Natural and anthropogenic correlates of habitat use by wild ungulates in Shuklaphanta National Park, Nepal

Lamichhane, Sabhyata; Khanal, Gopal; Karki, Jhamak Bahadur; Aryal, Chandramani; Acharya, Shashi Rashmi

doi:10.1016/j.gecco.2020.e01338

Cited by 12 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…Whereas muntjac and wild pig occurred at more sites than sambar and gaur in Thailand (Phumanee et al, 2020), gaur and pig were the least and most wide-ranging species in Karnataka Western Ghats landscape (Karanth, 2016). Contrastingly, Lamichhane et al (2020) found that barking deer had lowest site occupancy in comparison to other species in Shuklaphanta National Park, Nepal. Hence, there exists much variation in ungulate occupancy patterns in regards to body size, perhaps influenced by local habitat, environmental factors and anthropogenic pressure.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 83%

Mammal Persistence Along Riparian Forests in Western India Within a Hydropower Reservoir 55 Years Post Construction

et al. 2021

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While the negative impacts of dam construction on downstream river stretches and riparian forests are well studied, the status of wildlife presence and persistence in upstream reservoir deltas is virtually unknown. We investigated the drivers of terrestrial mammal occupancy and persistence along riparian forests of Koyna reservoir in western India 55 years after its construction. We adopted a catchment-wide field design grounded in the river continuum concept and sampled different stream orders within the reservoir. Camera traps, nested in an occupancy modeling framework, were deployed across 72 riparian sites and replicated for four seasons across all stream types. We recorded a total of nineteen species of terrestrial mammals during the study period. Multi-season occupancy models revealed three key patterns of mammal persistence: (a) ungulates were more frequently photo-captured in riparian forests; gaur and wild pig had the highest proportions of the total sampled area (0.84 ± 0.12 SE; 0.77 ± 0.07 SE, respectively); (b) small-sized ungulates were more vulnerable to local extinction than large-bodied ungulates; extinction probability was highest for barking deer (0.59 ± 0.07) and lowest for sambar (0.15 ± 0.07); and (c) distance from stream played major roles in determining mammal detection. Riparian forests are fundamentally important to ecosystem functioning and biodiversity conservation, and using the data from this study, managers can plan to sustain high mammal persistence along riparian forests at Koyna reservoir or similar Indian reserves. Further, our robust sampling approach, grounded in the terrestrial-riverine continuum concept, can be applied globally to understand species assemblages, aiding in multi-landscape and wildlife management planning.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 83%

Mammal Persistence Along Riparian Forests in Western India Within a Hydropower Reservoir 55 Years Post Construction

et al. 2021

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“…The spatial dependence is captured by parameters θ, representing the probability that the species is present locally, given the species was not present in the previous segment; θ′ representing the probability that a species is present locally, given it was present in the previous segment, and θ π representing the probability of local presence in the first segment where no prior information on local occupancy is available. Bias due to autocorrelation between adjacent observations can be considered negligible when model selection by AIC (at the level of ΔAIC<2) favours the null model over the spatial autocorrelation model and θ′ ≈ θ (Thorn et al 2011;McHenry et al 2016;Lamichhane et al 2020). We applied this model to the sets of standard detection histories for each segment length to test for betweensegment spatial dependence.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This variable is an alternative measure of prolonged disturbance faced by Ripu RF in the last two decades, including cattle grazing, hunting, and all kinds of resource extraction (majorly fuel wood) (Gray and Phan 2011). In contrast, distance to water sources is expected to positively impact elephant habitat use (Lakshminarayanan et al 2016) and the abundance of wild ungulates (Lamichhane et al 2020). Subsequently, the proportion of different vegetation types (SE-MMD, SDF and SC) may influence the habitat use of animals.…”

Section: Selection Of Ecological and Anthropogenic Variablesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Subjective grading of substrate quality for detecting tracks. 1= Soft soil, 2 = Hard soil, 3 = Leaf litter Soft soil expected to increase the detection probability of animal tracks compared to hard soil and leaf litter (Lamichhane et al 2020). Further, presence of leaf litter on the trail can influence the detectability of pellet and scat of animals.…”

