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Raza, H.A.; Ahmad, S.A.; Hassan, N.A.; Qadir, K.A.M.; Ali, L.
First photographic record of the Persian leopard in Kurdistan, northern Iraq
2012 Cat News (56): 34-35
Under a grant from the Conservation Leadership Programme (CLP), the Nature Iraq team has been researching wild goat Capra aegagrus in the Kurdistan region of northern Iraq. On the IUCN Red List (Weinberg et al. 2008), wild goat is listed as Vulnerable, and our research will help to enrich international understanding about the status of this animal in Iraq and conserve this species. During the CLP field surveys the team set one camera trap in a habitat where it was thought to be a suitable place for different carnivorous animals. The Persian leopard _Panthera pardus_ was our main target species because our team was already working on their prey species, wild goats, and because we have seen a few incidents of the killing of leopards, which made us want to clarify their status in our study areas. Persian leopard is an Endangered species whose presence in Iraq, according to IUCN Red List (Khorozyan et al. 2008) is uncertain.
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