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The habitat of one of the world’s rarest and most elusive big cats is shrinking fast, with the latest pressure coming from frankincense collectors.

Only around 200 critically endangered Arabian leopards remain in the wild, with the largest population in Oman. And while the latest camera trap photographs show a small but thriving population in the country, the cats are being squeezed out by encroaching humans, which brings them into conflict with camel farmers.

“We have seen leopards moving away from areas where they used to be,” says Hadi Al Hikmani, a wildlife biologist at the Office for Conservation of the Environment in Oman. “In Jabal Samhan nature reserve they’re moving around 6 kilometres southwards, but in areas like Nejd, north-west of the Dhofar mountains, they’re moving northwards, where they were not found in the last 10 years.”

The displacement is most likely due to an influx of people looking for fresh sources of valuable frankincense, used in perfume and incense.

“A small community that harvests frankincense trees has recently established some semi-permanent camps in the Jabal Samhan area, especially near water resources,” says Al Hikmani.

Disturbed leopards

People disturb the leopards, but also hunt and scare away its natural prey, the gazelle and the ibex.

This is compounded by loss of habitat from livestock overgrazing and desertification, which means leopards have limited space for manoeuvre.

Closer association with humans is set to create more conflicts, as the leopards are also known to hunt camels. Al Hikmani fears people might not be willing to turn a blind eye on lost camel livestock in the long run.

To find out more about the Arabian leopards in Oman, Al Hikmani and his colleagues installed more than 100 camera traps between 2011 and 2015 around the Dhofar mountains, and collected more than 200 scat samples for genetic analysis.

Though they have only recorded 35 individuals so far, they estimate there are around 44 to 58 wild Arabian leopards left in Oman. This would make it the world’s biggest population, as only 200 wild animals are thought to be left across the Arabian Peninsula.

The leopard is facing problems across the Peninsula. Both wild and captive populations in neighbouring Yemen are under pressure from armed conflict there. “Yemeni colleagues have told us of a leopard killed in the wild and others captured for sale outside the country,” says Andrew Spalton, adviser for environmental affairs at the Omani government. “Understandably the people of Yemen have other priorities at this time.”

Twin cubs

The leopards’ small population might mean they are highly inbred, which can endanger conservation prospects.

There are about 84 animals held in captivity in the Arabian Peninsula, mostly at four major locations in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Yemen. Reintroduction in Oman isn’t an option at the moment as officials fear more wild cats wouldn’t be met with approval from local farmers.

“While we have some support from livestock farmers for animals in the wild, I doubt there would be much appetite for releasing more animals,” says Spalton.

Nevertheless, recent camera trap photos reveal the small population is doing well, with sightings of mating leopards and newborn cubs. “The leopards are continuing to breed and we have photos of cubs – even twins,” says Spalton.

Ultimately, the future of this elusive cat in Oman depends on whether their last remaining habitat in the Dhofar mountains can be preserved.

“They are the most biodiverse area of Oman and Arabia but they are also hugely important as rangelands for livestock,” says Spalton. “Unfortunately we have yet to find a balance between livestock and wildlife.”

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