Applying the double observer methodology for assessing blue sheep population size in Nar Phu valley, Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal

Context Advances have been made in the development of reliable methods for estimating the abundance and density of large threatened mammalian predators, but there is little progress on developing population estimates for their principal prey. No standardised protocol for estimating prey populations exists, therefore different researchers use different methods. As such, there is little information on key prey species of the vulnerable snow leopard and this has hindered the preparation of effective snow leopard conservation plans. Aims This study aimed to establish an estimated seasonal baseline population abundance and density of blue sheep in the Lingzhi Park Range (LPR) of Bhutan’s Jigme Dorji National Park over winter (December to February) and summer (May to July). It also aimed to assess the number of snow leopard individuals that the current blue sheep population can sustain in the study area. Methods A refined double-observer survey method was used and involved walking transect lengths of 414 km in winter and 450 km in summer to estimate blue sheep abundance with the aid of 8 × 30 binoculars and 15 × 45 spotting scopes. Key results In total, 1762 (s.e. ± 199) blue sheep individuals were recorded in winter at a density of 8.51 individuals per km2 and 2097 (s.e. ± 172) individuals in summer at a density of 9.32 individuals per km2. Mean group size of blue sheep was 38.12 individuals (s.e. ± 6) in winter and 52.36 individuals (s.e. ± 4) in summer. LPR was estimated to sustain 11–17 snow leopards in winter and 15–21 in summer. Key conclusions LPR can be a hotspot for snow leopard conservation in western Bhutan and regionally in the eastern Himalayas, because the comparatively higher estimated blue sheep abundance and density supports possibly the highest density of snow leopards in Bhutan. The modified double-observer method used to assess blue sheep population estimates is inexpensive, robust and practical for the mountainous terrain of the Himalayas. Implications On the basis of this study, it is recommended that a refined double-observer method is adopted as a standard technique for estimating blue sheep populations in the snow leopard range countries of the Himalayas. Snow leopard conservation plans should, additionally, include efforts to minimise threats to blue sheep populations. This refined method is also highly applicable for future surveys of gregarious mammalian taxa, such as ungulates and primates, in difficult mountainous terrain elsewhere in the world.

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Analysis of Land Use Land Cover in Annapurna Conservation Area in Gandaki Province, Nepal using Vegetation Index and Land Use Land Cover Datasets

10.21523/gcj5.18020204 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 2 (2) ◽

pp. 87-99

Author(s):

Shiva Pokhrel ◽

Chungla Sherpa

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Land Cover ◽

Vegetation Index ◽

National Level ◽

Climate Mitigation ◽

Land Use Land Cover ◽

Conservation Area ◽

Barren Land ◽

Wide Range ◽

Annapurna Conservation Area

Conservation areas are originally well-known for protecting landscape features and wildlife. They are playing key role in conserving and providing a wide range of ecosystem services, social, economic and cultural benefits as well as vital places for climate mitigation and adaptation. We have analyzed decadal changes in land cover and status of vegetation cover in the conservation area using both national level available data on land use land cover (LULC) changes (1990-2010) and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) (2010-2018) in Annapurna conservation area. LULC showed the barren land as the most dominant land cover types in all three different time series 1990, 2000 and 2010 with followed by snow cover, grassland, forest, agriculture and water body. The highest NDVI values were observed at Southern, Southwestern and Southeastern part of conservation area consisting of forest area, shrub land and grassland while toward low to negative in the upper middle to the Northern part of the conservation area.

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Local Responses to Participatory Conservation in Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal

Environmental Management ◽

10.1007/s00267-009-9405-6 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 45 (2) ◽

pp. 351-362 ◽

Cited By ~ 29

Author(s):

Damodar Khadka ◽

Sanjay K. Nepal

Keyword(s):

Conservation Area ◽

Local Responses ◽

Participatory Conservation ◽

Annapurna Conservation Area

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Habitat selection of Himalayan Musk Deer Moschus leucogaster (Mammalia: Artiodactyla: Moschidae) with respect to biophysical attributes in Annapurna Conservation Area of Nepal

Journal of Threatened Taxa ◽

10.11609/jott.6725.13.7.18703-18712 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (7) ◽

pp. 18703-18712

Author(s):

Bijaya Neupane ◽

Nar Bahadur Chhetri ◽

Bijaya Dhami

Keyword(s):

Endangered Species ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Mixed Forest ◽

