Sri Lanka Carnivore Project

Project Animal(s) : Sloth bear,Sri Lankan Leopard
Project Category : Mammals
Project Region : Asia
Project Type : Conservation
Project URL : https://madmimi.com/s/02b6a7
Project is timebound? : No

Under the skilled leadership of Dr. Anthony J. Giordano, Program Director & Coordinator of the Sri Lanka Carnivore Project, SLWCS has teamed up with the Society for the Preservation of Endangered Carnivores & their International Ecological Study (S.P.E.C.I.E.S.) to uncover the secret world of Sri Lanka’s medium-large mammal communities.

Work is currently underway to survey and evaluate the status of seven carnivore species, including the sloth bear, leopard, rusty-spotted cat, fishing cat, jungle cat, golden palm civet, and Sri Lankan jackal.

The team’s work includes updating the population and conservation status of the Sri Lankan leopard, an IUCN “Endangered” species and thus a high priority species for conservation in the country. Compared to other leopard subspecies in Asia and Africa, the Sri Lankan leopard has been the subject of few rigorous surveys and field investigations, just as the sloth bear has been the subject of few ecological studies relative to other bears.

With urban and agricultural development pressure advancing more rapidly in Sri Lanka, the need to know more about the threats faced by the island’s carnivore populations is more urgent than it ever has been. The more we learn about the ecological requirements of the Sri Lankan leopard and sloth bear, for example, the island’s largest terrestrial predators, the more effective the development of conservation strategies used to create and connect protected areas. These considerations are made even more effective when integrated with the needs of Sri Lanka’s elephant populations, which require very large areas to roam.

Project Agency : Sri Lanka Wildlife Conservation Society

Project Agency Contact : https://www.slwcs.org/

Project Researcher : Anthony J. Giordano

Project Researcher Contact : https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyjgiordano