Theses and Dissertations

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Start date: 1990End date: 1999

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    Ecological impacts of prescribed burning in Corbett Tiger Reserve, Uttar Pradesh
    (Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 1997) Ghosh, Sonali; Mathur, V.B.
    This study was aimed at studying the ecological impacts of prescribed burning by evaluating the current practices of burning being carried out in a typical grassland habitat in Corbett Tiger Reserve . The study extended from November 1996 to April 1997. Twenty four experimental plots were laid to study the differences in soil and vegetation characteristics, with respect to burnt and unburnt areas in short (Arundinella and Vetiveria type) grasslands and tall (Saccharum-Themeda type) grasslands. The main objectives were to determine the impacts of prescribed burning on soil and vegetation characteristics,, distribution of animal and birds and to evolve spatial strategies for the management of Hog deer( Cervus porcinus) populations using Remote Sensing and Geographic Information systems. —T-tests and AN OVA (analysis of variance) were applied on the various soil and vegetation parameters to test the differences between the burnt and unburnt areas. Short grasslands showed significant differences in soil available phosphorus, above ground biomass, crude protein, percentage fibre, ash, elemental potassium and sodium. The general increase in the soil available phosphorus, above ground biomass, crude protein and the decrease in the levels of percentage fibre, ash , elemental potassium and sodium in the short grassland burnt areas can be generally attributed to the removal of litter and the addition of ash which recycles the minerals back into the system. Tall grasslands showed significant differences in case of soil available potassium and grass percentage fibre. Both the parameters decreased in case of the burnt areas. I he tall grasslands are tussock- forming perennial species which do not get burnt completely. There is not much removal of litter which perhaps hampers the growth of the new sprouts. Samples collected from burnt and repeatedly clipped areas were tested for crude protein, percentage fibre, ash and lignin. They showed significant differences in case of percentage fibre. The fibre being the maximum in. case of these areas. Below ground biomass did not show any difference between the burnt and unburnt areas in short and tall grasslands . The area has had a long fire history and the below ground biomass has perhaps stabilised over the years and hence cannot be detected in such a short term study. Direct (road transects) and indirect (pellets) evidences were used to determine the animal and bird distribution with respect to the burning regime. Programme DISTANCE was used to estimate the animal densities while Menhinick's Index was used to calculate the bird species richness , before and after the date of prescribed burning. The animal densities and birds species richness increased after burning, but this could not be fully attributed to the burning regime. Other parameters such as change of seasons, also need to be taken into consideration . Finally, hog deer suitability map was generated using ground data for various ecological parameters and remote sensing data which were overlaid with the help of Geographic Information system . A burning regime separated on a temporal and spatial scale is required for sustaining hog deer populations in Corbett Tiger Reserve.
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    Ranging and Habitat Utilization by the Himalayan Ibex (Capra ibex sibirica) in Pin Valley National Park.
    (Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 1997) Bhatnagar, Yashveer; Rawat, G.S.
    The Himalayan ibex is an important prey species of the endangered apex predator of the alpine region, the snow leopard (Schaller 1977). There is an imminent threat to the trans-Himalayan areas in India due to increasing human activities. In this context the study is conducted to study ibex in a relatively safe population to learn about its habitat requirements and ranging behaviour. The study area is part of the Pin Valley National Park (PVNP; 31o 6' 40'' to 32o 2' 20'' N latitude and 77o 41' 21" to 78o 6' 19" E longitude), located in the South-East of the Lahul and Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh
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    BIRD COMMUNITIES OF THE THORN AND DRY DECIDUOUS FORESTS IN MUDUMALAI WILDLIFE SANCTUARY, SOUTH INDIA
    (SACON, 1998) Gokula, V; Vijayan, Lalitha
    Birds are important components of forest ecosystem, playing a major role as pollinators, consumers and dispersers of plant seeds, and predators of insects. In nature different species form intricate assemblages as a result of the local ecological make up. Whittaker (1975) states that communities are assemblages of populations of species which occur together in space and time. Studies on bird community ecology starting from MacArthur and MacArthur(1961) have attracted wide attention. The main focus of community ecology is the manner in which groupings of species are formed and distributed in nature and the ways in which these can be influenced or caused by interactions between or among the species and the physical and biological factors of their environment. The cause-effect relation of such assemblages led to an increased interest in studies on bird communities (Cody, 1974; Cody and Diamond, 1975). An understanding of the determinants of bird community structure is extremely important for the practical development of guidelines for the habitat management
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    IMPACTS OP HABITAT FRAGMENTATION ON THE TERRESTRIAL SMALL MAMMAL COMMUNITIES IN THE TROPICAL RAIN FOREST OP THE ANAIMALAI HILLS IN THE WESTERN GHATS, SOUTH INDIA
    (SACON, 1998) Prabhakar, A; Kumar, Ajith
    The loss and fragmentation of the species-rich tropical rain forests is the most serious conservation crisis currently facing us. In the Western Ghats in south India as much as 40% of the forests was lost between 1920s and 1990s, with a 17-fold increase in forest patches. Such fragmentation of forests leads in the long run to loss of species due to the problems faced by small isolated populations, the cascading effects of the changes in the micro and macro climate, and the effects of invading species. The goal of this study was to make an assessment of the changes in the small mammal community due to the fragmentation of their rain forest habitat in the Western Ghats. The study animals included rodents of the Families Muridae and Muscardinidae, and shrews of the Order Insectivora. The specific objectives were: (a) to evaluate the differences among rain forest fragments in the community structure of small mammals, in relation to macrohabitat features of the forest fragments; (b) to examine the synchrony among forest fragments in the seasonal variation of several demographic parameters; and (c) to identify species differences in microhabitat preferences and examine their relevance to the changes in community structure due to habitat fragmentation.
