scholarly journals Spatial Concentrations of Wildlife Attacks on Humans in Chitwan National Park, Nepal

Animals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aleš Ruda ◽  
Jaromír Kolejka ◽  
Thakur Silwal

The study was conducted within and adjacent to Chitwan National Park in Nepal (CNP), where several wildlife species are involved in conflicts with humans. We assessed the spatial relationships between the number of victims/km2 (=victim density or VD) of attack by wildlife (elephant, rhino, wild boar, sloth bear, leopard or tiger) versus landscape features, including both natural habitat type and land use by humans (e.g., nursery, orchard or cultivated). We identified four levels of VD, ranging from <1 V (victim)/4 km2 to >1 V/2 km2 for each land use zone, then tested for correlations at one or more of those VD between each pair of wildlife species across different land use types. Our results high correlation for sloth bear and leopard (r ≈ 0.8), for all species except elephant and wild boar at VD > 1 V/4 km2 (r > 0.9) and for leopard vs. rhinoceros (r = 0.99) across land use types at 1 V/4 km2) indicate some risk-reduction measures. One of them would be division of each buffer zone into three concentric rings, for instance ranging from high-risk adjacent areas to areas of high use by humans, to low-risk where human use is low. This revision would facilitate giving local people more voice in implementing conservation measures and reducing risks.

2013 ◽  
Vol 59 (6) ◽  
pp. 707-717 ◽  
Author(s):  
Solomon A. Tadesse ◽  
Burt P. Kotler

Abstract We studied the habitat use of mountain nyala Tragelaphus buxtoni in the northern edge of the Bale Mountains National Park, Ethiopia. The aims of this study were to: (1) measure and quantify habitat-specific stem bite diameters of mountain nyala foraging on common natural plant species in two major habitat types (i.e. grasslands versus woodlands), and (2) quantify the bite rates (number of bites per minute) and the activity time budgets of mountain nyala as functions of habitat type and sex-age category. We randomly laid out three transects in each habitat type. Following each transect, through focal animal observations, we assessed and quantified stem diameters at point of browse (dpb), bite rates, and time budgets of mountain nyala in grasslands versus woodlands. Stem dpb provide a measure of natural giving-up densities (GUDs) and can be used to assess foraging costs and efficiencies, with greater stem dpb corresponding to lower costs and greater efficiencies. The results showed that stem dpb, bite rates, induced vigilance, and proportion of time spent in feeding differed between habitats. In particular, mountain nyala had greater stem dpb, higher bite rates, and spent a greater proportion of their time in feeding and less in induced vigilance in the grasslands. In addition, adult females had the highest bite rates, and the browse species Solanum marginatum had the greatest stem dpb. Generally, grasslands provide the mountain nyala with several advantages over the woodlands, including offering lower foraging costs, greater safety, and more time for foraging. The study advocates how behavioural indicators and natural GUDs are used to examine the habitat use of the endangered mountain nyala through applying non-invasive techniques. We conclude that the resulting measures are helpful for guiding conservation and management efforts and could be applicable to a number of endangered wildlife species including the mountain nyala.


Forests ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 635 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tyler Reeves ◽  
Bin Mei ◽  
Jacek Siry ◽  
Pete Bettinger ◽  
Susana Ferreira

We examine the attributes of working forest conservation easements in Georgia. Easement contracts and baseline reports are inspected to investigate easement themes, land use types, recreation opportunities, hydrological features, and forest management activity. Easement themes are heavily weighted towards themes of protecting natural habitat and preserving the conservation values of properties. Predominant land use types include wildlife food plots, bottomland hardwoods, and planted pine stands. Common hydrological features found were small creeks/streams and ponds. Lastly, forest management was characterized as having small amounts of restrictions present, with forest management being largely similar to other unencumbered property in the southeastern USA. This information can be used as a reference for landowners interested in establishing a working forest conservation easement (WFCE) on their property as well as a tool for comparison for researchers investigating easement characteristics in other regions.


2015 ◽  
Vol 28 ◽  
pp. 9-17
Author(s):  
Dinesh Ghimire ◽  
Tej Bahadur Thapa

Effective conservation of Sloth bear requires detailed information regarding their distribution and habitat use. This study attempted to generate baseline data on distribution and habitat preference of Sloth Bear in Chitwan National Park, Nepal during March–May 2012. The study area was divided into 74 grids each measuring 16 Km2. Of the total grids, 35 were randomly selected for occupancy sampling. A total of 288 spatial replicates were sampled in 35 different grids recording 87 direct or indirect evidences of Sloth bear. Among them, 50 diggings, 25 scats, four scrapes with live animals in eight points were detected in four different habitat types of the Park. The variance to mean ratio showed clumped distribution of Sloth bear. The RPI values revealed that the mixed forest was found to be most preferred (RPI = 0.42) by Sloth Bear followed by grassland (RPI = 0.21). Riverine forest and Sal forest were less preferred (RPI = -0.25 and -0.11 respectively) but not avoided. Distribution of Sloth bear was influenced by distance to nearest water sources, distance to road and altitude. Similarly, disturbances like human activities, presence of cattle and fi re were found to affect the distribution of Sloth bear.J. Nat. Hist. Mus. Vol. 28, 2014: 9-17


