A leopard was recently shot dead in the Etrek district of Balkan province, Turkmenistan. According to local press it was killed by a shepherd on December 28th.
Soon after the incident police and reserve staff arrived at the site to conduct an investigation. The shepherd had his gun confiscated and was fined 1,700 manat ($486 at the state exchange rate or $87 at the black market rate). The leopard’s body was disposed of by reserve staff.
According to reports the leopard killed was a juvenile. Young leopards are often less cautious and more likely to attack livestock.
The leopard population in Turkmenistan has been reduced to a critically low level of less than 100 individuals. It is known that they live in the Kopetdag Mountains, as well as in the Badkhyz region. They are not often seen in the district where the leopard was killed, but they do occasionally migrate there.
