Lifeline for leopards

Cinnamon Wild Yala’s ‘Project Leopard’ safeguards both wildlife and livelihoods

 

By Marianne David

The lord of the Lankan jungle, the leopard is one of the ‘Big Five’ in Sri Lanka and the Yala National Park is undoubtedly the best place in the island for leopard sightings.

The apex predator here, the Lankan leopard has been stealing the spotlight from other wildlife destinations around the world, bringing in celebrity visitors and boosting Sri Lanka’s profile as a nature lover’s paradise, especially since the end of the war. It’s no surprise then that Cinnamon Wild Yala, John Keells Hotels’ world class game lodge located on the periphery of the Yala National Park, has gone to great lengths to protect the leopard and its habitat.

The perfect place from which to experience sensational safaris and many other exciting experiences, the property was formerly the iconic Yala Village. It was refurbished in 2011 with a Rs. 400 million investment and re-launched as Chaaya Wild. After meeting all standard operations and processes required of a Cinnamon property, it was transformed as Cinnamon Wild yesterday.

From the lodge, it takes less than 10 minutes to drive to the park, which boasts not only leopards but also elephants, deer, peacocks and peahens, rabbits, wild boar, crocodiles, water monitors and land monitors, over 200 kinds of birds, rusty spotted cats and golden jackals, amongst many other kinds of wildlife.

Responsible tourism

“For Cinnamon Wild, which sits on the periphery of Yala, the biodiversity that surrounds us is what makes a stay at this property unforgettable. Seeing the top carnivore in Sri Lanka can always be spectacular. Our commitment to research and protect this top cat is sincere and will continue in the future,” Keells Hotel Management Services Head of Eco Tourism and Special Projects Chitral Jayatilake told the Daily FT.

It is estimated that there are about 40 to 60 leopards in the park, in addition to over 200 elephants. Although in Africa a leopard’s range spreads over 50 to 75 square miles, in Yala the territory range is around two to five square miles, which makes Yala extra special when it comes to sightings, leading to its well-deserved fame.

Kicking off a media briefing at Cinnamon Wild on Saturday, John Keells Group Head of Brand Marketing – Cinnamon Hotel and Resorts and Vice President Dileep Mudadeniya said the people who are coming to the country are savvy travellers looking for more experiential tourism.

“It is our responsibility as a responsible tourism partner and hotel chain to provide such experiences. With Cinnamon Wild being located in a strategic and important place, it is our responsibility to develop such projects, not only from the hotel’s point of view but also from the travellers’ point of view,” he said, adding that responsibility and sustainability are two key words at Cinnamon properties.

Sustainable efforts

Outlining the sustainable efforts being carried out by Cinnamon Wild in his presentation, Jayatilake revealed that leopards living on the periphery of the park visit cattle farms and prey on young calves. The half-eaten carcasses anger farmers and revenge attacks by villagers leave leopards in great danger. The leopard pen project titled ‘Project Leopard’ was initiated in order to mitigate this and achieve a win-win situation.

“There are reports about a leopard-human conflict, but it has not grown to that state yet. There is some friction; there is a local situation. This is what we at Cinnamon Wild are addressing with scientific advice from Senior Biologist Manori Gunawardena,” noted Jayatilake.

“The leopard pen was a novel idea originated by late Dr. Ravi Samarasinghe and later adopted by John Keells Hotels. To date, with the help of Jonathan and Angela Scott, Exodus Tours UK and JKH Foundation, we have donated 32 cattle pens to farmers. By July 2013 we hope to donate eight more pens, bringing the total up to 40 pens,” he added.

Although the initial plan was to stop at 40, it has now been decided that 75 pens will be donated.

Leopard research project

The original idea of the leopard research project was born in 2011 with the celebrity visit of Jonathan and Angela Scott and Cinnamon Nature Trails together with the Scotts planned this initiative which was launched in November 2012. The research effort is routed through the Environmental Federation Limited (EFL), led by an eminent team of biologists and scientists.