2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (14) ◽  
pp. 8081 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saneer Lamichhane ◽  
Bibhuti Ranjan Jha

<p>Prey selection by tiger in Chitwan National Park, Nepal was studied from 77 tiger scats that contained the remains of principal prey species.  The scats were collected from January to March 2010.  Government reports on herbivore population in Chitwan provided the base data on density of principal prey species.  In order to understand prey selectivity, the observed proportion of prey species in the scats were compared with the expected proportion derived from density estimates.  The observed scat frequency of Sambar, Hog Deer and Wild Boar was found to be greater than the estimated frequency, and the reverse was true for Chital and Muntjac.  The average weight of the principal prey species killed was 84 kg. According to our results, Chital and Sambar constituted the bulk (82.07%), and Hog Deer, Wild Boar, and Muntjac constituted 17.93% of the tiger diet.  Sambar contributed the largest bulk (43.75%) of prey composition, but Chital constituted the relatively most killed (50.36%) prey species.  The present study makes a contribution to an understanding of the status of prey composition in tiger scat in Chitwan during the year 2010.  The study also highlights that both large and medium sized prey are important for the conservation of tiger in Chitwan National Park.</p><div> </div>


2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 151
Author(s):  
Muhammad Iqbal Tawakkal ◽  
Akhmad Rizali ◽  
Anik Larasati ◽  
Adha Sari ◽  
Purnama Hidayat ◽  
...  

<p>Hymenoptera is one of the four largest insect orders in the world, one of which is its role as a natural enemy (parasitoids, predators). Land conversion can affect the diversity and composition of the parasitoid Hymenoptera and its ecological role. This study aims to examine the effect of land use types on the diversity and composition of hymenopterans parasitoid in Jambi. The study was conducted on various types of land use in the Harapan Forest landscape and Bukit Duabelas National Park (TNBD), Jambi Province including forests, rubber forests, oil palm plantations, and rubber plantations. Insect sampling was conducted from March to September 2013, using fogging techniques. A total of 14,258 hymenopteran parasitoid individuals consisting of 30 families were obtained from all study sites. Encyrtidae, Braconidae, Aphelinidae, Eulophidae, Scelionidae, Ceraphronidae, and Platigasteridae families are found in high abundance. Oil palm land use types are found to have different parasitoid compositions compared to other land use types, while forest and rubber forest land use types have high species composition. The results of this study indicate that the type of land use affects the diversity and composition of hymenopteran parasitoid species.</p>


Author(s):  
Rajan Paudel ◽  
Rabin Kadariya ◽  
Babu Ram Lamichhane ◽  
Naresh Subedi ◽  
Mariko Sashika ◽  
...  

Mammals around the world face serious threats and experience massive decline in their populations and geographic ranges. The sloth bear has become extinct from two of five range countries and the existing population face serious conservation threats. Despite being endangered in Nepal, decades of conservation obliviousness have hindered their conservation and management. We assessed the distribution and habitat use by sloth bears in relation to landscape, environmental, and anthropogenic factors in Chitwan National Park, Nepal. We conducted a sign survey from March-June 2020 in 4*4 km2 grids (n=45) in a checkerboard approach. An observation was spatially replicated four times by recording information in four continuous search trails of 1 km each. We recorded presence/absence of sloth bears, termites, fruits and disturbance in the field and extracted information on tree cover, terrain ruggedness and vegetation index from remotely sensed image of the study area. The data was analyzed using single species-single season occupancy method in PRESENCE software. By using repeated observations these models account for imperfect detectability of species to provide robust estimates of species occupancy. Averaged habitat occupancy estimate obtained from the best models was Ѱ = 0.53 ± 0.04SE with detection probability p = 0.44 ± 0.1SE. Selection of variable based on summed AIC weight from the top models (AIC<2) showed that presence of termites (ƩWi=0.66) significantly influenced sloth bear habitat occupancy. Habitat occupancy was positively influenced by termites followed by fruits, disturbance, terrain ruggedness and vegetation productivity, whereas, it was negatively influenced by tree cover. We suggest that future conservation interventions and action plans aimed at sloth bear management must adequately consider these requirements and issues.


Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 1501
Author(s):  
Van Du Le ◽  
Thanh Giao Nguyen ◽  
Hoang Dan Truong

