The reports say that 240 leopards were killed this year across the country due to various reasons like man-animal conflicts, accidents etc.
In Uttarakhand itself 29 leopards were poached and four killed in man-animal conflict. Fifteen leopards were poached in Maharashtra, 13 in Uttar Pradesh and 12 in Karnataka. Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Assam and Himachal Pradesh have also seen leopard deaths in man-animal conflicts.
The main reason for poaching is to obtain the animal skin.
Indian leopard is one of the eight to nine valid leopard subspecies found throughout the world. Known by the scientific name of Panthera pardus, it is the fourth largest of the four 'big cats' of the Panthera genus. At the same time, leopards are also the fifth largest of all cat species.
