M Sc Dissertation(WII)
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Item A Study of Resource Seletion by Black Kites (Milvus migrans) in the Urban Landscape of National Capital Region India(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2013) Kumar, Nishant; Mohan, D.; Jhala, Y.V.Black Kites are the scavenger and predator raptors of the old world. In India they are synanthropic and perform the ecological role of city scavengers. Abundance and distribution of these birds suffers change due to rapid infrastructural changes in the developing cities which likely limit or change spatial layout of the available habitat and food. Many cities in the old world (London, Cape Verde, Istanbul) have experienced decline in the population of Milvus kites owing to rapid urbanization. Indian sub-continent almost lost its main scavenger, white backed vultures, in the last century. After this loss; existence of black kites, the most abundant raptor of the old world proves very vital. On these lines I carried carry out this dissertation from December 2012 to April 2013. This study focused on a) estimating the abundance of Black Kites on the Ghazipur dump site and the abundance of nesting pairs in National Capital Region (NCR), b) evaluating factors influencing nesting habitat selection combined with a broad understanding of its foraging habits and c) estimating nest survivorship in the urban landscape. I studied these parameters at selective study sites in NCR by intensive counts of birds at Ghazipur and breeding pairs at nest sites across eight study sites. Nests were searched intensively at each site while I tried to develop and test a new method to count the kites on the Ghazipur dump. Data from 116 nests and nest sites covariates were used to model nest survivorship under Known Fate scheme in Programme MARK. For my first objective, I estimated the current abundance of nesting pairs of Black Kites at 7 study sites. It ranged from 4 pairs / km2 in Sagarpur to 67 pairs / km2 in North Campus area. Nesting kites were selective while choosing a nest site, as evident by significant partial correlation between nest density, food index and green cover. The sites at the best trade-off between green cover and food availability had the highest nest densities. While developing a new methodology, I estimated around 2400 kites on the Ghazipur dump. Through behavioural observations and broad examination of regurgitated pellets, I could confirm scavenging as well as predacious nature of Black Kites. The overall probability of a nest to produce a viable fledgling was 0.45. The nest survivorship was stage specific and varied with pre-laying, incubation or nestling stage. The lower survival probability (0.60) at pre-laying stage is likely because of surplus nest formation at sites with good foraging opportunities. Understanding the importance of kites in urban ecology, studies using individually marked birds will reveal vital details of their behavioural and physiological adaptations. If future long term studies are conclusive enough, may establish Black Kites as an umbrella species of urban ecology.Item Occupancy Pattern and Food-Niche Partitioning Among Sympatric Kingfishers in Bhitarkanika Mangroves, Orissa(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2011) Borah, Joli; Pandav, Bivash; Gopi, G.V.Eight species of kingfishers, Common, Collared, White-throated, Pied, Stork-billed, Black-capped, Brown-winged and Rudy, - coexist in the mangrove forests of Bhitarkanika along the east coast of India. Sympatric species with similar resource requirements need to have niche partitioning as a strategy to avoid competition in order to coexist together. To understand the mechanisms underlying such species coexistence, it is vital to know about the food requirements, foraging habitat preference, and how the resources are shared between these sympatric species. The present study attempted to understand the potential mechanisms that might play a role in food-niche differentiation and examined the occupancy patterns of four sympatric kingfishers i.e. Common, Collared, Black-capped and Brown-winged kingfisher in Bhitarkanika mangroves. I conducted field study from January to May, 2011 in Bhitarkanika mangroves. The creeks were catgorized as primary, secondary and tertiary creeks based on the branching pattern. A total of 16, one km trails were selected in the intensive study area. Each 1 km trail was further divided into 10, 100 m segments for Sub-sampling. During the survey only seven among the 10 segments of each 1 km trail were surveyed which were selected randomly with replacement. A total of 160 creek segments of 100 m length were surveyed for six times during the study period and relevant habitat variables were recorded. For foraging behaviour observation, point count method was used i.e., an individual bird was followed till it captured a prey and relevant foraging variables were recorded. A total of 53 independent prey captures were recorded for the four species of kingfishers. Focal animal sampling method was used and observations were made opportunistically for time budget observation. Detection histories were constructed for each segment for bird survey and all relevant covariates. The two model parameters i.e., the probability that a segment is occupied by the species ('I') and the detection probability (P) were estimated and analysed in the occupancy framework. For foraging behaviour and time budget analysis, different parametric and nonparametric tests were used. Occupancy analysis confined that Collared and Black-capped Kingfisher occur seasonally in Bhitarkanika mangroves; Collared being more abundant in summer and Black-capped in winter. For all the four sympatric species river/creek width had a negative association with detection probability. Habitat type also affected the detection probability of all the species except Collared Kingfisher. The detection probability of Common and Black-capped Kingfisher decreased with the increase in depth whereas it did not affect the detection probability of Collared and Brown-winged Kingfishers. Water current and turbidity were negatively associated with the occupancy of Common and Brown-winged Kingfisher. However for Collared and Black-capped Kingfisher, it differed with vegetation layer. Perch height and foraging distance differed significantly among the four species of kingfishers. All the prey characteristics i.e., prey type, prey size and foraging substrate differed significantly among the four species of kingfishers. This study reveals that each of the four species of kingfishers in Bhitarkanika mangroves occupy foraging niches corresponding to their respective body sizes. The occupancy pattern and foraging behaviour of the smallest species, i.e., Common Kingfisher and the largest species, i.e., Brown-winged Kingfisher is more similar. As, both mostly forage in water to catch fish, their occupancy is also determined by water current. They segregate in terms of prey size, which is reflected by the respective body sizes. On the other hand, the foraging behaviour of Collared and Blackcapped Kingfisher is similar in terms of prey characteristics.Item Abundance, Habitat Relationships and Behavior of the Semi-Fossorial Indian Desert Jird, Meriones hurriancae, in Kachchh, Gujarat(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2011) Ramesh, Divya; Jhala, Y.V.; Qureshi, QamarPopulation sizes, habitat relationships and behaviour are among basic ecological aspects pivotal to demystifying a species and its place in the ecosystem. Numerous in species and number, desert rodents offer immense scope for such investigations. The Indian desert jird, Meriones hurrianae, though common, is remarkably little known. This study, conducted in Kachchh, Gujarat, estimates population sizes, examines factors in the habitat likely to influence their occurrence, and elucidates the activity pattern and time budget across 2 land use types, agricultural and natural areas, during winter (December February) and summer (March-May). Animals were caught in 9 colonies using Sherman traps and population estimated under closed population Capture-Mark-Recapture framework in Program MARK, using individual covariates (age class, gender, body weight, site). Colony parameters (length, width, number of holes) were regressed against known Mark-Recapture (MR) population estimates to develop predictive models for estimating population size from indices. Population sizes varied from 2 to 10 individuals. Number of holes in a colony provided robust estimates of the number of individuals in that colony (N=16, R2=0.96, t=18.19, pItem Nutritional Ecology of Asian Elephants (Elephas maximus) in Chilla Range of Rajaji National Park, Uttarakhand(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2009) Datta, Suniti Bhushan; Goyal, S.P.; Sathyakumar, S.Responses of animals to the habitat has been the central focus for management of species and of these aspects, nutritional ecology has been the key issue in foraging behaviour studies and habitat studies. Therefore, the study focused on the nutritional aspect of forage selection by Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) in Chilla Range of Rajaji National Park. The main objectives were to determine whether habitat structural heterogeneity or nutritional quality of the selected food plant species was a determinant in the temporal and spatial habitat use by elephants and to determine the reasons behind seasonality in foraging. The study area of 148km2 in Chilla Range of Rajaji National Park was divided into twelve 2x2km grids, and these were further divided into 4 sub-grids each. In each sub-grid, a 1 km long line transect was laid and along this 10m radial plots were placed at 100m intervals. Vegetation data were collected to characterize the habitat structural heterogeneity in terms of number