Competitors climb in front of the Matterhorn mountain at the start of the 21st Glacier Patrol race in Stafel outside the ski resort of Zermatt, Switzerland, 18 April 2018. The Glacier Patrol (Patrouille des Glaciers in French), organized by the Swiss Army, takes place from April 17 to 21. Highly-experienced hiker-skiers trek for over 53km (3994m ascent and 4090m descent) along the Haute Route along the Swiss-Italian border from Zermatt to Verbier. (Photo by Valentin Flauraud/EPA/EFE)

An array of colours dwarf visitors to the Rainbow Mountains in the Andes Cordillera in Peru in January 2023, which owes its colours to the minerals contained in the soil. The sulfur offers the yellow colour, iron oxide gives the red and copper sulfate is green. In total, it is made up of 14 different minerals. It was probably caused by weather and volcanic activity. (Photo by Guillaume Astruc/Naturagency/Solent News & Photo Agenc)

The snow leopard (Panthera uncia syn. Uncia uncia) is a large cat native to the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia. It is listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species because as of 2003, the size of the global population was estimated at 4,080-6,590 adults, of which fewer than 2,500 individuals may reproduce in the wild.