The cubs being taken for accompanied walks in the release site

One of the hand-raised clouded leopard cubs yawns during acclimatisation

The smallest of the big cat species, as well as one of the least studied – the clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa), in India, is largely found in the tropical forests in the northeast.

With just about 10,000 mature individuals believed to be remaining in the wild worldwide, the clouded leopard (distinguished into two species – N. nebulosa found in southeast Asia and N. diardi found in Sumatran and Bornean islands) is classified as ‘vulnerable’ in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. It is listed in Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.

Occasional seizures of live clouded leopards as well as their body parts indicate poaching and illegal trade as threats to the species in India. Habitat degradation, and conflicts with humans are other plausible threats to this species known to be extremely secretive, nocturnal and of predominantly arboreal nature.

One of the clouded leopard cubs is bottle-fed at the BTC-IFAW-WTI field station in Kokrajhar, Bodoland

The clouded leopard rehabilitation project was initiated by the Bodoland Territorial Council – International Fund for Animal Welfare – Wildlife Trust of India (BTC-IFAW-WTI) in March 2009, following the discovery of two young cubs in Kanthalmari village, Kokrajhar district in Bodoland. The cubs were in the possession of a local person.

With the mother believed killed and the cubs reportedly found alone by the person, reunion (as the first choice for rehabilitation) was an unavailable option.

The clouded leopard cubs play in the open at the CWRC satellite station

The cubs, both male and less than a month-old, were taken away by a team of Assam Forest Department officials. They were handed over to the Kokrajhar Mobile Veterinary Service (MVS) unit – a satellite station of the International Fund for Animal Welfare-Wildlife Trust of India (IFAW-WTI) run Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation (CWRC) - for hand-raising, and soft-release following prolonged acclimatisation in the wild.

For the next six months, the cubs were hand-raised at the MVS field station, by the BTC-IFAW-WTI veterinarians and animal keepers. The cubs were bottle-fed for a period of two months. As they grew, they were provided solid food, which was gradually replaced with meat. Finally, when the cubs began revealing their hunting instincts, they were allowed opportunities to practise their hunting skills on live prey. Additional nutritional supplements such as calcium and Vitamin B-complex were provided daily to the cubs to ensure a healthy growth.

By July 2009, potential release sites were evaluated for the clouded leopards’ release. Measuring relevant criteria such as habitat, prey availability, vegetation, level of anthropogenic disturbances, connectivity with other forests among others, Kachugaon Forest Division within Greater Manas was selected as the most suitable site.

The clouded leopard cubs are readied for relocation to the release site in Kachugaon Forest Division, Greater Manas

For their relocation to the release site, the cubs were screened for communicable diseases and were put through a thorough examination to ensure they were healthy. The cubs were relocated to Kachugaon FD in September 2009.

The clouded leopard cubs are taken for walks in the release site for acclimatisation

At the release site, the cubs underwent a prolonged in situ acclimatisation. In the initial phase, this included daily walks into the forest accompanied by an animal keeper. These walks gave the cubs an opportunity to not only familiarise themselves to their natural habitat, but also provided them the opportunities to hone their predatory instincts to help them survive in the wild on their own. At nights, for their safety, they were confined in a spacious enclosure placed atop a tree to suit their arboreal habits.

Gradually, as the cubs began spending more time in the forest and with increased dependence on natural diet, the quantity of supplementary food was reduced.

One of the cubs during the night acclimatisation

In February 2010, considering the nocturnal nature of clouded leopards, night acclimatisation of the cubs was initiated. Unlike day acclimatisation, the cubs were taken to the designated site and left there on their own while the keepers kept watch from a distance.

As they became more and more independent of the keepers, the cubs began spending most of their time in the wild. Attempts to predate on wild animals including deer, squirrel, fowls and even golden langurs were observed. Hair in their scat indicated successful predation.  

The cubs were radio-collared on May 4, 2010, as the rehabilitators anticipated their complete independence from humans.

Top left: A clouded leopard cub sniffs its feeding bottle Top right: The cubs during their daily accompanied walks Bottom left: A cub displays its arboreal nature by dragging its kill atop a tree Bottom right: IFAW-WTI veterinarians radio-collar the cubs

One of the two hand-raised clouded leopard cubs during their in situ acclimatisation in the wild

--Two rare clouded leopard cubs successfully hand-raised for the first time in India.

--The project provides an alternative to life-time care for youngs of the species, if found alone or confiscated, reducing (albeit to a small degree) the loss of individuals from the wild.

A clouded leopard cub recovers from sedation during radio-collaring

--The clouded leopard cubs currently spend their entire time in the wild.

--They are being monitored with the help of radio-collars by trained animal keepers.

--To help sustain themselves during this transition to being completely wild from being under the care of humans, the cubs are still being occasionally provided with supplementary food.