This is the moment a rare female snow leopard and her two cubs frolic on an icy mountain in Kazakhstan.
The snow leopards (Panthera uncia), also known as the ounce and listed as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), were filmed at the Altyn Emel National Park in Kazakhstan.
The family, consisting of a female snow leopard and her two cubs, was captured by hidden cameras set up in the national park.a
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources in Kazakhstan said: “Now in the park, a UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) project for the conservation of the snow leopard is being implemented and within the framework, specialists have installed several hidden cameras, and they all filmed snow leopards.”
Local experts said the increasing appearance of snow leopards is due to 2017 ban on the hunting of Siberian mountain goats, the main source of food for the big cats.
To preserve the snow leopard, as well as other vulnerable animals in the national park, experts have recommended speeding up the implementation of protected zones within the park.
Conservationists also called for a wildlife corridor, an area of habitat connecting wildlife populations separated by human activity, between the national park and the Verkhne-Koksussky state reserve.
This, according to experts, would contribute to the unhindered migration and preservation of the snow leopard population in the region, as well as lead to the appearance of other rare and endangered animals, such as argali, the Turkestan lynx, and the beech marten.
Snow leopard cub caught wrestling on a camera trap in the Altyn-Emel National Park in Kazakhstan. 
Snow leopard cub caught wrestling on a camera trap in the Altyn-Emel National Park in Kazakhstan.
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Story By: Lee Bullen, Sub-Editor: James King, Agency: Newsflash
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