Rare clouded leopard spotted in Meghalaya's community forests

Camera traps set up in small, community-owned forests in Meghalaya have captured the elusive clouded leopard — a vulnerable wildcat so shy it is rarely seen by people at all. Its presence usually signals a healthy, well-connected forest.

What makes this special is where it turned up: not a large national park, but patches of forest looked after by local communities themselves. It is quiet evidence that when people are trusted to care for the land around them, wildlife can quietly return.

The clouded leopard has the highest level of legal protection under India's Wildlife Protection Act, and sightings like this strengthen the case for keeping these community forests standing.