Modern Weights and Measurements of Leopards

[Ngala]

An old male was fitted with a GPS-satellite collar in Tandoureh
Published by Future4Leopards February 5, 2015

*This image is copyright of its original author

An old male was captured to be third leopard fitted with GPS satellite collar in Tandoureh. In early night of 5 February 2015, Borzou, was captured in a snare trap in northern Tandoureh National Park, the closest trapping location to Turkmenistan border. Weighted 57 kg, the leopard seemed healthy, but with weak dental conditions, likely due to aging. He was completely new to the Project team and was not detected before based on photographic records provided by rangers and visitors.
Safely sedated by the Project associated vet Iman Memarian, the anesthetizing procedure went smooth and the collar was deployed and activated. After 45 minutes, the animal received an antidote to reverse the anesthesia, and then he walked away.
Surprisingly, the collar did not sent any GPS fixes for the first two weeks of deployment, while the animal was walking in nearby mountains. Therefore, after spending two weeks to spot the animal and to try for re-capturing to fix the collar, suddenly the collar started to retrieve data. We never understood why this happened, but after two weeks of attempts and frustration, that was fortune moment to see the collar working. Spending most of the time among rocks in a heavy cloudy weather was the probable cause of mis-performance.

*This image is copyright of its original author

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