Leopard populations in Mozambique’s Coutada 11—a game management area recovering from decades of conflict—remain alarmingly low despite abundant prey. A 2021 study using camera traps found leopard densities far below expected levels, closer to those seen in human-dominated areas. The main issues? Illegal bushmeat poaching, which also catches leopards in snares, and overall hunting pressure—even if legal quotas are sustainable individually, combined impact is slowing recovery. However, with proper management, leopards can rebound. The study recommends increasing anti-poaching enforcement, adjusting legal quotas to offset illegal losses, and investing in long-term monitoring. This isn’t an argument against hunting—it’s a call for smarter regulation to ensure hunting supports conservation, not hinders it. Coutada 11 demonstrates how regulated, science-based hunting and conservation efforts can work together to restore wildlife populations when communities, agencies, and stakeholders act on the data.