As part of the project, which is closely supervised by a panel of renowned scientists, 24 weather-proof trail camera traps were imported and placed in designated locations in Yala Block 1 and its buffer zones to estimate the leopard population and monitor their behaviour through picture analysis. Leopards are identified by spot patterns recorded by the photographs

A total of 70% of funds for the leopard project was raised by John Keells Hotels PLC, while the balance was raised by Jonathan and Angela Scott at a special fund raising event held at Royal Geographic Society in London on 19 September 2012.

EFL Director – Operations Vimukthi Weeratunga addressed the gathering next, revealing that he first stepped into Yala at the age of six. He said he has been to the park countless times since then, describing it as a “magical and dynamic” place. “As a small company that has operated for 30 years, EFL has realised that conservation is not something we can do alone. We need partnerships and the private sector needs some support from scientists for their initiatives. That’s how this partnership was forged, creating a win-win situation for all.”

Protecting leopards

Noting that the Lankan leopard is a sub species endemic to Sri Lanka, Weeratunga asserted that it is our heritage and therefore our responsibility to protect it. “Panthera pardus is the species that is common all around the world, but Panthera pardus kotiya is endemic to Sri Lanka. This has been proven through long-term research by a Sri Lankan scientist.”

Weeratunga noted that there are four kinds of cats here – the rusty spotted cat, jungle cat, fishing cat and leopard. “Even though we are protecting the habitat of leopards, we are automatically protecting many species of wildlife by protecting the habitat, which is their home. That is the most important part of conservation.”

Weeratunga described the Lankan leopard as an elusive animal which is very successful since it consumes many kinds of animals – from small rats to baby elephants.

“The focus of our study is Block 1 of the Yala National Park, which comprises 14,101 hectares. We set up about 25 cameras in each section and carry out systematic research. We try to compare the pictures we have taken over the last two to three years with the leopard images captured by the infrared cameras. The target species is the leopard but we also capture images of different kinds of animals. The research helps the park management monitor their growth and spread, while also providing a leopard population estimate.”

The next day, we visit a cattle farmer in Yala along with the Cinnamon Wild and Cinnamon Nature Trails teams to witness the donation of the 33rd pen to a farmer by the soft-spoken and super-efficient Assistant Manager – Operations of Cinnamon Wild Keerthi Wimalasooriya, and speak to farmers about the benefits of having such pens.

Cattle farmer Samathilake Wickremesekera told the Daily FT that the farmers have been troubled by leopards for over 30 years and Cinnamon Wild providing them with the pens had preserved their livelihood. “Earlier leopards would grab calves every week. I received a pen one-and-a-half years ago; since then I have lost only one calf to a leopard. They sometimes attack cows, but not as frequently. This pen is 100% effective. Some wanted to give up cattle farming entirely due to leopard attacks but now they are successful since the calves are safe,” he added.

Strengthening the monitoring process

“Yala is known for its incredible biodiversity and as the best place for leopard sightings, which has resulted in an increase in visitors. Due to limited resources, wildlife authorities have struggled to conduct regular monitoring and anti-poaching patrol within the park,” noted Jayatilake.

In an effort to assist the monitoring and patrol process, Dimo donated a Tata Xenon, while John Keells Hotels agreed to supply 200 litres of fuel per month to support patrol operations, while EFL provides logistical support to oversee the progress of the patrols. Cinnamon Nature Trails also donated a GPS which was needed for the park.

Nature Trails recently took the children of Sri Devananda School on a park safari, while it also conducts a collaborative effort with Etisalat to create awareness and nurture the art of wildlife photography amongst nature lovers.

Meanwhile, in another sustainability effort, Dimo, JKH, Cinnamon Wild and EFL teamed up to donate a patrol vehicle and fuel supply to aid the conservation of Yala National Park, which was the first private sector contribution of its kind towards conservation of Yala.

Pix by Sameera Wijesinghe