Farmers in Russia’s Primorye Territory will be compensated for damage resulting from leopard attacks on their livestock. The Far Eastern Leopards autonomous non-profit organisation has signed a contract with the SOGAZ insurance group which came into force in December 2015.

“Over the last 100 years, there hasn’t been a single case of an unprovoked leopard attack on a person,” General Director of the autonomous non-profit organisation Far Eastern Leopards Yelena Gangalo said. “At the same time, it’s important to remember that these animals are formidable predators and could attack livestock, which leaves farmers in the surrounding farms helpless. But the biggest problem is leopards attacking sika deer at the deer farms. We have recorded about a dozen cases over the past year,” she added.

Leopard attacks on livestock are a relevant problem in the Primorye Territory, especially given the growing predator populations. A widely publicised case involved an attack on a calf in June 2015: a leopard named Simba killed a two-month old calf grazing in the woods near the Bamburovo station. The attack and the animal were captured by trail cameras. The compensation issue was then resolved after intervention from Presidential Plenipotentiary Envoy to the Far Eastern Federal District Yury Trutnev who is the keeper for Simba.

Now farmers will be entitled to reimbursement for injured or killed animals under the recently concluded agreement. They will be compensated after an investigation by the hunting supervision service confirms the involvement of a spotted criminal.