There have been few sightings of the endangered Persian leopard in the Caucasus region over the past 20 years: just three in Georgia and 10 in Armenia. But scientists and conservationists are alert to one Persian leopard in particular, whom they've named Aren and who is presumed to have journeyed 240 kilometers (150 miles) through cold, mountainous terrain with only three legs. This region of the world — made up of southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan — still contains decades-old minefields from prior conflicts, and it's believed this is how Aren was injured.
Joining the Newscast this week to discuss her story for Mongabay is journalist Kayleigh Long, who explains how this leopard subspecies, Panthera pardus tulliana, persists in the region. She also describes how NGOs like NACRES, operating on extremely thin budgets, continue to monitor the big cats and provide what protection they can.
Along national borders in the Caucasus, landmines pose risks to humans and wild animals alike, as do fences. Thousands of kilometers of barbed-wire from the Soviet era still stand across parts of the Caucasus, and they can trap leopards, bears, and deer.
Despite the region's challenges, the mere persistence of leopards and the dedication of NGOs operating amid increasingly difficult conditions after USAID's shuttering offer a sense of hope, Long says.
"I think the stories that I'm trying to seek out are ones that reflect the possibility of a better, a kinder, and more just world. And I think when you look at things like borders, they can reflect the very worst of our instincts, or if people are able to cooperate and recognize that we are a part of nature and that this is our environment, we all have to get along with nature and with each other," she says.
"Perhaps it's naive of me," she adds, "but … in times like this, I sort of think hope is a moral imperative."
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Mike DiGirolamo is the host & producer for the Mongabay Newscast based in Sydney. Find him on LinkedIn and Bluesky.
Cover image: A Persian leopard. Image via Peoples Trust for Endangered Species.
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Timecodes
(00:00) Leopards in the Caucasus
(04:50) Aren
(12:05) Challenges of Fieldwork
(16:14) Landmines & Fences
(25:03) Towards coexistence & Hope
