Langtang in November 2023: a clouded leopard expedition with red pandas and musk deer

Royle Safaris, like many people have been looking hard for a place where the mainland (other known as Indochinese) clouded leopards can be seen with regularity. This search had taken us to the forested hills of the vast Langtang National Park in Nepal. We were last here in the spring of 2020 (just before the world closed down with the covid-19 pandemic) and had some success with finding good habitat and our local guide (hired from the nearby village) seeing a clouded leopard one night. We were in the same area than Jens Hauser had also had a successful trip the year before (2019) and so we believed we had found the best place. But alas we were not able to get here for a while and when we finally returned in November 2023 with a group we had been told that there had been a lot of development in the region we had stayed last time.

This was disappointing news and so in the few months prior to the trip we had our local Nepalese expert (Hari Basnit) who is a clouded leopard and small carnivore researcher visit several areas he and his team had been working in whilst studying this species. And we settled on a location deep in the forest and nearby the areas we had visited in the past. So we would base ourselves here, we would camp in the forest with special permits and use a nearby lodge (tea-house) for meals and washing etc each day.

So with our new location scouted out and Hari hired along with the clouded leopard expert guide (Mike Gordon) of Borneo fame, we headed out to try once again for mainland clouded leopards. We started in Kathmandu where everyone arrived and met Mike and Hari and were briefed on the trip, the following day they set off on the drive to the Himalayan foothills and the entry trail to Langtang National Park. The walk to the campsite is too long to do after this drive and so the first night was spent in a tea-house on the top of the same slope we had scanned and searched along in 2019. The group arrived just before dark after a good uphill walk. The trail went past the tea-house we stayed at last time and the tea-house is much larger and the area very developed which is a shame. But it is a good job that Hari has found this pristine habitat nearby and we would explore here over the coming week. The habitat was proved to be great as Mike found several clouded leopard footprints a few minutes between the campsite and the tea- house.

With the help of the local team, tea-house owner and Hari we would walk many trails, some of which are new and have never been explored by westerners. The forest was stunning and home to a good amount of wildlife, however the density and diversity of mammals in the Himalayas is low (as expected with the mountainous conditions and extremes in weather throughout the year). There is also a bamboo forest nearby (a full day trip is required from our base camp) where we would try for red pandas also.

Mammals seen including wonderful a Himalayan musk deer resting near the side of the trail, several orange-bellied Himalayan squirrels in the trees all around as well as common ungulates from the region such as northern red muntjacs and Himalayan brown gorals. Commonly seen in the hills and forest were Assamese macaques and Nepal gray langurs and Mike had great views of a pair of yellow-throated martens. Near the tea-house there was a Asian house shrew spotted and on the day trip the group took to the bamboo forest they had unbelievable views of three Himalayan red pandas all resting together on the same tree branch. The unexpected mammal highlight of the trip was very nice views of Hodgson’s giant flying squirrel; these animals combined with the mainland clouded leopard tracks that Mike found and evidence of Eurasian wild boars rooting around in the forest; shows the great potential for more wildlife sightings in this wonderful forest. The only other mammal seen on the trip were some rhesus macaques which were seen in and around the city of Kathmandu and along the roads to and from Langatang.

Whilst this trip didn’t work out in terms of seeing a clouded leopard, we are Royle Safaris remains committed to trying to establish small-scale sustainable eco tourism centred around some of the world’s rarest and little seen mammal species. We believe we have found the location and the right habitat. We just need more time and more groups here to really explore and any patterns and really nail down how to regularly see this awesome and elusive cat.

So anyone who is interested in looking for such an animal (such as the mainland clouded leopard or any other species) and cannot find a means of getting a trip together or is struggling to find like-minded people to travel with; contact us (info@royle-safaris.co.uk) we have a network of local guides, researchers and conservationists around the world as well as a large following of clients and so are uniquely situated to put together pioneering mammalwatching trips and get small groups together for such trips. Or we can arrange private tours if you do not want to be in a small group. Any and all options are possible and we look forward to hearing from you and working on the next rare mammalwatching expedition.

Orange-bellied Himalayan Squirrel Hodgson’s Giant Flying Squirrel

Northern Red Muntjac Himalayan Brown Goral

Nepal Gray Langur Nepal Gray Langur

Species List Clouded Leopard Expedition (Nepal) – November 2023

ǂ - Birds where heard but not seen

All of the pictures below are from Mike Gordon, Tomo Akaiyama and Jan Fleischmann with their permissions.