Cause of listing and main threats to its continued existence

Climate change is immensely altering the Snow Leopard’s habitat, to the point where it is becoming unsuitable for the animals that previously thrived there. Rising temperatures have caused shallow bodies of water to fade, making it increasingly hard for snow leopards and their prey to find water sources to drink from. Permafrost and snow are melting as a result of the warming temperatures, which is causing the rivers to flow at different times and in different amounts. This change is upsetting the natural balance, hurting both the animals and the humans that live downstream. The rising temperatures are allowing trees to grow higher than they were previously able to. This takes up a substantial amount of water from the soil, diminishing the water supply for rivers, lakes, and other vegetation. These new conditions result in an increase of vegetation that is unsuitable for snow leopard’s prey, reducing their numbers, which in turn decreases the food availability for both prey and predator. Degradation of grasslands as a result of climate change is another factor taking away food from snow leopards prey. The rising tree line has allowed farmers to move their agriculture higher up the mountains, taking over the snow leopard territory. These farmers who are infringing on the snow leopards habitat become angry when they eat their livestock, and retaliate by killing them. While I sympathize with the farmers who need their livestock to feed their families and send their children to school, it is immoral to kill an animal that they are taking away land from. This decreasing habitat also makes snow leopards more venerable to poachers. Because they now need to go closer to human civilization to get water and food sources they are more exposed. Their pelts can be sold for big sums of money, and some people believe their organs have healing powers. For this reason they are often killed for profit. The escalator effect is also a big problem for snow leopards. They like to live high up in the mountains, but with rising agriculture, tree lines, and warmer temperature there is only so much further they can go to avoid these new impingements. Not even the most powerful apex predator can fight against the effects of climate change.

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Chart by the World Meteorological Organization showing the predicted future temperatures for the Tibetan Plateau https://public.wmo.int/en/resources/bulletin/third-pole-climate-warming-and-cryosphere-system-changes