Clever snow leopards camouflage themselves perfectly in mountain landscapes – but can you find the big cat?
STUNNING snaps show a snow leopard seamlessly camouflage into a wintry landscape as the predator prepares to pounce.
The majestic animal blends perfectly into the snowy background in Spiti valley, northern India, in pictures taken by Yash Adukia – making it hard to spot.
The 28-year-old had spent two years trying to capture an image of the leopard, dubbed locally as “Ghost of the Mountains”, because of their extremely elusive nature.
“It was like hitting the jackpot,” Yash said.
“But at first I thought our photographer guide was just bluffing because I couldn't see the leopard myself.
"It was only when rechecking through my binoculars, I saw a sub adult snow leopard in the bushes.
“After the sun got set in the valley, the leopard came out from the bushes and started walking down hill towards the river, quenched her thirst and disappeared in the bushes.
“I was jumping in excitement.”
Yash trekked with a group of nature enthusiasts through Spiti valley and waited in brutal -8C temperatures for six hours before the encounter.
He added: “We were on one cliff while the snow leopards were on the different mountain. It was extremely difficult to spot the Himalayan grey ghosts.
“Tears were rolling down my eyes, I was unable to believe what was happening.
“Within no time all the sub adults too joined her and cuddled her. It was an emotional moment.
“I kept my camera aside and took my binoculars watching them. Noticed each and every moment of theirs. I knew it was once in a lifetime experience.
“She got uncomfortable with our presence though we were around 400-450 metres away from her, she got up and started walking in her full pace, the sub adults followed her.
"Within a matter of seconds, they disappeared in a small cave.”
The elegant and well-camouflaged snow leopard is one of the world’s most elusive cats.
Dotted across 12 countries in central Asia, the creatures are at home in high, rugged mountain landscapes.
But poaching and climate change are now threatening its survival.
They are suspected to have declined by at least 20 per cent in under two decades.
The snow leopard is listed as endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.
Worldwide there are just 4,080-6,590 snow leopards estimated to be in the wild.
Of that number, only 200-600 are living in India.
Snow leopards are very successful predators, able to kill prey up to three times their own weight.
Source: Read Full Article