Pastoral yak rearing system is changing with change in climate: an exploration of North Sikkimin Eastern Himalaya

Feroze, S.M.; Ray, Lala I.P.; Singh, Koijam Johny; Singh, Ram Kumar

doi:10.1007/s10584-019-02551-1

Cited by 13 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 18 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Many of these ethnic groups use yaks for multiple purposes in terms of foods and health (milk, milk products, and meat), shelter (yak hair tents), fuel (yak dung), income (wool, hides and animal trade), social status (herd size), and means of transportation in difficult mountain terrain [5,48,81,97]. Many studies have shown that herders livelihoods have improved due to sale of yak products [12,98]. In China, there are well developed yak product processing industries, and most yak herder families escape poverty and achieve prosperity through yak products and live animal trade within and beyond the highlands [30].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ethnic and Cultural Diversity amongst Yak Herding Communities in the Asian Highlands

et al. 2020

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Yak (Bos grunniens L.) herding plays an important role in the domestic economy throughout much of the Asian highlands. Yak represents a major mammal species of the rangelands found across the Asian highlands from Russia and Kyrgyzstan in the west to the Hengduan Mountains of China in the east. Yak also has great cultural significance to the people of the Asian highlands and is closely interlinked to the traditions, cultures, and rituals of the herding communities. However, increasing issues like poverty, environmental degradation, and climate change have changed the traditional practices of pastoralism, isolating and fragmenting herders and the pastures they have been using for many years. Local cultures of people rooted in the practice of yak herding are disappearing. Therefore, it is very important to document the socioeconomic and cultural aspects of yak herding. The broad aim of this paper was to provide a brief overview on the geographical distribution of yak in the Asian highlands and to provide in-depth information on yak-herding ethnic communities, the sociocultural aspect associated with yak herding, and challenges and emerging opportunities for yak herding in the Asian highlands. Altogether, 31 ethnic groups in 10 different countries of Asia and their cultures are documented herein. Yak was found to be utilized for many different household purposes, and to have cultural and religious aspects. Unfortunately, yak rearing and related traditions have been losing their charm in recent years due to modernization and several other environmental issues. Lastly, we suggest that there is an urgent need to take action to minimize the challenges faced by yak-herding mountain communities to conserve the traditional pastoral system and associated cultures of these ethnic communities.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ethnic and Cultural Diversity amongst Yak Herding Communities in the Asian Highlands

et al. 2020

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Lachen valley lies within the alpine zone of Sikkim and shares an international border with the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) of China. The valley is among the few places where open grazing is permitted in the state of Sikkim [ 40 ]. It is inhabited by two pastoral communities—the yak and sheep herders, the Dokpas and the agro-pastoral Lachenpas.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In 1998 the government of Sikkim adopted a grazing exclusion policy in response to growing anthropogenic pressure on grazing lands and protected forests leading to perceived degradation. Open grazing was phased out over the next six years in all reserved forests with exception of alpine pastures in the Kangchenzonga National Park [38,39], Lachen and Lachung valleys [40]. The forest cover of the state between 1999 to 2017 increased by about 4% from 3118 km 2 to 3379 km 2 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pastoralism in the highest peaks: Role of the traditional grazing systems in maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem function in the alpine Himalaya

Ingty

2021

PLoS ONE

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Rangelands cover around half of the planet’s land mass and provide vital ecosystem services to over a quarter of humanity. The Himalayan rangelands, part of a global biodiversity hotspot is among the most threatened regions in the world. In rangelands of many developing nations policies banning grazing in protected areas is common practice. In 1998, the Indian state of Sikkim, in the Eastern Himalaya, enacted a grazing ban in response to growing anthropogenic pressure in pastures and forests that was presumably leading to degradation of biodiversity. Studies from the region demonstrate the grazing ban has had some beneficial results in the form of increased carbon stocks and regeneration of some species of conservation value but the ban also resulted in negative outcomes such as reduced household incomes, increase in monocultures in lowlands, decreased manure production in a state that exclusively practices organic farming, spread of gregarious species, and a perceived increase in human wildlife conflict. This paper explores the impact of the traditional pastoral system on high elevation plant species in Lachen valley, one of the few regions of Sikkim where the grazing ban was not implemented. Experimental plots were laid in along an elevation gradient in grazed and ungrazed areas. Ungrazed areas are part of pastures that have been fenced off (preventing grazing) for over a decade and used by the locals for hay formation. I quantified plant species diversity (Species richness, Shannon index, Simpson diversity index, and Pielou evenness index) and ecosystem function (above ground net primary productivity ANPP). The difference method using movable exlosure cages was used in grazing areas to account for plant ANPP eaten and regrowth between grazing periods). The results demonstrate that grazing significantly contributes to greater plant species diversity (Species richness, Shannon index, Simpson diversity index, and Pielou evenness index) and ecosystem function (using above ground net primary productivity as an indicator). The multidimensional scaling and ANOSIM (Analysis of Similarities) pointed to significant differences in plant species assemblages in grazed and ungrazed areas. Further, ecosystem function is controlled by grazing, rainfall and elevation. Thus, the traditional transhumant pastoral system may enhance biodiversity and ecosystem function. I argue that a complete restriction of open grazing meet neither conservation nor socioeconomic goals. Evidence based policies are required to conserve the rich and vulnerable biodiversity of the region.

show abstract

“…Yaks ( Bos grunniens or Poephagus grunniens ) are long-haired bovid mammals found in Russia, Mongolia, the Tibetan Plateau, and the Himalayan region, with over 5% of India's total yak population present in the Sikkim Himalayan region ( Feroze et al, 2019 , Jiang et al, 2020 ). Yak milk is rich in nutritional components such as proteins, fats, minerals, lactose and essential amino acids, apart from functional and bioactive compounds ( Lin et al, 2018 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterization of ACE inhibitory and antioxidant peptides in yak and cow milk hard chhurpi cheese of the Sikkim Himalayan region

Abedin¹,

Chourasia²,

Phukon³

et al. 2022

Food Chemistry: X

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Pastoral yak rearing system is changing with change in climate: an exploration of North Sikkimin Eastern Himalaya

Cited by 13 publications

References 18 publications

Ethnic and Cultural Diversity amongst Yak Herding Communities in the Asian Highlands

Ethnic and Cultural Diversity amongst Yak Herding Communities in the Asian Highlands

Pastoralism in the highest peaks: Role of the traditional grazing systems in maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem function in the alpine Himalaya

Characterization of ACE inhibitory and antioxidant peptides in yak and cow milk hard chhurpi cheese of the Sikkim Himalayan region

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About