Snow leopards cannot growl — can AI save them from locals adamant on making them extinct?

Snow leopards, often called the 'ghosts of the mountains,' are rare, evasive big cats that are currently endangered, constantly facing the threat of extinction. Besides climate change, this is mainly happening because of intrusive human-related factors such as hunting for sport. The significant increase in population has forced people to carve into mountains, thus destroying the natural habitats of these snow leopards. Moreover, they are also illegally hunted for their fur and other body parts, or killed in retaliation for the loss of livestock. Sure, there are laws to protect them, but despite that, the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), cited by the BBC, stated that around 221 to 450 snow leopards are being killed every year.

Unlike other big cats, snow leopards cannot growl; their distinctive vocal cords and throat anatomy can only produce low-intensity vocalization for communication. Perhaps this explains why the hunters keep killing them easily, despite strict laws. With just 4,000 to 6,000 snow leopards left in the wild, WWF and Pakistan's Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) have come up with a brilliant solution to protect them. As per the report, they have meticulously developed cameras, operated by artificial intelligence (AI), to detect snow leopards in the surrounding area. If and when the cameras spot the leopards, a text message will warn the villagers to shift their livestock to safety.

The cameras, mounted with a solar panel on top, are placed at a height of nearly 3,000m (9,843ft) in uninhabited mountainous areas. Notably, the global conservation organization is testing 10 cameras at present, all of which are placed across three villages in Gilgit-Baltistan. Asif Iqbal, an official from WWF Pakistan, took the BBC team around what he called the "snow leopard territory." As he guided them around the area, Iqbal observed some freshly made tracks, indicating the presence of snow leopards in that particular area.

Coming up with such a high-tech solution and later implementing it in Pakistan wasn't easy. The WWF had to face a lot of technical issues while installing cameras at high-altitude mountains. They analyzed different batteries until they finally found the one that could easily hold against the harsh weather. Besides, the cameras were painted carefully to avoid reflecting light as animals pass by. Even after so much experimentation, some obstacles ultimately couldn't be overcome. Although a metallic box protects the camera lenses, the solar panels had to be changed regularly as they couldn't withstand the landslides. 

More than the technical issues, convincing the local community about the new initiative was more challenging. "We noticed some of the wires had been cut. People had thrown blankets over the cameras," Asif shared, talking about the people's reaction. Understanding their concern, the team of WWF moved their cameras to avoid compromising on women's safety and privacy. However, even after that, some villagers haven't signed their consent and privacy forms, thus restricting the camera installations in their areas. Despite these difficulties, the WWF is quite hopeful that their new initiative will bear fruitful results, as they plan on testing new methods to hinder snow leopards from moving into nearby villages.