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    IMPACTS OF HABITAT FRAGMENTATION ON THE ARBOREAL MAMMALS IN THE WET EVERGREEN FORESTS OF THE ANAMALAI HILLS IN THE WESTERN GHATS, SOUTH INDIA
    (SACON, 1998) Umapathay, G; Kumar, Ajith
    Habitat fragmentation is the most severe threat to biological diversity and is the primary cause of the present species extinction crisis. Small populations in fragments are highly prone to extinction due to demographic and evironmental stochasticity, disease and catastrophes. Long term degeneration of habitat might also add to this extinction. In south India, wet evergreen (or rain) forest is confined to the Western Ghats mountains. Human activities such as plantations of tea, coffee, teak, etc., and construction of roads, railways, and reservoirs during the last two centuries have led to extensive loss of these forests. More importantly, the remaining forest has been severely fragmented. The impact of forest fragmentation is expected to be particularly severe among the arboreal mammals due to loss of arboreal connectivity between forest fragments. In this background, the objectives of this study were; 1) To assess the extent to which arboreal mammals disappear from wet evergreen forest fragments with respect to various landscape and habitat parameters associated with forest fragmentation; 2) To identify changes in their activity pattern and feeding ecology; 3) To examine changes in demographic parameters of these species in relation to habitat fragmentation; and 4) To examine species differences in their response to forest fragmentation and to suggest appropriate measures to enhance the survival of arboreal mammals in forest fragments.
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    The ecology and conservation of ungulates in Great Himalayan National Park, Western Himalaya.
    (Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 1999) Vinod, T.R.; Rawat, G.S.
    Ungulates form a major component of the mammalian fauna in the Himalaya. In total, 19 ungulate species belonging to four families viz., Moschidae, Cervidae, Bovidae and Equidae, inhabit the Himalaya, out of which eight species are reported from the state of Himachal Pradesh (HP). Apart from some surveys and short term ecological studies on a few ungulate species of Western Himalaya, there has been no detailed study on ungulates of HP except for Himalayan ibex (Capra ibex sibirica). The available literature highlights the difficulties of studying rare and/ or elusive ungulates in Himalayan condition. Long term study on the ecology of theses' species are needed for the conservation and monitoring. Present study on the ecology and conservation of ungulates namely goral (Nemorhaedus qoral), Himalayan musk deer (Moschus chrvsogaster), Himalayan tahr (Hemitragus jemlahicus), in Great Himalayan National Park, Kullu district, HP, was conducted from January 1996 to November 1998. An intensive study area of ca. 90 km2 was selected in the South-western region of. the Park, which represents various ecological zones of the Park. The objectives of the study were (i) to estimate the abundance and density of goral, Himalayan musk deer & Himalayan tahr in relation to human use, (ii) to determine the group size. composition & sex ratio of these animals. (iii) to study the habitat use pattern and (iv) to identify and discuss conservation issues. mitigation measures and to develop a long term' monitoring programme. In this study an attemp has been made to estimate the abundance and density of major ungulates viz, goral, Himalayan musk deer and Himalayan tahr
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    Application of Geographic Information System(GIS) and Remote Sensing in assessing habitat, resource availability and its management in Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve.
    (Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 1999) Dubey, Yogesh; Mathur, V.B.
    The present study attempts to determine the distribution and abundance pattern of ungulate species in Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve and to assist in the development of a computerised wildlife database on spatial as well as non spatial attributes, which could be used for conservation monitoring and evaluation as well as to help in resource management planning, With the increasing pressure on forests it has become important to focus the research effort which could eventually lead to a better management of our PAs.
