Theses and Dissertations

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Author: search.filters.author.Rawat, G.S.Subject: search.filters.subject.Habitat preference

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    Habitat Characterization and Spatial Distribution of Quercus lanata Sm. in the Kumaon Himalaya
    (Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2025) Kaushik, Shikhar; Kumar, Amit; Rawat, G.S.
    Oaks are climax species which evolved around 56 million years ago. India is home to around 35 species of oaks out of which only 5 species are native to Uttarakhand. In Western Himalaya 3 species make extensive continuous forests which includes Banj oak forest, Moru oak forest and Kharsu oak forest. They show gregarious nature and provide countless ecological and economic benefits to the country. The other two species, Quercus glauca and Quercus lanata are patchy is distribution. For Quercus lanata the Kumaon Himalaya is the western most limit and therefore that species is patchy and shows disjunct population. This study aimed to understand the population, regeneration, habitat characterisation and distribution of Quercus lanata in Kumaon. Descriptive analysis was used to understand the population structure and associate species and maxent modelling was used to develop habitat suitability model. The overall population of Quercus lanata (Rianj) in Kumaon shows a stable and gradually growing trend. Quercus lanata shows a diverse preference to habitat which ranges from northerns moist slopes to drier southern slopes. The significant values from analysed data suggest that its preference at southern slope is comparatively higher. It occurs with Quercus leucotrichophora as well as with Pinus roxburghii. The major co-occurring species with Quercus lanata are Rhododendron arboreum and Myrica esculenta. The developed habitat suitability and generalised linear models helped to understand that elevation and aspect play a significant role in distribution of Quercus lanata. The demand of Quercus lanata for fodder and fuelwood in village area is quite high and therefore requires sustainable practices. As of now Quercus lanata is classified under either Banj oak forest or Moru oak forest which reduces the level of conservation and management this species require.
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    An ecological study on the pheasants of Great Himalayan National Park, Western Himalaya.
    (Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2003) Ramesh, K.; Rawat, G.S.
    The primary focus of the study was to describe the ecological and spatial distribution of three sympatric pheasant species, namely, Himalayan monal (Lophophorus impejanus), koklass (Pucrasia macrolopha) and western tragopan (Tragopan melanocephalus) in the Great Himalayan National Park (GHNP; 31 0 33' - 31 0 57' N and 770 17' - 770 52' E) in Himachal Pradesh, India. The specific were to: (i) review and test the currently available count techniques and provide estimates of relative abundance; (ii) document group size characteristics; (iii) describe habitat preference and investigate species coexistence; and (iv) develop a spatial model to predict availability of the potential habitats and the probability of occurrence of the study species. The study design included three broad approaches, namely, 1) field sampling, to estimate relative abundance and other behavioral and ecological parameters, 2) associative approach, to establish a relationship between the ecological distribution of the study species and habitat characteristics, and 3) Geographical Information System (GIS) based predictive spatial modelling. An area of 16 km2 was selected within GHNP, based on reconnaissance survey and literature, to serve as an intensive study area