Lyngdoh, SalvadorParab, Tushar2025-05-052022https://digitalrepository.wii.gov.in/handle/123456789/582Mammalian fauna of Himachal Pradesh is an admixture of Palearctic and Oriental elements since the state encompasses two bio-geographic zones i.e. 1 and 2, which are further subdivided into A &B (Roberts 1977); and the mountainous regions form a remarkable habitat for many animals, herbivores, and carnivores alike. They constitute a significant proportion of vertebrate diversity (Chakraborty et al. 2005, Saikia et al. 2004), and the state harbours about 27 percent of total mammalian species in India (Sharma and Saikia 2009). However, the State has come under a strong threshold of development, thereby inviting over exploitation and rapid destruction on natural resources but also has been open to many innovative steps to combat loss of biodiversity. Dhauladhar Wildlife Sanctuary is of adequate ecological, faunal, floral, geomorphological, natural or zoological significance and has a wide variety of biodiversity. Due to the wide variation of altitudinal zoning, it hosts a wide range of wild animals viz. Common Leopard (Panthera pardus), Snow Leopard (Uncia uncia), Himalayan Black Bear (Ursus thibetanus), Himalayan Brown Bear (Ursus arctos isabellinus), Goral (Naemorhedus goral), Himalayan Tahr (Hemitragus jemlahicus), Himalayan Ibex (Capra ibex), Musk Deer (Moschus chrysogaster) along with Small carnivore species like Leopard Cat (Prionailurus bengalensis) and Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes). These mammals acted as an excellent model for determining the state of landscape biodiversity. The information reported here would help to identify and further prioritize biodiversity rich areas within the landscape. This Landscape was a pilot site with no established methodological framework. Hence, different sets of methodologies were adopted for sampling. Camera trapping was conducted to gather evidences of animal presence and further analyze the diversity, abundance, probability of occurrence of species and activity patterns. Presence points of 8 potential indicator species were analyzed for generating habitat suitability maps. Locations of direct sightings, indirect evidences (scats, pellet, pugmark, hoof mark), animal attack sites and indigenous knowledge were accounted for. The species are selected by their ecological trends viz population, distribution range, food habits and activity patterns which gave a brief idea about the surrounding habitats. Biologically significant areas were surveyed intensively with camera traps for the first time, which revealed the presence of rare species like Himalayan Musk Deer. The baseline inventory of 22 species of mammals found in the landscape has been generated with the help of direct observations and indirect evidences. Our findings highlights the potential of Dhauladhar Wildlife Sanctuary as a stronghold for conservation of several mammalian species.enMammalsSpecies diversityDhauladhar Wildlife SanctuaryHimachal PradeshMammalian faunaTechnical Report