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    The effect of Forestry Practices on Bird species diversity in Satpura Hill Ranges
    (Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 1998) Mehta, Prachi; Johnsingh, A.J.T.
    The largest zone of dry deciduous teak forests in the country is located along the Satpura Hill ranges in Central India. Apart from being one of the oldest hill ranges in the country, Satpura Mountain houses 4 important Protected Areas (PA) in contiguity. In Madhya Pradesh, a cluster of three PAs namely Bori Wildlife Sanctuary, Pachmari Wildlife Sanctuary and Satpura National Park forms a compact unit of 1400 km2 . A large tract of 2000 km2 of reserved forests connects these three PAs to another 'one in Maharashtra, known as Melghat Tiger Reserve. The forests of Satpuras were logged under different silvicultural regimes for over a century. Timber logging in the Protected Areas was discontinued in 1991 following the Forest Conservation Act (1980), while ' it is still operational in the reserved forests. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of past and present silvicultural practices on bird communities in Satpura Hills. Two study sites were chosen for this purpose. During November 1992 to June 1994, the effect of different silvicultural practices on bird community was studied in Sori Wildlife Sanctuary. From 11 October 1994 to June 1996, the study was conducted in reserved forests adjacent to Melghat Tiger Reserve where selective logging was going on. The assemblage of bird community was governed by vegetation structure and floristic in Bori Wildlife Sanctuary. The decline in specialist species was primarily due to disturbance caused during felling and not 'as much due to the felling process. The availability of unlogged forests within and near the logged sites proved to be vital as they , provided the necessary refuge for ' the bird communities. The management commendation from this study suggests enumeration of all trees, shrubs and climbers in the site prior to logging that could help in obtaining a vegetation profile for the area. A complete inventory of flora and fauna of the site prior to and after logging would help in understanding the response of various species' to logging and these features could be incorporated in the felling rules. Felling of smaller trees should be avoided as it depletes the growing stock
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    Study of pressure and dependency of local people on the natural resources of Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary with a veiew to devising compatible management strategies.
    (Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 1998) Silori, C.S.; Mishra, B.K.
    Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary (WLS) (11° 32’-11° 42’ N and 76° 2T-760 45’ E) and the adjoining forests of Bandipur National Park (NP), Nagarhole NP Wynaad WLS and Sigur Reserve Forest (RF) form the largest contiguous elephant tract in the peninsular India. Location of Masinagudi village right in the middle of the link forest divide it to still narrower corridors (north and south corridors). A large chunk of the inhabitants of Masinagudi and its hamlets are landless labourers who came to this area in the recent past from the adjoining areas to work in a hydro-electric project. Most of the villagers in these villages maintain large herds of cattle in the surrounding forests for selling cow dung manure to the nearby tea and coffee estates. Many of them cut firewood from these forests to sell in the local market for making a living. The corridor forests between Mudumalai WLS and Sigur RF is thus subjected to heavy biotic pressure from the local people and their grazing cattle. Objectives :i) to investigate the socio-economic and cultural dimensions of sustenance problem of the local people, (ii) to quantify and analyze the pressure of local people and their cattle on the biomass resources of the corridor forest, and (iii) to design viable alternatives for people for mitigating their sustenance problem as well as reducing pressure upon the resource of the corridor forest and the surrounding elephant habitat.
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    Habitat use by sympatric small carnivore in Sariska Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan, India.
    (Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 1998) Mukherjee, Shomita; Johnsingh, A.J.T.
    The present study on three sympatric carnivores, two felids: jungle cat (Felis chaus), and caracal (Caracal caracal) and one canid, the golden jackal (Canis aureus) aimed at studying their spatio - temporal use of food resources. The hypothesis are as follows : 1) Jungle cat is relatively more eclectic in the kind of habitat it inhabits than the jackal. 2) The felids are mostly nocturnal whereas the jackal is both diurnal and nocturnal ( cathemeral). 3) Diet of the three carnivores differs between seasons. 4) Small mammals «1 kg. body weight) form the major diet of the felids and are taken in proportion to their abundance. 5) Jungle cat and caracal are dietary specialists relative to the jackal. The study was conducted in Sariska Tiger Reserve (STR) which is located between 74° 17' to 76° 34'N and 25° 5' to 27° 33' E. STR encompassing an area of BOO km2 has three core areas of which core 1, with an area of 273.B km2 forms. the proposed National Park. This area functioned as the study site and the intensive study area was approximately 30 km2.