Cheetah Conservation in Iran

Project Animal(s) : Cheetah
Project Category : Mammals
Project Region : Asia
Project Type : Conservation
Project URL : https://www.iraniancheetah.org
Project is timebound? : Yes

Project Start Date : March 26, 2004

The Iranian cheetah is the most endangered cat in the world. Its existence has been verified in five fragmented sites in Iran, but to measure a more effective conservation in the wild, it is necessary to identify and assess intermediate areas useable as corridors between the above five areas. Since September 2002 the Iranian Cheetah Society (ICS) has focused on the Miandasht Wildlife Refuge. Over the past year’s activities, ICS has found four fresh cheetah tracks plus two new skins poached recently. This group aims to identify cheetah seasonal hotspots in the area, identify cheetah rivals and preferred game species in the area and raising public awareness among the marginal local communities.

Research
Since early 2004, the Iranian Cheetah Society (ICS) has been conducting a long-term survey to evaluate the habitat parameters for the cheetah, its prey and rival species. So far, 3 cheetahs have been captured through a camera trapping survey and it is estimated that a population of 6 to 10 cheetahs exist in the area.

Public Awareness
Due to high similarity between the cheetah and 2 more large-sized carnivores, including the wolf and the hyena, it is necessary to increase local people’s awareness about the cheetah and other carnivores. The wolf is the main problematic species for the local livestock owners, but sometimes the people may consider the attacking wolves on livestock as the cheetah. So, a public awareness campaign has been launched to prevent any disaster for the cheetahs.

Project Agency : iraniancheetah.org

Project Researcher : Mohammad Farhadinia

Project Researcher Contact : msfarhadinia@iraniancheetah.org

Additional Information :

April 2013 - We are delighted to share a fantastic news from the cheetahs in Iran. A large group of the cheetahs have been again spotted in NE Iran, not far from Turkmenistan border. Hereby, we would like to thank you so much for your help and support. You can see the news below:
http://www.wildlife.ir/ShowInfo.aspx?Lang=2&InfoId=494

The below news might be interesting for you, a great step to push forward cheetah conservation in Iran: http://www.wildlife.ir/ShowInfo.aspx?Lang=2&InfoId=544