India launches plan to save clouded leopards across northeast landscapes
India
On International Clouded Leopard Day, India rolled out a first-of-its-kind action plan to save these rare wild cats.
The focus is on 14 priority landscapes in Northeast India across Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Manipur, Tripura, and Sikkim, places where clouded leopards still roam.
The big idea: restore forests, connect habitats, and crack down on poaching so these vulnerable cats have a real shot at survival.
Plan tracks leopards, tests DNA
The plan brings in cool tech like camera traps and DNA testing to actually track individual leopards and study the diversity of genetic material and population connectivity.
It's a major step for wildlife in northeast India (and honestly, pretty awesome for global conservation).