This study was conducted to assess the water quality affected by different land use patterns in U Minh Ha National Park, Ca Mau, Vietnam. This study determined the water quality characteristics in three land use types (Acacia hybrid, planted melaleuca cajuputi, and natural melaleuca cajuputi) at different plant ages on two acid sulfate soil layers in the rainy season (8/2018) and dry season (4/2019) using nine water quality parameters. Multivariate statistical analyses were applied to evaluate the correlation and spatial and temporal variations in the water quality. The study results showed that the water quality in S-ASS was more polluted than that in D-ASS, characterized by low pH; the EC, organic matters (BOD and COD), nutrients (N-NH4+ and N-NO3−), and metal ions (Al3+ and Fe3+) were high; and the EC, BOD, COD, Al3+, and N-NO3− were determined high in D-ASS. The NMC area was noted to have high concentrations of organic matters and nutrients, while the factors specific to acidic soil were found to be higher in the AH and PMC areas. The water quality in the rainy season tended to be more polluted than that in the dry season. The cluster analysis grouped the land use patterns on S-ASS and D-ASS in both seasons into four groups, with a clear similarity between the wet and dry seasons in the areas at various plant ages. The seasonal variations of the water quality of the three land use types were distinguished by the main parameters, including pH, EC, BOD, N-NO3−, and Al3+ (S-ASS) and EC, BOD, N-NO3−, N-NH4+, and Fe3+ (D-ASS). Therefore, there is a need for better water management measures in the rainy season and focus on the key parameters causing water quality variations in each area. The findings in this study provided important information for the future water quality monitoring for both agricultural production and conservation in the national park.


Scientifica ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Jun Shapkota ◽  
Gandhiv Kafle

Understanding distribution of soil organic carbon (SOC) in soil profile is important for assessing soil fertility and SOC stock because it varies with soils of different vegetation and land use types. In this context, the objective of this research is that it was conducted to determine key variance in the SOC stock in three different soil layers, 0–20 cm, 20–40 cm, and 40–60 cm of different vegetation covers of Shivapuri Nagarjun National Park of Kathmandu district, Nepal. Overall field measurement was based on standard national methods. We used the dichromate digestion method to analyse SOC concentrations. The highest SOC concentration (%) was recorded as 4.87% in 0–20 cm of oak forest and lowest 0.42% in 40–60 cm of Chir pine forest. Forest types (oak, upper mixed hardwood, lower mixed hardwood, and Chir pine) had SOC stock 149.62, 104.47, 62.5, and 50.85 t/ha, respectively, up to 60 cm depth. However, these values are significantly different ( p = 0.02 ) at 5% level of significance when comparing means between the forest types. The SOC stock was decreased with increased soil depth, though not significantly different at 5% level of significance. Further study with respect to different climate, soil, forest, and land use type is recommended.


2015 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 99-106
Author(s):  
Tatwa P Timsina

Background: Chitwan National Park which covers 932 km2 lies in the lowlands or inner terai of southern central Nepal. It has 503 rhinoceros, 120 tigers and 40-50 elephants. Wildlife such as leopard, wild dog, sloth bear, gaur, sambar, chital, hog deer, barking deer, wild pig etc. are also found in this park. The park is facing enormous enroachment from the local people.Objective: The objective of this study is to study the causes of conflicts and find out the ways for park-people management. This study has been designed to reveal the intricate relationship among the large mammals and local people and the resultant conflict.Methodology: The study has applied cross-sectional design and included 100 people. Both the quantitative and qualitative approaches have been used to collect data. Research instruments namely interview, questionnaire and observation were applied for this study.Results: Larger mammals and local people have both positive and negative interactions. Negative interaction or conflict takes place due to the competition between the park and people that are concerned at crop damage, livestock loss and injury to rhino, deer, boar, tiger etc. Regarding the types of crops damaged by the wildlife, mustard, potato, maize, paddy and wheat top the list.Conclusion: In Chitwan National Park, the relation between larger mammals and local people is positive such as promoting tourism and maintaining greenery and negative in some cases such as injury and damage by larger mammals, restrictions on the use of park resources for local people etc. The park-people relationship can be managed by introducing a number of measures which respect the lives of both the local people and wildlife in the park. Both the park authorities and local people should work in coordination so that the benefit from the immeasurable gift of nature could be exploited.Journal of Advanced Academic Research Vol.1(1) 2014: 99-106


2018 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 156-167 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bishnu Prasad Bhattarai ◽  
Pavel Kindlmann

We investigated the factors affecting group sizes and population composition of chital (Axis axis), sambar (Rusa unicolor), hog deer (Axis porcinus), northern red muntjac (Muntiacus vaginalis), wild boar (Sus scrofa) and gaur (Bos gaurus) in the Chitwan National Park in southern Nepal. The study revealed that mean group sizes were the largest for chital (winter: 13.76 and summer: 11.01), followed by wild boar (winter: 6.89 and summer: 8.51), hog deer (winter: 5.52 and summer: 6.66), gaur (winter: 4.36 and summer: 5.81), sambar (winter: 1.86 and summer: 2.45) and muntjac (winter: 1.44 and summer: 1.46). The age and sex ratio of ungulates were biased towards females in all species. This study found the highest proportion of young individuals in wild boar and the lowest in gaur. Habitat structure, presence of predators and human disturbances strongly affected group size of ungulates in this area. Larger groups of ungulates were found in less disturbed open areas with high predatory pressure, while smaller groups and solitary individuals were found in highly disturbed forest areas. We recommend that management of human disturbances inside the park and regular monitoring of the changes in the demography of ungulate populations will improve long-term conservation strategies in this park. Journal of Institute of Science and TechnologyVolume 22, Issue 2, January 2018, Page: 156-167


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