of trees of each species, height of canopy base, canopy volume, percent canopy cover, species diversity, species density and geo-spatial variables such as NDVI, standard deviation of slope, mean elevation and the proximity to water. Parts of 12 most-preferred plant species were collected in the study areas for estimating nitrogen, ash, acid detergent fibre, and macro and micro minerals such as sodium, potassium, calcium, copper, magnesium and zinc. During the study period from December 2008 to May 2009, Elephant response was determined in terms of dung density along the 1km transect in winter and in summer. The total number of trees in each grid varied from 124 to 268. Tree diversity ravged betweel) 0.456-1.454. Height of canopy base was mostly 1.5-3.0 m, although two grids showed extremely high canopy bases. Canopy volume ranged from 165.63m3 to 948.36m3 , although the majority of the grids showed a high variation in canopy volume in terms of standard deviation (SE). The percent canopy cover ranged from 54.13% to 93.72%. Most of the NDVI values were _high in the study area (>0.180), while one grid showed a low value of 0.143. For the standard deviation of slope, the values ranged from a low of 2.46 to a high of 8.46. The mean elevation of the study area ranged froin 391-840m a.s.l. Nutritional values estimated for most of the parameters in winter and summer from selected plant samples collected in the study area showed slight variations 4 between seasons. Percent nitrogen content indicated no seasonal difference (f=0.98, p=0.05, df=ll). The percent acid detergent fibre indicated a difference (P<0.05,df=I I) between the two seasons. Percent ash content was found not significantly different (p=O.l6, p=0.05, df=l1) between seasons. Amongst the macro and micro minerals, sodium content was significantly different across the two seasons. Potassium content was found to be significantly different across the seasons (p<0.05). Calcium content was also found to be significantly different between winter and summer (P<0.05). The copper content could not be compared across the seasons as in summer the levels present in plant samples were too low to be detected by the instrument. The difference in magnesium and zinc content across the two seasons were not significant (p=0.16 and P=0.31). Dung density in the grids across both seasons was non-uniform and highly skewed (p<0.05, df=47). The dung densities in both seasons were related more with the habitat heterogeneity variables than nutritional values obtained in each grid. The relationship between dung density and the number of plants was positive in the winter seasons (R2= 0.2848) and summer (R2= 0.4383), indicating that elephants are highly selective towards areas with higher numbers of woody plants. Plant species diversity indicated no influence on dung density in winter (R2= 0.00005), but showed a negative trend in summer (R2= 0.0154). The height of canopy base was negatively related to dung density, with elephants selecting areas with a mean canopy base height between 1.5-3.0m during both winter (R2=0.2288) and summer (R2=0.174). Dung density showed a negative trend when related to canopy volume in both seasons. The R2 value for winter is 0.2087 and in summer it is 0.1471. Percent canopy cover had a negative influence on the dung densities in winter (R~= 0.083) and in summer (R2= 0.1524). NDVI showed a negative relationship with dung densities in winter (R2=0.01l1) and a positive relationship in summer (R2= 0.1894). The relationship between the standard deviation of slope and dung density showed a negative trend in both winter, (R2=0.0033) as well as in summer (R2=0.0389). The higher elevation grids show a lower d/mg density during both winter (R2=0.216) and summer (R2=O.l443). The relationship between dung density and proximity to water in winter is negative (R2=0.1575) and the relationship remains negative (R2=0.1016) in summer. In relation to nitrogen content and dung density in winter there was a weak positive trend (R2=0.0256), while in summer there was a weak negative trend (R2=0.032). The relationship between dung densities and percent acid detergent fibre (ADF) in winter indicated a weak positive trend (R2=0.0012) and during summer, indicated a weak negative trend (R2=0.0657). In relation to percentage ash content (Fig. 4.29.), dung densities in winter indicated a weak positive trend" (R2=0.0114), while in summer there was a weak negative trend (R2=0.0641). When compared with sodium, dung densities showed a very weak positive trend (R2=0.0092) in winter and a negative trend in summer (R2=0.0834). In winter, when compared with dung densities potassium showed no trend (R2=0.001), but in summer, there was a weak negative trend (R2=0.0076). In winter, calcium does not show any relationship with dung densities (R2=0.0002), while in summer, there is a weak negative trend (R2= 0.0511). Magnesium content does not show any