The Arabian Leopard, Panthera pardus nimr, is a subspecies of Leopard endemic to, and once found across, the Arabian Peninsula, but now considered to be Critically endangered under the terms of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species, with less than 200 Animals thought to be surviving in Oman, Yemen, and possibly Saudi Arabia, although the species hasn't been seen in Saudi Arabia since 2014. Oman is thought to have a steady population of about 50 Leopards, where the species is protected, but the situation in Yemen is less clear. Leopards are known to be hunted in the south and southeast of Yemen, where there is an ongoing civil conflict, and Leopard killings in Lawdar in Abyan, north of Lahij and Ad Dali, have been reported since 2021.
In a letter published in the journal Orynx on 22 May 2023, Hadi Al Hikmani of the Royal Commission for AlUla, and Andrew Spalton of the IUCN Species Survival Commission Cat Specialist Group, discuss new reports of the hunting of Arabian Leopards in the Hawf Mountains of eastern Arabia.
The Hawf Mountains are outside of the conflict zone in Yemen, lying close to the border with Oman. The killing of two Leopards was reported here in 2014, but there have been known further instances for almost a decade. In November 2022 images of a Leopard killed in the Hawf Mountains in response to livestock losses appeared on social media sites, with reports of a second Animal apparently killed for similar reasons, appearing in January 2023.
Killing in response to the taking of livestock, whether real or perceived, is considered to be the major reason for the decline of the Arabian Leopard across the entirety of its range. In Oman and active program of interventions has largely ended such persecution of the species, but this is not the case in Yemen, raising concerns about the future of the species there. The apparent resumption of Leopard hunting in the Hawf Mountains, far from the country's conflict zone, is particularly troubling, as the population here is thought to be small, and could easily be wiped out quite quickly.
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