Habitat Characteristics ◽

Musk Deer ◽

Importance Value Index ◽

Importance Value ◽

Conservation Area ◽

Preferred Habitat ◽

Annapurna Conservation Area

Himalayan or White-bellied Musk Deer Moschus leucogaster, an IUCN indexed endangered species, is distributed in isolated pockets in the Himalaya. The deer population is decreasing owing to several pressures that include habitat loss and fragmentation, and poaching. It is essential to identify preferred habitat characteristics to support appropriate management strategies for conserving this endangered species. This study was carried out in the Nysheang basin of Annapurna Conservation Area of Nepal to identify habitats preferred by the musk deer. Habitat field parameters were collected using transect surveys. To analyze vegetation use and availability, nested quadrate plots size 20 m2 were established. Ivlev’s electivity index (IV) (-1 to +1) was employed to determine habitat preference, and one-way ANOVA (F) and chi-square tests (χ2) were used to examine different habitat parameters. Similarly, the importance value index (IVI) of the vegetation was calculated. Our results showed that the Himalayan Musk Deer strongly preferred habitats at 3601–3800 m altitude (IV= 0.3, F= 4.58, P <0.05), with 21–30º slope (IV= 0.2, F= 4.14, P <0.05), 26–50 % crown cover (IV= 0.25, F= 4.45, P <0.05), 26–50 % ground cover (IV= 0.15, F= 4.13, P <0.05), and mixed forest (IV= 0.29, χ2= 28.82, df= 3, p <0.001). Among the trees, Abies spectabilis (IVI= 74.87, IV= 0.035) and Rhododendron arboretum (IVI= 55.41, IV= 0.02) were the most preferred, while Rhododendron lepidotum, Cassiope fastigiata (IV= 0.35) and Berberis aristata (IV= 0.25) were the most preferred shrubs, and Primula denticulata (IV= 0.87) and Primula rotundifolia (IV= 0.31) were the most preferred herbs. These preferred habitat conditions should be maintained and conserved to sustain a viable population of deer in the study area. Further studies will be required to assess the effects of climate change on habitat suitability.

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The cultural context of climate change impacts: Perceptions among community members in the Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal

Environmental Development ◽

10.1016/j.envdev.2013.05.007 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 8 ◽

pp. 22-37 ◽

Cited By ~ 39

Author(s):

Susanne Becken ◽

Anu Kumari Lama ◽

Stephen Espiner

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Cultural Context ◽

Climate Change Impacts ◽

Community Members ◽

Conservation Area ◽

Annapurna Conservation Area

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Canine distemper in Nepal's Annapurna Conservation Area – Implications of dog husbandry and human behaviour for wildlife disease

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0220874 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 14 (12) ◽

pp. e0220874 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Debby Ng ◽

Scott Carver ◽

Mukhiya Gotame ◽

Dibesh Karmasharya ◽

Dikpal Karmacharya ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Wildlife Disease ◽

Human Behaviour ◽

Canine Distemper ◽

Conservation Area ◽

Annapurna Conservation Area

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Anthropogenic and Environmental Disturbance Factors in the Annapurna Conservation Area of Nepal

Environmental Geography of South Asia - Advances in Geographical and Environmental Sciences ◽

10.1007/978-4-431-55741-8_16 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 271-285 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

N. G. Pricope ◽

J. D. All ◽

L. Miles

Keyword(s):

Environmental Disturbance ◽

Conservation Area ◽

Annapurna Conservation Area

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Regulatory Compliance of Community-Based Conservation Organizations: Empirical Evidence from Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su12229420 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (22) ◽

pp. 9420

Author(s):

Nabin Baral ◽

Joel T. Heinen

Keyword(s):

Protected Areas ◽

Good Governance ◽

Regulatory Compliance ◽

Curvilinear Relationship ◽

Community Based ◽

Conservation Area ◽

Community Based Conservation ◽

Annapurna Conservation Area ◽

Conservation Organizations ◽

Legally Binding Regulations

Community-based conservation in the developing world generally puts more emphasis on voluntary commitments and compliance rather than enforcement of formal laws and regulations for the governance of protected areas. However, as with other forms of organizational management, once institutions are established, they are required to comply with all relevant, legally binding regulations. Furthermore, it is broadly assumed that compliance with established regulations is critical for good governance. In this paper, we review these matters through an empirical study of Conservation Area Management Committees’ degree of compliance with regulations under Nepalese law, within the Annapurna Conservation Area—one of the best-known community-based protected areas worldwide—based on quantitative content analysis of the committees’ meeting minutes from 2008 to 2012. According to the established rules, two to four women and one to five minorities serve as committee members in each instance. On average, fewer members than expected attended meetings, and the number of decisions made per meeting showed a curvilinear relationship with the number of members present as well as their demographic diversity. Of the 13 committees selected for study, only two met the legal mandate of holding six regular meetings annually within two-month intervals. In all the other cases, non-compliance was noted for one to all five years of the committees’ terms. In general, compliance declined over the five-year terms, and some committees were significantly less-compliant than others. Although enforceable decisions were made within both compliant and non-compliant committees, several problems of non-compliance were identified that may affect conservation outcomes. We suggest several possible reasons for non-compliance and argue that these may be symptoms of institutional weaknesses. Organizations that fail to meet their commitments risk liability and may also lose the formal legal authority to govern. Regular monitoring is recommended to address compliance issues.

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