The snow leopard (Panthera uncia) is one of the most majestic animals in the big cat family. It inhabits alpine and subalpine zones at elevations of 3,000–4,500 metres, ranging from eastern Afghanistan, the Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau to southern Siberia, Mongolia and western China. In India, it is estimated that there are 718 snow leopards according to the Snow Leopard Population Assessment in India (SPAI) Program 2019-2023, which accounts for roughly 10-15 per cent of the global snow leopard population. Listed as “vulnerable” on the IUCN Red List due to threats of poaching and habitat destruction following infrastructural developments, the snow leopard is rarely seen by humans and has become an icon for critically important landscapes. In 2009, the government of India instituted Project Snow Leopard to protect the endangered big cat and its habitat in the Himalayan and trans-Himalayan regions.