Biologists have estimated that leopards once roamed wildly over 13.5 million square miles throughout Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. In a study carried out by a consortium of scientists in 2016, that range has been reduced to only 3.3 million square miles. Poaching for the leopard’s unique pelt and habitat loss has led to leopards be ranked as vulnerable of extinction by the International Union for Conservation on Nature. In some areas like Hong Kong, Singapore, Morocco, and South Korea, wild leopards are entirely extinct. Protecting leopards has become of great importance.

Zoos play an important role in conservation efforts for vulnerable species like leopards with a variety of programs. Zoos help educate people about animals and their natural habitats, informing the public on what they can do to help protect all creatures. One of the primary benefits of vulnerable species in zoos is the breeding programs carried out there. Through breeding programs, vulnerable species are given a chance to re-establish their numbers. Though zoo breeding helps to increase population numbers, these animals must stay in captivity.

Captively bred animals do not have the skills needed to survive in the wild. They do not know how to seek adequate shelter, protect themselves from predators, or hunt and gather food. All of these things are provided for them by their handlers. However, it still happens that captively bred animals can escape from their enclosures, putting them and the public at great risk. In April of 2021, 3 juvenile female Amur leopards escaped from a zoo in eastern China. The zoo from which the leopards escaped, the Hangzhou Safari Park, opted not to inform authorities of the escape for several reasons.

The first reason was that the zoo didn’t want to panic people and turn them away from visiting the zoo over the upcoming holiday weekend. The second was that since the leopards were only a few years old, the zoo handlers figured that there was no real threat posed to people. After people began to report sightings of leopards, the zoo finally confessed. In response, Chinese authorities quickly stepped in to track down the 3 Amur leopards. The first of the leopards was located and captured with the help of a tranquilizer dart shortly after the search began. Two days later, the second leopard was easily found because of a serious injury it had suffered. One of its rear paws was missing, possibly from an attack sustained by another animal. Veterinarians have said that they expect the young leopard to fully recover.

However, the third leopard is still missing. “Without food in the wild, and given the young leopard’s lack of hunting abilities, there is a very big possibility that it is in hiding or even dead, ” said deputy curator of the National Zoological Museum of China Zhang Jinshuo. “Of course, we all hope the third leopard is safe. However, it could be stimulated by hunger or stress in a new environment,” Zhang added. “Being surrounded by a large group of people or hunting dogs could elicit an atypical response. Under these circumstances, it’s possible it could attack humans.” Authorities have advised people to stay out of the woods while a massive search operation has commenced.

More than 1,700 personnel have been dispatched to search for the missing leopard. The team is being accompanied by search dogs and some high-tech gadgets. Chinese authorities are using 990 drones to get a bird’s eye point of view of the densely forested areas in hopes of locating the leopard. Drones have become the go to tools in search and rescue operations in the last few years. Chinese drone company DJI is the largest drone manufacturer in the world. To share just how beneficial drones are, DJI has created the DJI Drone Rescue Map.

This map is an ever growing catalog sharing the stories of drones having been used to rescue people. The current numbers reflect 366 rescue incidents in 34 countries that have saved 598 people. These numbers are based only on reported incidents and increase daily. The drone rescue map does not reflect the times drones have been used to find missing animals, just people. Finding animals with a drone can be considerably more difficult.

An animals’ instinct in a frightening situation is to hide and they can be easily camouflaged by the natural surroundings. At the same, it is these factors the make drones excellent search and rescue tools. Drones can cover large areas quickly and have infrared cameras that can identify the heat signature of a living creature. The cameras can find a person or animal, whether they are hiding or not. And as technology has advanced, the drones can differentiate what type of heat signatures are showing up on the camera. Some drones can even identify specific species.

The third leopard is still unaccounted for. It could have sought shelter in a cave where it may have, unfortunately, died. If this is the case, the drone’s infrared camera may not be able to find the leopard. The individuals responsible for withholding information about the escaped leopards have been detained by police and the park released an official apology. With the combined efforts of hundreds of drones, thousands of people, and packs of dogs, authorities are hoping that the leopard will be located soon.