Where Are They Now? Updates on 7 Collared Snow Leopards and 1 Ibex
Our GPS collars work on a simple principle: they collect approximately 20 months of location data, then automatically drop off for retrieval. The result? Our research teams can gather precise data about the movement, ecology, and behavior of these elusive cats. This treasure trove of information reveals critical insights that directly inform our conservation work—from identifying essential habitat corridors, understanding their reproductive behavior and habitat use, to understanding how snow leopards interact with their prey.
Keep reading for a little window into what each of these fascinating individuals has been doing as they go about their daily lives.
M23 has been seen on our camera-traps in Tost since 2021 and was collared in mid 2024. We estimated that he was 5-7 years old then. At that time, he had some rather serious wounds that we think he had sustained a month or so earlier, likely in a confrontation with another male snow leopard. He resides in the territory previously held by M20, combined with the western parts of Chingis’ old territory. (We suspect M20 died after an aggressive interaction with M23 in the spring of 2024.) M23 is moving and eating normally, suggesting those early wounds have not hindered his movement or hunting abilities. Interestingly, M23 has been moving outside of his territory this past summer and fall. It’s possible he is being pushed out by a new male. NOTE: M23’s collar is programmed to fall off any day now and may have fallen off by the time you read this.
M24 Angarag
Angarag is a young male we collared in October 2024. We estimate he was about 2.5 years old at that time. He behaved similarly to other young males that we have studied and roamed a large part of Tost, seemingly in search of vacant territory. He is almost four years old now, more or less fully-grown, though he still needs another year to gain experience before he reaches his prime. It appears as if he has settled in the central parts of Tost and claimed it as his territory. If he manages to stay within the same area during mating season and assert his dominance over it, we will know that he has settled there. This is the first mating season when he is big and experienced enough to participate and have a chance to fend off other males.
*Sometimes the sunset gives our cameras a fun filter
M25
M25 is a male snow leopard who was collared in September 2025. We estimated he was about 5 years old at that time. He has been seen on camera traps in Tost since 2023 and now resides in the north-eastern part of Tost, where he appears to have taken over Kurzawa’s area.
He was captured at the same site as Presnel, at a wall close to a natural spring. This appears to be a very important water source for the animals in the area. M25 weighed 45kg when we captured him. Snow leopards are very similarly sized (except the Dude), adult males weigh between 42 and 46 kg. Body mass can vary with a few kilograms depending if they had eaten recently or not, so the same male could probably weigh 42 one week and 45 the next. You may have seen cats in trap camera photos with proper potbelly’s. That’s not because of lack of exercise but rather because of a recent indulgement in ibex.
From camera traps it appears as if M25 behaved like other young males (see the description of Angarag for example) and was roaming the northern part of Tost in 2023 and 2024. He is probably two years older than Angarag, meaning he has now gained enough muscles* and experience to defend a territory.
The two previous owners of this territory, Devekh and Kurzawa, both maintained their territories for an unusually long time. We do not know their exact ages but think they were 10-13 years old when they disappeared. Perhaps there are fewer intruders because the territory lies at the northern edge of Tost. It will be exciting to see whether this trend holds and M25 remains there for the next 5-7 years.
*it appears as if males add muscle, and perhaps also grow, until they are about four years old.
F12 Willian
You may remember we recollared F12 in October 2024. This is the third time we’ve tracked her, which means that she is now the best-studied snow leopard in the world! She was born in 2015 to Anu and is part of one of the family lines we’ve followed since the inception of this study. F12 gave birth to her fourth litter in early June 2025.
F12 has held the same territory she settled in when she was three years old. The territory was previously held by her grandmother, Inquisitive. Early in 2025, she made several excursions outside of her territory, mainly north into the area where M25 resides. We have recorded females exhibiting such behaviour when they are accompanied by older cubs prior to separation. That was the case for F12 last winter, but we have also seen her take at least one excursion up to the area north of her traditional territory this fall when she was travelling with a litter of young cubs born in 2025.
F16 Oluula
Oluula was collared in April 2025 and is F12s’ daughter from 2023, so she’s about 2.5 years old now. Oluula traveled extensively this summer and fall, and has covered about ⅔ of Tost by now. This is common behaviour for young cats in search of a vacant territory to settle in.
F19
We collared F19 in April 2025. She is the daughter of Guiererro, who gave birth to her in 2020. F19 has been seen on our camera traps in Tost every year since then. Now, as an adult, she resides in eastern Tost. She gave birth to three cubs in the summer of 2025. While handling her during her collaring last year, we could tell that she had given birth before (either as a three-year-old in 2023 or a four-year-old in 2024). However, we never observed those cubs, so that litter most likely did not survive.
F20 Gunj
Gunj was collared in May 2025 and is a young cat about 2.5 years old (born in 2023). We don’t know her origin, meaning we have not been able to find her in any photos from our camera traps. She is an interesting cat in that soon after we collared her in Tost, she crossed the steppe to the north and then went up to Nemegt Mountains, where she has been ever since. She did embark on an excursion to the east at the end of last year (still in Nemegt Mountains), but returned to the area where she has spent most of the time since going up to Nemegt in May of last year. Her movement to Nemegt followed a similar route across the steppe that M9 did in 2013. Two other young cats previously crossed the steppe and went up to Nemegt (Zaraa and F13), but they crossed farther west, and both returned to Tost after a short visit in Nemegt. Though snow leopards are mountain dwellers, the fact that young cats cross the steppe when dispersing shows that this is important habitat for snow leopards searching for a home of their own.
IF11 Mia
We collared Mia in the southern part of Tost in May 2025. Mia is an adult female who had a kid when collared. Her home range is about the same size as that of the other females. There are two water holes in the north-west where she spends much of her time with the rest of the herd. Our collared cats have hunted other ibex in her herd twice, to our knowledge. Both times, she and the surviving members of her herd hastily moved to the other side of the home range.
Sign up for our monthly E-News to keep up with all the cats and our conservation efforts to protect them.
Photo credits: SLCF-Mongolia
Acknowledgments: This Long-Term Ecological Study is in collaboration with Snow Leopard Conservation Foundation in Mongolia and Snow Leopard Trust with special thanks to the Ministry for Environment and Green Development, the Government of Mongolia, and the Mongolian Academy of Sciences for their support.
SLT would also like to acknowledge: Bioparc Zoo de Doue la Fontaine, David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation, Dublin Zoo, Idaho Falls Zoo at Tautphaus Park, John Ball Zoo, Kolmarden Zoo, Korkeasaari Zoo, Knopf Family Foundation, National Geographic Society, Nordens Ark, Parco Zoo Punta Verde, Play for Nature, Regina Bauer Frankenberg Foundation, Tierpark Berlin, The Big Cat Sanctuary/Wildlife Heritage Foundation, Tulsa Zoo, Whitley Fund for Nature, Zoo Basel, Zoo Boise, Zoo Dresden, and Zoo New England.
Thank you to all the many committed partners who have supported our research in Mongolia along with our Long-term Ecological Study since it began in 2008. We could not do this work without you.
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
