Climate refugia of snow leopards in High Asia

This study combined species distribution modeling with projected climate change to locate the parts of High Asia most likely to remain suitable for snow leopards as temperatures rise. By overlaying current occurrence data with downscaled future climate scenarios, the authors delineated candidate refugia where cold, rugged, high-elevation conditions should persist, and they flagged regions where habitat is expected to contract or fragment. The analysis argued for concentrating protected-area expansion and transboundary cooperation on these durable cores. It is widely cited because it gave conservation planners a spatial blueprint for prioritizing investment across a vast, data-poor range that spans a dozen countries and many contested borders.