Sep 10, 2016- On September 2, a team of researchers surveying snow leopard signs and conducting a prey count in the upper valley of Khangsar, Manang were not expecting anything out of the ordinary. But at 4:40 pm, on their way back to camp, the team would stumble upon a chance discovery that would reverberate in the valleys below and the world beyond.
For the first time in more than four decades, a pack of Himalayan wolves were roaming the remote pastures of Manang.
“It happened so quickly,” says biologist Tashi Ghale, a member of the team, “We were able to snap a few quick pictures before they disappeared behind the cover of rocks.”
According to Regmi, the lack of comprehensive study has made it impossible to ascertain the population of the wolves that roam Dolpa, Humla, Kanchenjunga, Mustang and now Manang. Wolves are listed critically endangered in IUCN National Red List and are legally protected by the National Park and Wildlife Conservation Act 1973 of the Government of Nepal. “Tigers, rhinos and red pandas have received plenty of worldwide attention in the past decade and giant strides have been made in their conservation. The endangered Himalayan wolf deserves concerted conservation efforts as well.” Given the abundance of prey in the valley, Regmi estimates that the wolves that have already colonised Khangsar are bound to flourish—making the need for further study and proactive action all the more urgent.
For now though, he and his team are overjoyed that the howl of wolves will ring the valleys of Manang once more.
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