ველური ბუნებისეროვნული სააგენტო ველური ბუნებისეროვნული სააგენტო

In Algeti National Park, two camera traps placed along the outer perimeter of the National Wildlife Agency’s noble deer breeding farm captured footage of a Red List species – the Caucasian leopard (also known as the Persian leopard).

This is the third time in the past 20 years that this unique and elusive animal has been recorded in Georgia. The species, Panthera pardus, which in the Middle Ages was widespread across Georgia, has been considered extinct in the region since the mid-20th century due to poaching. In the past, Georgians used the word “vepkhi” to refer to the leopard.

“Most likely, this unique animal has been present on the Trialeti Ridge for quite some time. The leopard is so cautious that it avoids humans and is rarely seen. Of the dozens of camera traps we installed along the 4-kilometer fence built for the deer enclosure, two managed to capture it. The leopard was moving along the fence. Our facility is designed so that predators cannot enter; the breeding farm stretches across 72 hectares, is fully fenced, and equipped with 40 camera traps and 30 video cameras. The deer are safe. Outside the enclosure, within the protected area, natural prey is abundant for the leopard. This once again demonstrates the importance of protected areas and the necessity of their proper functioning,” said Revaz Bezhashvili, Head of the National Wildlife Agency.

According to zoologist Professor Zurab Gurielidze, Georgia has become an even more important part of the overall biodiversity map of Eurasia.

It is noteworthy that one of the primary objectives of establishing protected areas in Georgia is to protect and preserve the country’s national natural heritage – its unique and rare ecosystems, as well as its diverse plant and animal species.

Currently, Georgia has 100 protected areas across six different categories, with a total area of 929,996 hectares. Work is also underway to establish four new protected areas in the regions of Samegrelo, Svaneti, Kakheti, and Guria, as well as to expand the protected areas of Racha.