PWM 706: Biodiversity Conservation and Protected Area

Management
Compiled by: Mr. Laxmi Raj Joshi, A Student of M.Sc. Forestry, Office of the Dean, Pokhara
(2010-2012)

Resource Persons:

Assoc. Prof. Santosh Rayamajhi (Ph.D.) Shyam Bajimiya

Thakur Silwal Ramchandra Kandel

Shiva Raj Bhatta Buddi Sagar Poudel

Naresh Subedi Kanchan Thapa

Prakash Karna Dil Bahadur Khatri

Roshan Sherchan Dr. Kamal P. Gairhe

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Unit 1. Introduction
Biodiversity: Extraordinary variety of life on Earth

 From genes and species to ecosystems and valuable function they perform

 E.O. Wilson, Biologist coined the word “Biodiversity” and explains it as “the very stuff of
life.”

 It is a short form of “Biological diversity”

 For at least 3.8 billion years, a complex web of life has been evolving here on Earth.

 Millions of species now inhabit land, freshwater and ocean ecosystems.

 All species including human beings are intricately linked.

 Biodiversity is the variety of all these living things and their interactions.

 Scientists speak of three levels of biodiversity: a. Species diversity b. Genetic diversity

Ecosystem diversity

In effect, these levels cannot be separated. Each is important, interacting with and influencing the
others. A change at one level can cause changes at
the other levels Biodiversity Status World
Bacteria 25,000 species
Species Diversity: In all shape and size (tiny
organisms to huge one): includes bacteria, Virus 6,000 species
protozoan, fungi, flowering plants, ants, beetles,
butterflies, birds, reptiles and large animals Fungi 70,000 species

Each species is a group of organisms with unique Plants 320,000 species

characteristics. An individual of a species can
Invertebrates 400,000 species (excluding
reproduce successfully, creating a viable
insects)
offspring, only with another member of the same
species. Still learning how many species exist and Insects > 1000,000 species
how they relate to each other and to their physical (approximately 360,000 of which are beetles)
environment. Cannot predict the precise ripple
Mammals 4,900 species
effects that the loss of one species will have on
others and on ecosystems. Birds 9,800 species

Keystone species: Plays critical role in Amphibians and reptiles 13,000

ecosystems they inhabit Affect the abundance and
health of many other species. Their loss from Fish 28,000 species
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ecosystems directly endangers the success of other species. Scientists estimate between 10 to 30
million species on Earth. Only about 1.75 million have been named and catalogued.

Most of insects, fungi and microscopic creatures remain unidentified. Their existence is a
mystery. Known Species are:

Genetic Diversity: every individual inherits genes from its parents and passes on to the next
generation. Biodiversity is more than the variety of species. Genetic diversity everywhere (songs,
feather colors, taste and texture). Genetic variation is extremely important to the survival of
species. Genetic variability, responsible for these different traits, interact with local
environmental conditions to determine the extent to which populations can adapt to
environmental changes and survive exposure to new diseases.

Isolated populations in small patches of habitat cut off from the surrounding environment tend to
have less genetic variation than populations in large, intact ecosystems. Therefore, those isolated
populations are more susceptible to extinction.

Ecosystem Diversity: Populations and non-living environmental components- such as water or

minerals surrounding them interact dynamically to form an ecosystem. It includes: predators
consuming prey, pollinators selecting flowers and species responding to physical processes such
as heavy rain. Plant and Animal communities make up many kinds of ecosystems (forest,
wetlands, rangelands, mountains, deserts, terrestrial ecosystems). Species are not evenly
distributed.

