These tribes are fighting for ‘ghosts of the mountains’ to survive. They may yet lose

Community forest initiatives in the Himalayas, the world’s highest mountain range, are helping once-endangered predators thrive

One of the world’s most mysterious cats, the Snow Leopard is known as the ‘ghost of the mountains’ for its mastery of stealth and camouflage. There was a time when the residents of the ‘cold desert’ district of Lahaul and Spiti, in the Indian Himalayan state of Himachal Pradesh, could barely spot it.

But lately, it has been more visible. The participation of local herders has led to a significant increase in the prey and predator populations, resulting in increased sightings of Snow Leopards. The Indian government’s 2024 report on Snow Leopards puts the number at a healthy 718, up from a previous estimate of 400-700 spread across India’s Himalayan states. 

The locals are following a community forest reserve model on the lines of that in India’s northeast, to conserve biodiversity in the fragile Himalayan region. The model is currently being implemented in the Spiti valley.

The effort is not only conserving flora and fauna in the region, but is also contributing to the thriving population of apex predators such as the Snow Leopard and the Himalayan Wolf, as well as prey such as Ibex, Blue Sheep and Ungulates.

The thriving population is attracting wildlife enthusiasts to capture the elusive cat on camera. Tourist arrivals have led to the local tribal population living in the ‘cold desert’ of Spiti to earn extra income during winters, when these cats come out to hunt.

Munib Khaniari, an interdisciplinary researcher with the Nature Conservation Foundation (NCF), says that under the community forest model, “the locals leave one valley for wild prey and don’t use these lands for grazing livestock.”

In addition, whenever they see wild prey grazing in the grasslands, the herders depart these pastures to adjoining areas so as to not disturb the wildlife. “The model can prove a milestone in restoring biodiversity in Himalayan regions,” Khaniari says.

Tenzin Thukten, a local who along with NCF and other residents has been spearheading the campaign for the last decade, says the model has been approved by the forest department bureaucracy. 

“At first, we involved local residents and their representatives in the initiative and briefed them about the valley reserved for wildlife,” he said. “We do this exercise every year and even lay camera traps to record the movement of wildlife in the Spiti valley.”

Prakash Bhandari of Himdhara, an environmental collective, says that implementation of forest rights, or granting individual or community rights could lead to better conservation of natural wealth.

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“But the issue doesn’t rest with getting individual and community forest claims, as communities will then need to focus on conserving and maintaining flora and fauna in our forests,” Bhandari said. “These efforts are needed to fight climate change in hilly regions, for these will be the worst affected. Last year’s natural disasters in Sikkim are examples of potential future tragedies.”

“That locals and their indigenous knowledge can play a critical role in handling climate crises has been seen in the past,” he said. “It is now high time that we carry forward our traditions in the fight against climate change.”

The role of indigenous knowledge was also highlighted by the United Nations in its 2021 report on Challenges and Opportunities For Indigenous Peoples’ Sustainability. 

“Indigenous peoples have long been successful stewards of the world’s biodiversity, and their knowledge, innovations and practices ensure the sustainable use of biological resources, carbon sequestration, food security and crop diversity,” the report stated. It noted that while indigenous people constitute just 6% of the world’s population, they are the custodians of more than a third of the world’s important biodiversity areas.

Not only this, but 42% of land that is managed by the indigenous people and local communities is in better ecological condition than other areas.

Thukten says the sightings of Snow Leopards and Himalayan Wolves (both in IUCN’s Red List of endangered species) have increased over the years as the flora and fauna has been thriving since the implementation of the model. 

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The government’s 2024 report stated that India’s 718 Snow Leopards were spread over 100,000 sq km in the Himalayan region covering Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh. The study was conducted under the first-ever Snow Leopard Population Assessment Program, carried out by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, in association with the Wildlife Institute of India, the NCF and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).

Based on camera traps set up in each state, the count was: Ladakh (477), Uttarakhand (124), Arunachal Pradesh (36), Sikkim (21), and J&K (9). Fifty-one were in Himachal Pradesh, where the community conservation model is active.

Jia Lal of the Kinnaur Forest Rights Committee in Himachal wants to conserve and record the history, culture, rituals and flora-fauna of the forests. “Handing over forest wealth to outsiders is resulting in the loss to the biodiversity in eco-sensitive zones,” Lal said. “Whenever outsiders are engaged in collecting natural resources, it results in over-exploitation. On the other hand, locals know the importance and judicious use of resources.”

Thukten highlighted a new problem: feral dogs. “The number of incidents of snow leopards attacking livestock in Spiti has gone down drastically but now we are facing attacks by feral dogs and they are even attacking snow leopards’ prey in the wild,” Thukten said.

He said that tribal groups are approaching the local government to manage the issue of feral dogs, as it may worsen in the future and interfere with the natural interaction of predators like the Snow Leopard with its prey.

However, experts feel there is a need for more government funding so that locals can be compensated or encouraged to adopt such initiatives more proactively.

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“There should be governmental incentives or compensation to local communities for following the model, for they have to make changes in traditional grazing areas or even abandoning traditional areas,” Khaniyari said. “Incentivizing such efforts will encourage communities residing near to forest lands to better protect natural resources and biodiversity, which can help in mitigating climate change effects.”