Illegal hunting of Anatolian leopard nets 1.2 mln liras fine

Hunting the critically endangered Anatolian leopard will result in a 1.2 million Turkish Liras fine, the General Directorate of Nature Conservation and National Parks announced.

The efforts to trace the Anatolian leopard in the country and prevent its extinction have been continuing diligently for years, and the claims saying hunting of the rare species is allowed do not reflect the truth, read the statement made by the general directorate.

The statement emphasized that the table titled "Compensation Fees for Hunting and Wild Animals" shared by some media organs is not about hunting fee but denotes the fines to be imposed in case wild animals under protection are hunted.

"It would be useful to remind once again that hunting the Anatolian leopard, one of our most sensitive endangered species, is strictly prohibited. In this regard, aside from the unfounded allegations regarding the permission to hunt this rare species, which we have been trying to track and protect for years, the fine to be imposed on hunters was increased at the beginning of 2023 to 1.2 million liras," the statement read.

"We would like to inform the public that in case the Anatolian leopard is hunted, in addition to an administrative fine of up to 105,000 liras and a compensation fine of 1.2 million liras, the perpetrators will be sentenced to imprisonment from two to five years."

Previously, the Anatolian leopard, the largest leopard subspecies, was reportedly captured in a photo for the first time on August 25, 2019, using camera traps set up by the general directorate.