The Importance of Biodiversity

Produces goods and services for the most fundamental of our needs- clean air, fresh water, food,
medicines and shelter, recreational, psychological, emotional and spiritual enjoyment

 Protect biodiversity because it provides benefits

 Moral responsibility to protect biodiversity simply because all organisms have value

Direct Products:

Food- more than 90% of the calories consumed by people worldwide come from 80 plant
species

Medicines- 4.5 billion people (80%) of the world use plants as their primary source of medicines

Plants and Animals- 30% of pharmaceuticals

Fuel, Timber, Fiber and Other Resources

Inspiration and Cultural Attributes:

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Ecosystem Services: Pollination, Air and Water Purification, Climate Modification, Drought and
Flood Control, Cycling of Nutrients, Habitat, Economic Values- priceless (in billions)

Status and Trends in Biodiversity

Two-thirds of all species were lost along with dinosaurs probably the result of a large asteroid
crashing into Earth about 65 million years ago. Paleontologists- on average two species go
extinct every year as part of the natural process but the current extinction rate is several hundred
times higher.

Primary causes:

 growing population (2.5 billion to 6.00 billion in last 50 years)

 9 billion by 2050

 increased consumption of natural resources Biodiversity Status Nepal

Species diversity
 growth of technology
 2.7% of flowering
Developed countries (US, Canada, Japan, Australia and most
plants
European nations have only 20% of the world’s population but they
consume almost 80% of global energy use and 85% of world’s  9.3% of birds
economy- a disproportionate share of natural resources and
 4.5% of mammals
produces far more waste than developing countries but now China
is leading in pollution.  1.2% of fish

Factors Leading to Biodiversity Loss  1.4% of reptiles and

amphibians
 Land-Use Changes;

 Changing Levels of Atmospheric CO2 Floral diversity

 Global Climate Change;  Flowering plants 6,500

species
 Nitrogen deposition (air pollution)
 Endemic Plants 375
species
 Habitat Loss Faunal diversity
 Medicinal Plants 700
 Invasive Species; Mammals
species 181

 Overuse of Resources;  Birds

Fungi 1822 863
species
 Pollution Herpatofauna (A & R) 143
 Lichen 465
Fishes
species 185 species

4  Butterflies
Algae 640 species
687
species
Moths 600 Species

Spider 144 Species

Consequences and Implications of Biodiversity loss severely limits our Quality of Life,

Unpredictable impact

Unique Features of Nepal:

 Transitional location between Paleartic and Indo-Malayan Realm: Meeting point of Eastern
& Western Himalayas. Diverse topography (75m - 8848m). Climatic zone (Tropical to
Arctic). 11 bio-climatic zones from tropical to nival (Dobremez)

 In Nepal, there are 35 Forest types, 75 Vegetation types and 118 Distribution of Rangelands
Ecosystems types (T10, S13M MH 52, M 38, O5 ) in different Regions (12% of
land area is covered by
 Nepal- harbors 0.09% of World’s landmass. rangeland)
 Nepal is exceptionally diverse in bird species. 193 species of Terai: 3%
birds are wetland dependent 172 plant species of major wetlands
have been identified by IUCN, 1000 plant species are of known Siwalik: 1%
use and 375 plant species are endemic to Nepal.
Mid-mountain: 16%
 Cheer pheasant and swamp francolin are globally threatened
High Mountain: 29%
species
High himal: 15%
Existing mechanisms for Conserving Biodiversity Distribution of Wetlands in
different Regions (2.6% of
1. Protected Areas 2. Forests 3. Rangelands 4. Wetlands land area is covered by
rangelang)
5. Agro biodiversity (42% GDP): Crops and Livestock (6OOO
vascular plants, 550 species and subspecies have food value, 200 Rivers: 53%
species are cultivated
Paddy fields: 44%
6. Mountain biodiversity (83%) (ICIMOD, PA, WHS, Eco-tourism)
1992 UNCED- Attention to Mountain issue (Agenda 21), CBD- Lakes: 1%
CoP4 (1998, Bratislava)- Mountain Ecosystem
Village ponds: 1%

Marshland: 1%

Past hunting records of Nepal

In 1846, Jung Bahadur declared “Rhino” as a “royal game”

King Edward: 1876 (800 elephants) King George V (1911)

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Tiger: 120 Tiger: 39

Rhinoceros: 80 Rhinoceros: 18

Leopard: 27 Sloth bear: 4

Sloth bear: 15

Viceroy, Lord Linlithgow (68 days)