relationship with dung densities (Fig 4.33) in the winter season, (R2=0.0007), while in summer, there is a weak negative trend (R2=0.004). Zinc shows a weak positive trend (R2=0.0298) in winter and a weak negative trend (R2=0.026) in summer. Principal component analysis of nutritional parameters indicated nine components that were influencing dung density distribution in the study area in both the seasons, and hence no single parameter influenced elephant habitat use. The study clearly indicates that the distribution of elephants in Chilla Range of Rajaji National Park is more related to abundance of woody species and proximity of water, than the nutritional content in plant species. Principal component analysis showed that there was no single parameter that influenced dung distribution in the study area. This could be due to the fact that plant species selected for foraging by elephants contained an adequate amount of nutrients in most species for meeting foraging requirements .an d they probably meet their daily requirements by foraging on varied proportions of plant species.Item Winter Ecology of Three Species of Phylloscopus Warblers(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2007) Ghosh, Mousumi; Singh, Pratap; Mohan, D.This study focused on three species of Phylloscopus warblers, P. humei, P. xanthoschistos, and P. chloronofus which overwinter sympatrically in the foothills of western Himalayas. The patterns of habitat occupancy, foraging behaviour, and foraging microhabitat of three species of warblers were examined to determine the nature of ecological complementarity facilitating their co-existence in the non-breeding season. Moreover, investigating the morphology-ecology associations among congeners also becomes critical since recent divergence may hinder our understanding of the mechanisms of their ecological segregation, as is the case with these species. Hence, morphology-ecology associations were also examined. A total of 91 points were sampled for bird detections five times each between December 2006 and March 2007. Prey abundances across habitat types were quantified. Behavioural data was also collected. The three species were found to differ in the occupancy of the sampled area. However, the bird occupancy did not correlate with differences in prey abundances across habitat types. The warbler species showed clear segregation in the use of foraging behaviour, foraging microhabitat, and proportion of large prey intake. The movement pattern was also found to vary across the three species. Morphology-ecology associations revealed the close interaction of morphology and ecology in shaping the ecological segregation of the three species in the non-breeding season. One major finding was that P. xanthoschistos is able to meet its demand for large arthropods in this northern site (31.5 % large prey intake) previously believed to be low in large arthropod abundance. Finally, the study demonstrated that the ecology of P. xanthoschistos (previously Seicercus) is very similar to other members of the genus Phylloscopus.Item Habitat use and food selection by wild and domestic ungulates in the Sikkim Transhimalaya.(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2007) Chanchani, Pranav; Rawat, G.S.By defining a resource, determining the resources available to animals and sampling the array of resources actually used by an animal (Krebs 1999), it becomes possible to gauge the nature of interactions between species. This study explored aspects of resource use by diverse assemblage of wild and domestic herbivores including The Tibetan argali (Ovis ammon hodgsoni), Tibetan Gazelle (Procapra picticaudata), kiang (Equus kiang), blue sheep (Pseudois nayaur), domestic yak and sheep in a Trans-Himalayan environment during the lean winter period. Sampling was carried out in a systematic manner using trails, as well as by sampling opportunistically. To quantify vegetation, a 3.52 Ian grid was overlaid on an image of the study area, and grids were randomly picked from these for random sampling. A number of habitat and vegetation variables were measured or noted for all ungulate sightings or within vegetation sampling stations and these were used in analysis to ascertain patterns of habitat use and food selection. U sing a hierarchy of spatial scales, the study modeled animal distributions, and investigated the use of habitats and food habits of ungulates in relation to the availability of these resources in their environment. The study's major findings were that all ungulates were found to occur in the true Trans-Himalaya except for the blue sheep which selected more mountainous terrain in the transition zone between the greater and Trans-Himalaya .. Statistical tests of significance revealed that ungulates differed from one another or from random in their use of resources. Further, terrain features appeared to influence habitat selection to a greater-extent than