What Do Snow Leopards Eat? Prey in the High Mountains

The main prey: blue sheep and ibex

Across most of its range, the snow leopard depends on one or two large prey species. In the Himalayas and on the Tibetan Plateau, the most important is the blue sheep, or bharal (Pseudois nayaur), a sure-footed wild sheep with a bluish-gray coat that grazes on alpine meadows close to cliffs. In the northern mountains, including the Tian Shan, Pamirs, Altai and the mountains of Mongolia, the main prey is the Siberian ibex (Capra sibirica), a wild goat with long, curved horns.

Snow leopards prefer prey of roughly 36–76 kg (79–168 lb), often heavier than themselves. Other large prey includes:

• Argali, the world’s largest wild sheep
• Markhor, a wild goat with spiral horns, in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Tajikistan
• Himalayan tahr, a shaggy wild goat of the southern Himalayas
• Urial, a wild sheep of the western ranges
• Musk deer, wild boar and Thorold’s deer in some areas

Because the cat relies so much on these animals, a healthy population of wild sheep and goats is the clearest sign of good snow leopard country.

Smaller prey: marmots, pikas and birds

Snow leopards also eat many smaller animals, especially in summer. Marmots, large ground squirrels that live in burrows on alpine meadows, are an important food from spring to autumn, before they go into hibernation. Snow leopards also catch pikas (small, round-eared relatives of rabbits), hares, voles and other rodents.

Birds such as snowcocks and chukar partridges are taken when the chance arises. Studies of droppings in northern Pakistan even found the remains of rhesus macaques, masked palm civets and several kinds of mice and rats, showing that snow leopards are flexible hunters.

Do snow leopards eat livestock?

Yes, sometimes. Snow leopards share their mountains with herds of domestic goats, sheep, yaks, horses and cattle, and where wild prey has been reduced they take livestock too. The share varies widely: in Mongolia’s mountains, studies found domestic animals made up less than about 20% of the diet, but in some overgrazed areas with few wild sheep it can be higher.

Losses can be serious for herders, especially when a snow leopard gets into a poorly built night corral and kills several animals at once. Retaliation killing is one of the main threats to the species, as explained in How many snow leopards are left?. Predator-proof corrals with wire-mesh roofs and community insurance schemes help to reduce these losses.

How do snow leopards hunt?

Snow leopards are ambush and stalking hunters. They usually hunt at dawn and dusk, moving along ridgelines and the bases of cliffs and using rocks and gullies as cover. When a cat spots a herd, it creeps closer, flattening its body against the ground, until it is within a short distance.

The attack is a sudden rush and leap. Snow leopards often attack from above and may chase prey down a steep slope for up to about 300 m (980 ft), using the momentum of the first leap. Their long tail helps them balance during sharp turns at speed. They usually kill large prey with a bite to the throat or neck.

After a kill, the snow leopard drags the carcass to a sheltered spot, often below a cliff, and feeds slowly, staying with it for several days. Mothers with cubs and mating pairs are sometimes seen hunting together.

How much and how often do they eat?

A snow leopard does not need to kill every day. One adult blue sheep can feed a cat for up to about two weeks, and researchers estimate that an adult needs roughly 20–30 large wild sheep or goats a year, plus smaller prey. A mother with growing cubs must hunt much more often.

Snow leopards eat almost everything edible on a carcass and rarely defend a kill against people. Herders and researchers often report that the cats abandon a kill when disturbed, sometimes returning later.

Do snow leopards eat plants?

Oddly, yes. Snow leopard droppings often contain grass, twigs and other plant material, sometimes in amounts too large to be swallowed by accident. Plants are not a real food source for a carnivore, and the reason for this habit is not known. Suggestions include helping digestion or clearing hair from the gut, but none has been proven.

How their diet compares with other big cats

Compared with the leopard’s very broad diet, which can include anything from insects to antelopes, the snow leopard is more of a specialist on mountain sheep and goats. That makes it vulnerable when those prey animals decline. Studies across the range show that where wild prey is protected, snow leopards are more common and take fewer livestock, which is why protecting blue sheep and ibex is a key part of snow leopard conservation.