Most of the Persian leopard’s range in Iran consists of dry montane ecosystems with limited water resources. Water shortage, particularly in years of continuous drought, can affect the leopards’ prey species by reducing their breeding success and survival. Thus, leopards may have to adopt nomadic behaviour, meaning simply that they are forced to leave their home territory to seek new resources. A consequence of doing so may be that they will encounter more humans, including poachers who will shoot them. At Future4Leopards Foundation, we need to think and act to reverse this sequence.
We provide support for the construction of new water resources and the maintenance of those already in existence. In some areas, we also help local authorities to build high-capacity storage tanks to store water from springs during rainy seasons so that it’s available for wildlife during the hot months. Water from a collecting tank at higher elevation can be piped to several different localities at lower altitudes.
