Thanks for visiting the new Clouded Leopard Project blog. We’ll use this space to share with you the latest happenings in the world of clouded leopards. We’ll also report on and explore some of the conservation issues facing Southeast Asian wildlife such as the illegal wildlife trade and habitat alteration. You can also expect updates on the conservation projects we’re working on and news about field projects we support.

My name is Karen Povey and I’m the President of the Clouded Leopard Project.  From time to time we hope to represent other Clouded Leopard Project voices here, but for the most part I’ll be serving as chief blogger. I’m looking forward to sharing some of my personal insights into clouded leopards and conservation in Asia. I’ll also provide photos, updates, and anecdotes about the cats we work with at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium. (If you’d like to know more about me, check out my profile.)

We’d love to hear from you too. If you have ideas for the blog or relevant stories or to share, please let us know I hope you’ll bookmark this site and visit frequently for the latest news and comments. Most of all, we encourage you to spread the word about our favorite cat!

The clouded leopard breeding program at Thailand's Khao Kheow Open Zoo is celebrating the birth of three cubs - two females and one male. Since the program's inception in 2002 there have been thirty-nine cubs born! Six of these cats have been imported into the U.S. Most recently, young pairs joined the breeding programs of the Nashville Zoo and Smithsonian's National Zoo, both sponsors of the Thai project. Hopefully, as these young cats reach maturity they will have cubs of their own, contributing a much-needed infusion of new bloodlines into the North American zoo population.

Note: We're still waiting for photos of the new cubs. The photo above is one born at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium.

The Summit is fast approaching! Registrations have come in and it looks like we will have 40-50 people attending the meeting from a wide variety of countries, disciplines, and organizations. We are also very appreciative of the generosity of our sponsors including Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, Smithsonian's National Zoo, Cincinnati Zoo, Nashville Zoo, Aspinall Foundation, Thailand Zoological Parks Organization, the Thailand Department of National Parks, and Clouded Leopard Project donors. Because of this sponsorship, we will be able to provide funding for clouded leopard range country participants to attend the meeting. Having conservationists from these regions contributing to the meeting is absolutely critical for the long-term success of any resulting initiatives.

We have asked participants as well as other researchers unable to attend to share their data on clouded leopards and other felids prior to the meeting. This information will be compiled by Dr. David Reed at the University of Mississippi and will contribute to updating range maps and be used for some preliminary population modeling at the Summit. We have lots more planning to do before we head to Bangkok at the end of January and I look forward to sharing the meeting outcomes both on the blog and with an in-depth report published on the website.