![]() The promotion of TCM is a central component of BRI ( Hughes et al., 2020) and could enhance demand for threatened wildlife species products. Illegal wildlife trade, if not controlled, maybe facilitated to major hubs in other southeast Asian countries through the CPEC of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI Farhadinia et al., 2019). The snow leopard is listed in Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES Checklist of CITES Species, 2022). Illegal hunting and poaching of snow leopards are widespread activities, owing to snow leopard parts being commonly used for Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM Coghlan et al., 2015 Byard, 2016). (VI) Environmental factors and lack of research Climate change, habitat degradation, fragmentation and isolation, overwhelming environmental threats from the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC Nabi et al., 2018, 2019), lack of resources and cooperation from the wildlife department for research, and inaccessibility and geopolitical sensitivity of the research area additionally compromise snow leopard conservation. ![]() In retaliation, many snow leopards are killed every year by pastoralists seeking to protect their livelihoods ( WWF, 2016). (V) Conflict between humans and snow leopards Snow leopards frequently attack livestock and kill dozens of animals ( Geo News, 2021). (IV) Trophy Hunting (TH) The current TH program of snow leopard prey in Pakistan runs counter to the ultimate objective of conservation e.g., TH inside national parks and increasing negative attitudes among local residents toward snow leopard ( Rashid et al., 2021). Due to intense unchecked hunting of markhor, its population has catastrophically declined from 2,868 individuals in 2019 to <800 individuals at present ( Ahmad and Nabi, 2022). Recently, over 100 ibex were killed for influential and government officials ( Mir, 2020). ![]() (III) Illegal killing of primary prey The illegal harvest of ibex and markhor for meat is very high in Pakistan's snow leopard habitats. In Chitral Gol National Park (CGNP 77.4 km 2 area) alone, feral dogs have killed 392 markhors in the past 15 years (2006–2020 Khattak et al., 2021), while data for ibex ( Capra sibirica) and markhor mortality are not available in other regions. ![]() (II) Competition for primary prey Growing populations of feral dogs compete with snow leopards for primary natural prey (markhor Capra falconeri). (I) Poaching In Khunjerab National Park (KNP) and surrounding conservancies, 13 snow leopards have been killed in the last 7 years ( Rashid et al., 2021) however, an expert survey indicates that the situation is much worse than the reported annual statistics suggest ( Nowell et al., 2016). Despite their numbers being between 200–420 individuals in Pakistan ( Kazmi et al., 2021), snow leopard survival in the country is at higher risk for six main reasons. ![]()
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