Tiger: 120 Distribution of Rangelands in different Regions :

1.75 million hectare (12% of Nepal’s land) )area)
Rhinoceros: 38

Leopard: 28

Sloth bear: 16

Crocodile: 11

Prince of Wales (1921)

Tiger: 17

Rhinoceros: 10

Leopard: 2

Sloth bear: 2

Juddha Shamsher (1933-1940) in seven hunting

season
Representation of No of Ecosystems in PAs
Tiger: 433 Rhinoceros: 33

Leopard: 93 Sloth bear: 22

Crocodile: 20 Wild buffalo: 1

Nepal Biodiversity Strategy, 2002- A National

Document on Biodiversity Conservation

In this strategy, Government Commits:

 Protection and wise-use of biological resources

 Protection of ecological processes and systems

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  Equitable sharing of all ensuing benefits on sustainable basis

 It is related to livelihoods and economic development of People

a. Agriculture productivity and sustainability PAs coverage in percentage

b. Human health and nutrition

c. Indigenous knowledge

d. Gender equality

e. Building materials

f. Water resources

g. Aesthetic and cultural well being of the society Wetlands type in Nepal
Cross-sectoral Strategies (17)
Threats to Biodiversity
1. Landscape planning approach
 Low levels
2. Integrating localofparticipation
public awareness and participation

 High population
3. Institutional pressures and prevailing poverty
strengthening
 Weak
4. In-situ institutional, administrative, planning and management capabilities
conservation
 Lack of integrated
5. Strengthening landBiodiversity
the National and water use planning
Unit
 Inadequate data and information management
6. Increasing support of biodiversity Sectoral Strategies (6) Institutional arrangements:
 Inadequate policies and strategies for biodiversity conservation
research and conservation
A number of Sub- NBCC
7. Endorsing Indigenous knowledge and strategies
Biodiversity Unit
innovations
 Protected Areas Biodiversity Coordinator
8. Cross-sectoral coordination and (8)
implementation of policies Thematic Sub-committees:
 Forests (9)
1. Forest biodiversity
9. Enhancing national capacity  Rangelands (4) including PA ecosystems and
10. Ex-situ conservation and biotechnology Species (in and ex- situ)
 Agro biodiversity
(3) 2. Agricultural biodiversity
11. Securing intellectual property and
farmers property rights  Wetlands (1) 3. Sustainable Use of

12. Biodiversity prospecting  Mountain Biological resources

biodiversity (2)
13. Environment Impact Assessment Women 4. Genetic resources
in biodiversity Conservation 7 National
Mountain Policy 5. Biosafety
14. Developing ecotourism
 Integrated
15. Increasing conservation awareness management
Policies/Strategies/Plans:

 National Conservation Strategy for Nepal, 1988

 Master Plan for the Forestry Sector, 1989

 Nepal Environmental Policy and Action Plan I, 1993

 Nepal Environmental Policy and Action Plan II, 1998

 Revised Forest Policy, 2000

 Nepal Biodiversity Strategy, 2002

 National Wetland Policy, 2003

 Sustainable Development Agenda, 2003

 Nepal Biodiversity Strategy Implementation Plan, 2006

 Three Years Interim Plan (2007/8-2009/10)

 Tarai Arc Landscape Strategy, 2004 (2004-014)

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  TAL Implementation Plan, 2006 (2004-014)

 Sacred Himalaya Landscape Strategy

 Old Constitution: State shall give priority attention to the conservation of the environment
and also make special arrangement for the conservation of rare animal species, the forests
and the vegetation of the country

New constitution- 40% forest

 Nepal Environmental Policy and Action Plan, 1993: Preservation of endemic and
endangered species and their habitats; the promotion of private and public institutions for
biological resources inventory and conservation; and the strengthening of the capacity of the
DNPWC.

 National Conservation Strategy, 1988: Stresses on Sustainable use of natural resources and

compatible land-use.