Section: Substrate (Sub)mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Markovian processes. In recent years, spatially replicated correlated detection occupancy surveys have primarily been applied to track surveys covering medium to large size carnivores and herbivores (Hines et al 2010;Wibisono et al 2011;Thorn et al 2011;Lakshminarayanan et al 2016;Thapa et al 2019;Jornburom et al 2020;Lamichhane et al 2020). In addition, it was already well established that spatial replication in occupancy studies useful for assessments of species habitat relationship (Srivathsa et al 2018).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Community, conflict and conservation: response of mammalian fauna to ecological and anthropological correlates ‒ a critical habitat in Indo-Bhutan transboundary landscape urges multiagency cooperation

Nath

Lahkar²,

Brahma

et al. 2021

Preprint

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The impacts of conflict on nature are devastatingly adverse but differ widely in different socio-political regimes. Armed conflict often facilitates illegal plunder and unsustainable use of natural resources, variously by rebel groups and impoverished or displaced people challenged with limited subsistence options. We studied the response of mammals in Ripu Reserve Forest (Assam) that suffers prolonged anthropogenic pressure due to armed conflict instigated by social unrest. We used standard single-season (spatial-dependence) occupancy models using sign survey to assess the factors affecting the space use of mammals and subsequently build capacity of conservation volunteers for long-term sustenance of Ripu. Our study revealed that Ripu has a high proportion of occupied area by prey species of large carnivores. Asian elephant, barking deer, and wild pig occupied most of the habitat, whereas gaur, sambar and spotted deer restricted themselves to selected patches within the Ripu. Common leopards found to be positively associated with prey occupancy. The studied mammals responded variably to different ecological and anthropological covariates and urge for species-specific management alongside landscape scale conservation approach. Our ground effort to strengthen community patrolling and operational execution of various alternative livelihood has helped to empower the economic condition of patrolling staff. Strategic implementation of law enforcement could support dispersal of tigers from Phibsoo WLS (Bhutan), potentially linked with the larger tiger and elephant landscape far west (Buxa Tiger Reserve) in the Terai region of India. Community-based conservation initiatives required continuous support from various agencies, including national, international, and local bodies, to restore this critical habitat.

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Habitat occupancy of sloth bear Melursus ursinus in Chitwan National Park, Nepal

Paudel

Kadariya

Lamichhane

et al. 2022

Ecology and Evolution

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Mammals have experienced a massive decline in their populations and geographic ranges worldwide. The sloth bear, Melursus ursinus (Shaw, 1791), is one of many species facing conservation threats. Despite being endangered in Nepal, decades of inattention to the situation have hindered their conservation and management. We assessed the distribution and patterns of habitat use by sloth bears in Chitwan National Park (CNP), Nepal. We conducted sign surveys from March to June, 2020, in 4 × 4 km grids (n = 45). We collected detection/non‐detection data along a 4‐km trail that was divided into 20 continuous segments of 200 m each. We obtained environmental, ecological, and anthropogenic covariates to understand determinants of sloth bear habitat occupancy. The data were analyzed using the single‐species single‐season occupancy method, with a spatially correlated detection. Using repeated observations, these models accounted for the imperfect detectability of the species to provide robust estimates of habitat occupancy. The model‐averaged occupancy estimate for the sloth bear was 69% and the detection probability was 0.25. The probability of habitat occupancy by sloth bears increased with the presence of termites and fruits and in rugged, dry, open, undisturbed habitats. Our results indicate that the sloth bear is elusive, functionally unique, and widespread in CNP. Future conservation interventions and action plans aimed at sloth bear management must adequately consider their habitat requirements.

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Natural and anthropogenic correlates of habitat use by wild ungulates in Shuklaphanta National Park, Nepal

Cited by 12 publications

References 46 publications

Mammal Persistence Along Riparian Forests in Western India Within a Hydropower Reservoir 55 Years Post Construction

Mammal Persistence Along Riparian Forests in Western India Within a Hydropower Reservoir 55 Years Post Construction

Community, conflict and conservation: response of mammalian fauna to ecological and anthropological correlates ‒ a critical habitat in Indo-Bhutan transboundary landscape urges multiagency cooperation

Habitat occupancy of sloth bear Melursus ursinus in Chitwan National Park, Nepal

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