Tashi R. Ghale – Nepal – February 23, 2022

Photographer and conservationist Tashi R. Ghale spent the past few weeks in the field photographing snow leopards. Tashi has lived his whole life in the mountains of Nepal and has been fortunate to have the opportunity to photograph snow leopards for more than a decade. This season he celebrated his 27th sighting! There are photographers and scientists who have only seen them once, maybe twice, or not at all during their professional lifetime of searching. Tashi tells us it just takes a lot of hiking and time and patience to obtain the images. We like to think of him as the snow leopard whisperer.

Tashi R. Ghale – Nepal – February 23, 2022

Tashi R. Ghale – Nepal – February 26, 2022

The winter months of January, February, and March are the breeding season for snow leopards, and it’s a time when the big cats follow their wild prey down to lower elevations, which makes them a bit easier to find. The winter weather can be challenging, however, with the possibility of snow and colder temperatures. On the days of Tashi’s sightings, fortunately, the skies were clear, with an average temperature of -4 to -7 degrees C (19 to 24 degrees F) at an elevation of about 3,750 meters (12,300 feet), just above the treeline, which can be seen in some of his images. Tashi said that most of his sightings occurred in the late afternoon after sunset, which is when snow leopards become active, being crepuscular or dusk and dawn hunters.

All in all, it was a very successful photographic expedition.

Tashi R. Ghale – Nepal – February 26, 2022

Tashi R. Ghale – Nepal – March 2, 2022