Browsing by Author "Manjrekar, Neema"

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Feeding Ecology of Ibex (Capra ibex sibirica) in Pin Valley National Park, Himachal Pradesh.
(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 1997) Manjrekar, Neema; Johnsingh, A.J.T.
The foraging ecology of the Asiatic ibex was studied in Pin Valley National Park Lahul and Spiti District, Himachal Pradesh, between October 1991 and October 1994. The National Park encompasses 675 km2, and has a buffer of 1150 km2. The study area constituted part of the Parahio catchment of the pin Valley. Thango was the base camp for this study. It was a summer settlement of five families from Sagnam, the largest village of Pin Valley. The local people are Buddhists, of Tibetan origin. Apart from cultivating the land adjacent to the villages, in the buffer zone, they use the Park area for cultivation of barley, wheat, peas, mustard, and potatoes. They also graze sheep, goats, yaks, horses and donkeys in the area. Fuel wood, and fodder for stall-feeding, is collected from the Park before winter. Two potential conservation threats to ibex were identified. Firstly, migratory livestock from the neighbouring areas use the area between June and August every year. ' There is no control on the numbers of animals entering the area, and the effects of grazing and trampling need to be quantified.
Feeding ecology of the Himalayan Black Bear Selenarctos thibetanus Cuvier) in Dachigam National Park
(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 1989) Manjrekar, Neema; Johnsingh, A.J.T.
Scat analysis revealed that twenty-two food items made up the diet of the Himalayan Black Bear (Selenarctos thibetanus Cuvier) in Dachigam National Park, Jammu & Kashmir. from early May to early October 1989. A total of 145 samples (approx 15 for each IS-day period) were analysed using occular separation and separation under a dissection microscope. Over twenty percent of the overall diet by weight was of foliage, 72.4% of fruit and 1.8% of animal matter. Foliage was the major food in the first month (74.7%). and fruit during the rest of the study period (52.9% to 100%). Prunus avium and Morus alba (mulberry) were the major fruits in the diet of June-July, while Quercus robusta (English oak) and Juglans regia (walnut) accounted for a major proportion of the diet in September - early October. Apple orchards and maize fields on the periphery of the park were raided by bears in August. Food items were eaten in proportion to their availability. which was estimated from phenological and density data. These results are consistent with results from studies in the Himalayas (Schaller 1969. Schaller et al. and in North America (Beeman and Pelton 1977. Kelley house Hehr and Brady 1982).