 Master Plan for Forestry Sector, 1988: representative examples of ecosystems unique
to Nepal, areas of Special scientific, scenic, and recreational or cultural values will be protected.
Maintenance of the ecological and environmental balance and biological diversity is needed for
the sustained well being of the nation. Tourism that affects protected areas will be regulated and
kept within the carrying capacity of the local ecosystems.

 Plan for the Conservation of Ecosystems and Genetic Resources, 1988: In-situ and ex-situ
conservation of biodiversity. Formulated the relevant policies on biodiversity conservation
and designed programs for effective management of protected areas.

 Nepal Biodiversity Strategy, 2002: Based on the principles of CBD- conservation,

sustainable use and fair and equitable sharing of benefits

 Government Five Year Plans: Emphasize on conservation of wildlife, ecosystems and

genetic resources and equitably sharing benefits with local people, preparation of
management plans and involvement of stakeholders in conservation legislation preparation,
EIA guidelines, pro-poor and livelihood Participatory approaches in conservation
(institutionalization of CBOs, revenue sharing, resource management and Sustainable use
Landscape Level Biodiversity Conservation (ecoregion base)

 Wetlands Policy 2003- wise-use of wetlands, participatory Management, National

Wetland Committee

 Protected Area Management Plans

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  Species Action Plans

 Wildlife Farming, Breeding, and Research

 Captive Elephant Management

 Contracting the management of National Parks, Reserves and Conservation Area to NGOs
2003

 Working Policy on Construction and Development Projects in PA 2065

 Wildlife Damage Relief Guidelines 2066

Major legislation

• National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 1973

• Forest Act 1993

• Export Import (Control) Act 1961

• Customs Act 1963

• Environmental Protection Act 1997

• NTNC Act, 2039

• Local Self Governance Act, 2056 IUCN Categories of Protected Areas

Protected Areas Categories

• Strict Nature Reserve

& Wilderness Area I

Regulations: • National Park II

General • Natural Monument

• National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Rules, & Natural Landmark III
2030
• Wildlife Reserve
• Wildlife Reserve Rules, 2034
& Wildlife Sanctuary IV
• Mountain National Park Rules, 2036
(Habitat/Species Management Area)
• Buffer Zone Management Rules, 2052
• Protected Landscapes/Seascape V

10 • Managed Resource Protected Area VI

(Community Managed Protected Area)

 • Conservation Area (Govt. managed) Rules, 2057

Specific

 Chitwan National Park Rules, 2030

 Khaptad National Park Rules, 2044

 Bardia National Park Rules, 2053

 Conservation Area Management Rules, 2056 (NGO)

 Kanchanjanga CA Mgmt Rules, 2064

 Guidelines:

 Buffer Zone Management Guidelines, 2056

 Conservation Area Management Guidelines, 2057

2 Protected Area Management Concepts

Protected Area Management in Nepal: Concept, Background & Paradigm shift in PA

management

National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act, 2029 (1973)

Feature:

 Different types of Protected Areas

 Different Species of Wild Fauna & Flora protected

 Protected species

 Quasi-judicial power

 Community involvement in conservation

 Revenue sharing- 30%- 50%

 Regulation of Hunting

 Regulation of Tourism in Protected Areas

Chitwan National Park established in 1973

Species Conservation: e.g. Tiger

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Total area of PA 34186.62 Sq. Km: (23.2% of the Nepal’s geographical area MDG Target
24%)

PA categories

• National Parks: Significant natural areas 10 IUCN II

• Wildlife Reserves: mgt. of WL habitat 3 IUCN IV

IUCN VI

• Hunting Reserve: Sport Hunting 1

• Conservation Area: Participatory

Conservation 6

• Buffer Zone: Surrounding Park/Reserve 12

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Rhino Population in Nepal and in Chitwan National Park

Areas of international importance

• World Heritage 2 : Sagarmatha NP and Chitwan NP

• Ramstad Site 9 ( Koshitappu WLR(1st ramsar site), Beeshajari Lake), 3 outside PA

(Jagadishpur,Mai pokhari, Ghodaghodi) and High Altitude Wetlands (Rara, Phoksundo,
Gosaikunda & Gokyo)

Terai Arc Landscape & Sacred Himalayan Landscape

• Landscape level conservation essential for long-term survival of species

 Significance second largest population of rhino.

