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Item Conserving biodiversity in the Indian Trans-Himalaya: New initiatives of field conservation in Ladakh : a collaborative project of Wildlife Institute of India, US fish and Wildlife Service and International Snow leopard Trust(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2000) Mathur, V.B.; Bhatnagar, Y.V.; Qureshi, Q.; Chundawat, R.S.; Adhikari, B.S.; Rana, B.S.; Kala, C.P.; Uniyal, V.P.; Vasudevan, K.; Choudhury, B.C.; Vijayakumar, S.P.; Singh, Pratap; Jayapal, R.; Wangchuk, Richen; Hussain, S.A.; Singh, R.K.; Jackson, Rodney; McCarthy, TomItem An Ecological assessment of Baan Ganga wetland, Uttaranchal(Uttaranchal Forest Department and Wildlife Institute of India, 2006) Rawat, G.S.; Pandav, Bivash; Mathur, V.B.; Sankar, K.; Hussain, S.A.; Adhikari, B.S.; Sinha, B.C.; Pandav, Bivash; Sivakumar, K.; Padalia, H.; Chaturvedi, R.K.; Babu, M.M.An Ecological Survey of Baan Ganga Wetlands in Haridwar Forest Division, Uttaranchal was conducted during January to November 2006 by a team of faculty and researchers from the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) Dehra Dun. The study components include rapid assessment of the flora, fauna (mammals, birds and fishes), water and soil quality of the area, mapping of the conservation reserve and designing of interpretive facility for the wetland. 2. Baan Ganga wetland represents a remnant Terai habitat in Uttranchal. Occurrence of endangered swamp deer and a variety of floral and faunal communities typical of Terai habitat amidst human dominated landscape warrants careful co-management approach. A total of 178 plant species were recorded from the Baan Ganga wetlands. Of these, 40 species were hydrophytic, 122 species semi-aquatic and 117 mesophytic. Detailed list of the flora along with their habitat and photographic records have been provided. 3. The survey area faces heavy anthropogenic pressures including heavy livestock grazing, fishing, pollution from the untreated sugar mill effluents, cutting and burning of natural vegetation and agricultural encroachment. Despite several pressures the area continues to attract a variety of wetland birds and has tremendous opportunity for developing a popular eco-tourist destination and thereby creating new opportunities in education, recreation, eco-tourism and research in the area. 4. Based on the rapid ecological surveys on various aspects, following major recommendations are given for the conservation and management of the Baan Ganga area: (i) Maintenance of stream flow all through the year (ii) Traditional fishing as in practice at preset may be continued (iii) Initiate a project to promote aquaculture (iv) Initiate conservation awareness programme for the local people especially about the adverse impact of pesticide use in the agriculture fields around the Baan Ganga. There should be a check on the release of effluents from the industries which are located on the upstream areas. Effluents must be treated before releasing into the natural system (v) Maintain heterogeneity in vegetation types. Aquatic weeds are required to be managed properly in year-wise plan. There should not be any construction along the banks of river which will change the hydrological system hence there will be change in the vegetation types. Cattle grazing needs to be regulated and a proper rotational grazing system needs to be implemented in consultation with the local communities (vi) Control of water hyacinth by utilizing this species as a compost / green manure (vii) Regulate exploitation of Phragmites and Typha and (viii) Develop an interpretation centre highlighting the biological and conservation significance of this area for development of eco-tourism.Item Developing predictive models for climatic change and vegetation structure in Western Himalaya(NATCOM, WINROCK International India and Wildlife Institute of India, 2004) Adhikari, B.S.; Rawat, G.S.The present study deals with the impact of climate change on the structural and functional attributes (biomass and productivity) of the vegetation along an altitudinal gradient (1600-3700m asl), within watersheds and among different forest types in Garhwal Himalaya. The study provides an insight on the vegetation of Garhwal Himalaya with special reference to temperature and comparison with Kumaun Himalayan forests. Among all watersheds (Dharamganga, Dogadda, Asiganga, Bhatwari