The findings were published in the Cat News, a biannual newsletter published by the IUCN/Species Survival Commission (SSC) Cat Specialist Group, in the Winter 2021 issue. In the 65 square kilometer wide forests, the research was led by the Delhi-based non-profit Wildlife Protection Society of India (WPSI).

In the absence of Tigers and common leopards, which are regionally extinct, the clouded leopard, also known as Khephak in the local Chirr dialect, is the largest wild feline in the area.

Clouded leopards have been seen in a variety of habitats, including primary, secondary, and selectively logged forests, and are thought to favor densely forested areas, according to the researchers. Their earlier sightings were reported from 3,720 meters in Sikkim, 3,600 meters in Bhutan, and 3,498 meters in a Nepalese protected region.

The new research suggests that cats can survive at high altitudes in the eastern Himalayas.

At least two adults and two cubs were seen, according to the researchers. Other animals photographed at this location include the Asiatic black bear, yellow-throated marten, and prospective prey such as the stump-tailed macaque and the Assamese macaque.

Between January and June 2020, 37 camera traps were placed across the community forest as part of the camera trap surveys.

The research paper reads, "We urge that more scientific studies be conducted ethically, equitably and collaboratively with local people in non-state forests, especially in parts of North-east India where local communities own, manage and, in many cases, protect the majority of forested lands. These landscapes hold potential for more scientifically unregistered populations of the clouded leopard and other threatened species of wild felines."