TEHRAN — The first series of Persian Leopard insurance claims were paid by Ma Insurance co. over a ceremony held in Bushehr province on Wednesday, the website of Iran Environment and Wildlife Watch reported.

The Department of Environment, the National Environment Fund, and the Ma Insurance Co. first signed a memorandum of understanding on March 16, 2016, aiming to coordinate measures to save the endangered Persian Leopard. The insurance aims at compensating for the losses inflicted upon human beings, livestock, and the leopards themselves.

In general, some 125 million rials (nearly $3,500) was paid to make up for the losses caused by the leopard to the livestock in addition to 1.2 billion rials (nearly $35,000) to compensate for the loss of two leopards killed in the current year starting from March 20, 2016.

The 1.2 billion rials will be spent on improving the Persian Leopard conservation and eliminating the threats to this species.    

Owing to the insurance scheme within the first 130 days of the current Iranian calendar year, starting March 21, 3 Persian leopards died due to various reasons while some 13 died last year over the same period.

MQ/MG