Research overview: prey density and carrying capacity for snow leopards

The number of snow leopards a mountain landscape can hold is set largely by the abundance of wild ungulate prey. This overview synthesizes research linking the density of blue sheep, ibex, and argali to snow leopard density, showing that prey-rich valleys support more cats at smaller ranges while prey-poor ranges sustain only sparse populations spread thin. It reviews how competition between wild prey and livestock for alpine pasture can depress wild ungulate numbers and thereby reduce the land's capacity for snow leopards. The synthesis frames prey conservation as the foundation of snow leopard recovery. For enthusiasts it explains why some mountains hold more snow leopards than others, why securing rangeland for wild sheep and goats benefits the cat, and how the bottom-up control of predator numbers by prey applies as much in the high Himalaya as on the African plains.