and Gangotri), 18 major forest types were identified. Out of 81 sites, most of the sites were dominated by kharsu oak (Quercus semecarpifolia) forest (# 25) followed by banj oak (Quercus leucotrichophora) forest (#8) and mixed-broadleaved, conifer-broadleaved and oak-conifer forests (each #7). The species richness and density were highest (8 and 510 trees ha-1) for horse chestnut, while the total basal area was highest for banj oak forest (74.5 m2 ha-1). The total biomass was highest for horse chestnut forests (487.0 t ha-1), productivity for oak-conifer forest (20.0 t ha-1 yr-1) followed by deciduous broadleaved forest (19.6 t ha-1 yr-1), while the litter fall for deciduous broadleaved forest (6.6 t ha-1 yr-1). The carbon allocation in biomass was highest in horse chestnut forests (243.5 t C ha-1), oak-conifer forest (10.0 t ha-1 yr-1) in productivity and deciduous-broadleaved forest (3.3 t ha-1 yr-1) in litter fall. The total carbon storage was high (196-344 t ha-1) for horse chestnut, oak-conifer, tilonj oak (Quercus floribunda), deciduous-broadleaved, silver fir and kharsu oak forests, intermediate (125-195 t ha-1) for chir pine (Pinus roxburghii), toon (Cedrella toona), mixed-broadleaved, tilonj oak-mixed, conifer-broadleaved, mixed oak and deciduous-conifer forests and low (<125 t ha-1) for alder(Alnus nepalensis), banj oak, deodar(Cedrus deodara), kai (Pinus wallichiana)l and birch (Betula utilis) forests. The carbon accumulation was extremely high (11.4-13.1 t ha-1 yr-1) in deciduous-broadleaved, oak-conifer and horse chestnut forests. Along altitudinal gradient the species richness was highest at 1800, 2300, 2400 and 2500m; density at transition place (1700m) and between 2100-2800m and total basal area at 2700 and 2800m. However, biomass between 2400-3200m, productivity between 2700-3100m and litter fall between 2700-3200m was highest. The allocation of carbon was highest for all the parameters (biomass, productivity and litter fall) was highest at 2800m (kharsu oak/oak-conifer forest) followed by altitude 2700m (kharsu oak/silverfir (Abies pindrow)/oak-conifer forests). Among watersheds, Dogadda having the highest biomass, productivity and litter fall followed by Dharamganga, while Gangotri have the least values for biomass, productivity and litter fall and allocation of carbon was following the same pattern. At a regional scale (both Kumaun and Garhwal, the relationships between temperature and structural and functional attributes are: i) the density declines at 2750m and at 11.1C MAT, ii) the total basal area declines at 2650m and at 11.5C MAT, and iii) the biomass, productivity and litter fall decline at 3050m and at 9.7C MAT.Item Vegetation characteristics and patterns of livestock grazing in Changthang Plateau, Eastern Ladakh(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2002) Rawat, G.S.; Adhikari, B.S.The Changthang plateau in the eastern Ladakh, covering an area of ca. 21,000 km2 and mean altitude of ca. 4500 m above sea level, forms the western extension of the Tibetan plateau. Owing to cold arid environment, unique geology and palaeo-history this area harbours interesting assemblages of flora and fauna. Besides, the area supports a reasonably high biomass of domestic livestock comprising sheep, goats, yaks, donkeys and horses belonging to the Changpa herders, a nomadic pastoral community. According to official estimates the number of livestock in the area has almost doubled since 1970s. Although livestock grazing has been an age-old practice on this plateau, very little baseline information exists on the vegetation characteristics, ecology and current herding practices in these rangelands. We studied the floristic structure, community composition and availability of forage (graminoids, forbs and shrubs) in ca. 300 km2 area of Tso Kar basin, Changthang plateau during August-September 2001. Changpa herders were interviewed to get information on their livestock holding patterns and patterns of seasonal movement. 