 Significance Largest heard of swamp deer

Major activities in Protected Areas

• Species Conservation

• Habitat Conservation

• Culture and Religious Sites Conservation

• Conservation Education

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 • Infrastructure development

• Buffer Zone Management

• Research

• Tourism

 Species conservation initiatives: Breeding, translocation

 Legal provision: Park staffs and Nepal Army, Chief Warden/Wardens with Judicial power
(Highest penalty (5-15 years of jail and Rs. 50000-100000 Fine or both)

 Protected area is source of rural livelihood ( Firewood, Fodder, grass, Grazing area,
Timber, NTFP, Water, Culture, religion)

PAs rich in these resources

 Conflict: arise due to

• Restriction on resource use, Lack of alternatives, Crop damage by wildlife, Loss of life and
property by wildlife, Illegal use of resources and poaching etc.

Human- Wildlife Conflict

In last 27 years: 27 Tiger were victims, 9 Removed from natural habitat, 15 Killed by the
authority, 3 Poisoned, 97 People killed (3.6 per year) and 2923 livestock killed in last 8
years(365 per year)

Relief fund

Community based Insurance of livestock

(Kanchanjunga)

Problems:

Retaliatory killing of wildlife, Trade of

wildlife, Poaching- a Major Threat

Rhino Mortality in Nepal:

(Seizure of Wildlife Parts and Poachers and

Traders Apprehended at different part of
Nepal)

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 CHALLENGES

 Poaching & illegal wildlife trade

 Habitat destruction

 Human-Wildlife conflicts ( Crop damage, Human Casualties, Livestock depredation,

Compensation/relief? )

Problems:

Biological invasion by Micania, water hyacinth, encroachment

 Tourism and Protected Areas: Major source of Attractions for tourist. More than 60%
tourists visit protected areas.

 Ecotourism : a closer look

Tourism Economics

Conservation

 More than 90% of PA income comes

from tourism.

 Revenue from Tourism

Benefit of tourism

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• Non-consumptive use of PAs is a priority

• Tourism has been a major sources of income

of PAs

• Tourism was predominantly a private

enterprise and controlled by a handful of
operators and profit to surrounding
community was marginal

• After buffer zone community based tourism

is benefiting the whole community

Paradigm shift

1958: Wildlife Protection Act (establishment of

“rhino Patrol”)

1972: National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act (Wildlife Section in Department of Forest)

1974: NP&WL Conservation Regulation placed restriction on use of resources in Terai PAs

1979: Mountain NP Regulation provided right to local community on use of forest resources

1980: Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation

1989: Amendment in the Act (provision of Conservation Area)- A national NGO received
Management responsibility of the ACA

2000- Landscape conservation- TAL, SHL, Annapurna-Chitwan Landscape, Regional Approach-

Kailash SL, Kanchenjunga, People’s participation in conservation and management of wildlife:
Policy on wildlife farming, captive elephant mgmt, and handover of mgmt responsibility of NP

1992: The 4th Amendment of the NPWC Act, Buffer Zone concept

2006: Kanchanjunga Conservation Area regulation: Community based organizations entrusted

with the responsibility of protected area management. Management responsibility handed over to
Kanchanjunga Conservation Area Management Committee (KCA-MC)

SHIFTS IN CONSERVATION APPROACHES

1970’s: More emphasis on strict protection

1980’s: Participatory approach by establishing Conservation Areas

1990’s: Buffer Zone concept

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2000 onward: Landscape level conservation initiatives Regional Approach

Buffer zone

Theoretical buffer zone:

