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Article: In search of snow leopards: a shy, endangered cat eludes all but the cleverest of scientists.(LIFE: ENDANGERED SPECIES)
- Article from:
- Science World
- Article date:
- September 7, 2009
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2009 Scholastic, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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We walked single file along the thin mountain trail. Twenty packhorses carried our gear. In a valley far below, plants and trees thrived beside a roaring river. But along our dusty trail, 4,000 meters (13,123 feet) above sea level, little grew. We glimpsed a herd of wild sheep on a faraway cliff and birds circling overhead, but saw nothing else alive. The thin air made it hard to breathe.
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This was snow leopard country. Our 10-person team, which included snow leopard researcher Tashi Tundup and award-winning wildlife photographer Steve Winter, had come to the Indian Himalayas looking for the shy, ...