vegetation. Finally, the findings of this research indicate that although the wild and domestic ungulates of this region all exist in relatively large numbers, they tend to vary in their use of habitats and food either by differences in their distribution, or in the selection of finer environmental (habitat and food) variables. The study therefore concludes that competitive inter-specific interactions are not very apparent in this region.Item Food habits of tiger (Panthera tigris tigris) in Sariska tiger reserve, Rajasthan(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2003) Avinandan, D.; Sankar, K.; Qureshi, QamarThe present study aims at understanding relationship between tiger and its prey in a semi arid tract. The study was conducted in Sariska tiger reserve, Rajasthan over a period of six months from November 2002 to April 2003. Density estimation of major wild and domestic prey species was done to assess availability to tigers in terms of density and biomass. The line transect method was used to estimation prey densityItem Density Related Behaviour of Select Ungulate Species in Four Zoos of Southern India(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2003) Panda, Prajna Paramita; Choudhury, B.C.Density Related Behaviour of Select Ungulate Species in Four Zoos of Southern IndiaItem Habitat Selection by Indian Peafowl (Pavo cristatus linn) in Gir forest, India(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 1993) Trivedi, Pranav; Johnsingh, A.J.T.A study on habitat selection by Indian peafowl (Pavo cristatus) was carried out in Gir National Park and Sanctuary over a period of five months. Open width line transects were laid at three study sites in West, Central and East Gir respectively to obtained information on availabili ty and use of habitats. Three hundred and thirty sightings were obtained in 90 transect walks (totalling to ca 113 km), of which two hundred and fifty occurred in West, and forty each in Central and East Gir. As sampling intensity was the highest in Sasan (West Gir), much of the analyses is based on the data collected here. Peafowl distribution was found to be clumped, with the degree and site of clumping being affected by water and food availabilityItem Habitat Use, Group Size and Activity Pattern of Goral (Nemorhaedus goral) in Simbalbara Sanctury (Himachal Pradesh) and Darpur Reserved Forest (Haryana) India(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 1993) Pendharkar, Anand; Goyal, S.P.A study on the habitat use, group size and activity patterns of goral (Nemorhaedus goral) was undertaken from November 1922 to May 1993 in Simbalbara Sanctuary (Himachal Pradesh) and Darpur Reserved Forest (Haryana). Data on availability of habitat types, vegetation types, slope, aspect and cover and their corresponding use (N=230 sightings), were collected along six search paths. Group size and activity pattern data were collected by walking along search paths and using instantaneous scan sampling. The broad habitat types identified were: Valley slope, Grassy slope, Ridge top flat, Nala slope, Valley bottom flat, Ridge top slope and Valley ridge slope. The vegetation types identified in the study area were: Sal forest (SF), mixed forest (MF), mixed forest grassy slope (MFGS), mixed forest riverine (MFR), sal forest riverine (SFR), pine-mixed woodland (PMW) and mixed forests with khai plantation (MFKP).The characteristic features of habitat and vegetation types and seasonal variations in them are discussed.The major findings of availability-utilization analysis were : Goral shewed preferential use of grassy slopes in summer. Valley bottom flat was used less in both the seasons. Mixed Forest was preferred in both seasons, whereas Mixed Forest Grassy Slopes were preferred only in summer. Sal Forest, Sal Forest Riverine and Mixed Forest with Khair Plantations were used less in both the seasons. A preferential use of the steep slopes was observed in winter. In summer there seemed to be no selection for terrain type. South facing slopes were preferred in both the seasons. Extremely low shrub cover and medium grass cover were selectively used by goral. Major features of goral group size and activity pattern were: Goral was predominantly a solitary species forming loose aggregations of upto eleven individuals. Average group size of goral did not vary significantly (N=230, d. f.=3, p=0.05, X" - 0.98) between seasons, but during late evening hours, comparatively larger groups were observed in winter (N=127, d.f.=4, p=<0.02, X2 - 12.42). Group sizes were comparatively larger in disturbed areas (N=230, d. f.=3, i i i p<0.01, = 12.75). A significant difference in proportion of time spent in different activities was observed (N=416, c/.f. = 8, p<0.001, X2 = 37.59), between winter and summer. Nevertheless, activities and proportions of active and inactive individuals varied significantly over different hours of the day (N=192, d.f.=2, p<0.01 , 10.43).