142 sites covering various landscape units, viz., sandy plains, marsh meadows, moist meadows, scrub steppe on the lower and higher slopes, fell-fields, and stream courses were intensively searched for the vascular plants. Each site was sampled for plant species, % cover, and abundance using 10 random quadrates of one m2. In all 232 species of vascular plants belonging to 38 families and 101 genera were collected and recorded from the study area. Poaceae (39 species), Asteraceae (27 species), Cyperaceae (25 species), Brassicaceae (14 species), Fabaceae (12 species) and Ranunculaceae (12 species) were the dominant families. Analysis of Raunkiaer’s life-forms reveals that the area is dominated by two growth forms viz., Hemi-cryptophytes (largely perennial grasses and sedges, and (ii) Chamaephytic i.e., dwarf herbs and matted shrubs whose shoots die back periodically (23.47 %). Various landscape units have been compared in terms of Prominence Value (an index of forage availability) of graminoids, forbs and shrubs. It is interesting to note that the study area had a very high (1:2) monocot : dicot ratio. We believe that the current stocking densities of livestock in the study area are at the peak and condition of rangelands are still good. Further immigration of refugee herders, increase in the livestock population and ill planned developmental activities may cause rapid degradation of pastures thereby hampering both the pastoral practices and wildlife in the region. Conservation implications of the findings and need for participatory approach of the rangeland management have been discussed.Item Vegetation surveys in the Indian Trans-Himalaya: a report on the surveys conducted during summer 2000(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2000) Rawat, G.S.; Adhikari, B.S.; Rana, B.S.Ladakh and adjacent trans-Himalayan ranges harbor a typical vegetation characterized by steppe formations, sedge-grass meadows and herbaceous communities. A few attempts have been made to classify and describe the major plant communities of the trans-Himalaya in the past. However, most of the descriptions are based on local information from a few pockets. A complete account of life form distribution and ecological characteristics from the entire range is not available. Keeping this in view, we conducted an extensive survey of vegetation in the trans-Himalaya with a view to address the following questions: (i) how similar or dissimilar are the vegetation communities found within various trans-Himalayan ranges viz., north of Pir-Panjal (Lahul), Zanskar, Changthang, Ladakh mountains, and Karakoram region, (ii) what are the proportions of various growth forms (lichens, mosses, graminoids, forbs and shrubs) within the communities of these ranges, and (iii) which are the unique, rare or endemic species within each range and what are the possible threats to such species ? We sampled the vegetation and related abiotic variables systematically along the Rohtang - Leh - Nubra road following a `Rapid GRADSECT’ approach. Data on various parameters were collected at four levels, viz., (i) General physiognomy, cover types and landscape features within 100 m x 2 km belts, (ii) Community composition of woody species and cover abundance of different life forms at a regular intervals of 2 kms, (iii) Species composition at and around 5 high passes covering various aspects and landforms, and (iv) Species composition and cover abundance around a high altitude brackish water lake. The preliminary findings of the survey include: (i) 10 distinct physiognomic units viz., Herbaceous meadow (HM), Sedge meadow (SM), Mixed scrub or steppe (MS), Riverine scrub (RS), Sparse vegetation including degraded slopes (SV), Woodland/Plantation (WP), Cultivation/Habitation (CH), Grasslands i.e., area dominated by grasses (GR) and cushionoid vegetation including mosses and lichens (CV). were identified along with their percent coverage within various sectors and also along the GRADSECT, (ii) 9 major woody communities along the Gradsect were identified, viz., Juniper woodland, Artemisia dracunculus - A. maritima, Caragana, Eurotia, Caragana - Eurotia, Artemisia gmelinii - A. salsoloides, Hippophae - Myricaria, Salix lindleyana, Lysium ruthinicum, and Ephedra gerardiana, (iii) High passes (Rohtang, Baralacha La, Lachulung La, Tanglang La, and Khardung La ranging from 3900-5500 m asl) represented different geological formations and therefore distinct plant communities. General vegetation cover, species richness, density and diversity decreased with increasing altitude and latitude, and (iv) The banks of Tso Moriri (brackish water lake) were dominated by Carex melanantha, Carex nivalis and a few other herbs which was quite different from the banks of fresh water lakes and other marsh meadows of the alpine regions.