Abstract:
Estimating large carnivore abundance can be challenging.
A biased leopard (Panthera pardus) population survey was
conducted in the N’wanetsi concession in the Kruger
National Park (KNP), South Africa, using motion-sensitive
camera traps from April to August 2008. Survey effort
included 88 trapping occasions and 586 trap days. The
survey yielded 24 leopard photographs, comprising fourteen
adults of eleven males and three females. The capture
rate was determined to be 24.4 trap days per leopard.
Estimates of population abundance stabilized at approximately
500 trap days. Precision of population estimates
began to stabilize after 378 trap days. We estimated that
there were nineteen leopards in an area of 150 km2.
Leopard density was estimated at 12.7 leopards per
100 km2. We explore the possibility of employing the
methods used in this study to survey the leopard population
in the KNP and surrounding areas.
