Fines for Hunting Iranian Leopards Increased 16 Times

The Director General of the Office for Protection, Hunting, and Fishing of the Environmental Protection Organization announced a 45% decrease in Iranian leopard fatalities in 2016 compared to the previous eight years, alongside an increase in the hunting fine for this animal to 80 million tomans. According to Mehr News Agency, Ali Timouri made this announcement during the signing of a tripartite cooperation agreement between the Environmental Protection Organization, the National Environmental Fund, and an oil company, aimed at implementing a national management and protection program for the Iranian leopard. This official stated that prior to 2015, approximately 16 leopards were killed annually, but according to the latest reports, only 9 leopards have died this year. Timouri also reported the increase in the hunting fine for the Iranian leopard from 5 million tomans to 80 million tomans by the Environmental Protection Organization. He noted that this action coincided with the development of a management and protection program for the Iranian leopard, which includes an important section on the 'insurance plan' for the Iranian leopard. He previously mentioned that in a four-year period, 71% of leopard deaths in the country were due to hunting and poisoned prey, and with the completion of the Iranian leopard insurance, a program to manage damages and conflicts with large cat species worldwide regarding the Iranian leopard will be implemented. Timouri also added that under this plan, four out of the nine leopard fatalities this year have been compensated by insurance. He stated that the insurance amount is 60 million tomans. Three of the deceased Iranian leopards died due to old age, and three were killed by hunters. According to Timouri, the hunters of these three leopards have been arrested, and in addition to paying 80 million tomans in damages for each leopard, they may also face imprisonment. The Iranian leopard, with fewer than 500 individuals, is classified as 'endangered' by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, yet this has not prevented their killings in Iran. Previously, a group of wildlife supporters in Iran had sent a letter with hundreds of signatures to Hassan Rouhani, urging him to take preventive measures to save endangered carnivorous species. In this context, the Iranian leopard has been subjected to torture and killing, with the body of the fourteenth Iranian leopard found this year. There are international efforts to preserve the Iranian leopard, and concerns among wildlife supporters about the extinction of carnivorous animals in Iran continue.