Status, distribution and foraging ecology of wolf in the north-western Himalayan landscape, India.

Abstract

The Himalayan wolf lineage is known to have genetic uniqueness, as it might be the oldest diverging population of the wolf-dog clad worldwide. This research commenced with the objectives of 1) understanding nature and pattern of livestock predation by the Himalayan wolf and the attitude of local communities towards them, 2) studying food habits of the Himalayan wolf at the landscape level and its diet niche overlap with sympatric carnivore species, and 3) comprehending the status, distribution pattern and factors determining the distribution of the Himalayan wolf and its prey. The study was conducted in an area of 1,41,391 km2 encompassing Leh and Kargil districts of Ladakh region and Lahaul & Spiti and Kinnaur districts of Himachal Pradesh. There are six high altitude protected areas in the districts of Leh and Lahaul & Spiti. The fieldwork for this study was conducted from 2014 to 2018. The Himalayan wolf occurs along with snow leopard as a major carnivore in the Trans-Himalayan landscape. Red fox Vulpes vulpes is another widespread carnivore of the landscape. In this research, diet patterns, niche overlap and the competition were studied by conducting scat analysis and also generates crucial information on the ecology of rare Himalayan wolf lineage