 Protective layer

 Low use area

Buffer zone in Nepal’s context

 Impact zone

 Focus on special need of local people

 Strict control of forest of core area

 Intensified agriculture and forestry on public and private land

 Increase production of natural resources that are in local demand

Guiding policies for PA mgmt

 Act & Regulations of PAs

 25 year Forestry Sector Master Plan,1988

 Nepal Biodiversity Strategy, 2002 and Implementation Plan, 2006

 Management Plans of PAs/BZ

 Species Conservation Action Plans

 Work-plans of CBOs (UG, UC)

Strategies

 PA Revenue sharing (30-50-% of Park revenue channeled back to the buffer zone)

 Participatory approach in conservation and development

 Devolution of power to local people

o Ownership of buffer zone forest (Managed as Community forest by the community)

o CBOs authorized for mobilization of all resources by forming groups/committees

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 Community mobilization

o CBOs authorized for mobilization of all resources by forming groups/committees

 Strengthen community institutions (BZ Networking Forum, Nat. Coordination Forum of

BZ & CA- 2008)

 Community capital generation

 Biodiversity conservation facility

Five capitals: Social, Human, Financial, Natural, Physical

Budget allocation of revenue in Buffer zone:

 Conservation Program : 30 percent

 Community Development Program : 30 percent

 Income generating and Skill Development Program : 20 percent

 Conservation Education Program : 10 percent

 Administrative Expenses : 10 percent

Actors of Protected area management

• Government

• INGO/NGO

• Local community/individuals

• NP, WLR: Lead role- Government

• Conservation area, buffer zone: Lead role

Local community/NGO

• Promote non-consumptive benefit of PAs:

Tourism entrepreneurs

1.3 Conservation Biology

 Concern for biological diversity

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  Origin of conservation biology

 Principles of conservation biology

Key conservation approaches

Problem -incredible manipulation by human being

 Human foot print is every where

 More than 80% of the globe bear our footprint

 90% of the fertile land used by human

 Overall somewhere between 20-32% of earth resources are for human use.

 Around 60% of freshwater production

 It would take 4 earths to support the world’s population at the current level of consumption
level of US citizens.

 The land available to each person on Earth has been “shrinking” :

 1900-7.91 ha ,

 2005 - 2.02 ha and

 2005 2050 – 1.63.

 Dramatic decline of abundance of other species

 We are living in the in a time of unprecedented

mass extinction.

 Human beings are currently causing the greatest

mass extinction of species since the extinction of
the dinosaurs 65 million years ago. If present
trends continue one half of all species of life on
earth will be extinct in less than 100 years, as a
result of habitat destruction, pollution, invasive
species, and climate change.

According to IUCN Report

 21 percent of all known mammals

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 30 percent of all known amphibians

 12 percent of all known birds

 28 percent of reptiles

 37 percent of freshwater fishes

 70 percent of plants

 35 percent of invertebrates assessed so far are under threat.

Why study Conservation Biology?

In the end we will conserve only what we love, we will love only what we understand and we
only understand what we are taught” (Baba Dioum)

What is conservation biology?

Conservation driven by religious and spiritual reasons is as old as human civilization

 Formalized in 80s but evolved over time

 Conservation science is response of scientist to ecological crisis

 The science of the protection and management of biodiversity

 "Discipline with a deadline” or ‘crisis discipline’,

 Save from sixth mass extinction

 Bad for biodiversity is certainly bad for human wellbeing.

 Equity - inter generational equity and efficiently – resource should not be used wastefully.

 In 2008, 18,225 new species of animals, plants, algae, fungi and microbes were found
(http://fcmdsc.wordpress.com/2010/06/02/top-10-new-species-discovered-in-200/)

 Over 350 new species in the Eastern Himalayas over the past ten years (1998-2008).
(Source: Eastern Himalayas -Where Worlds Collide)

Between 1999 and 2009, more than 1,200 new species of plants and vertebrates were
discovered in the Amazon biome – or one new species every 3 days.

Four key philosophies:

Current conservation efforts represent a more balanced view than the extremes
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John Muir Pinchot Leopold Wilson

• Romantic- • Resource • Land Ethic Ecology

transcendental Conservation Ethic • Eco based approach
Conservation Ethic • View the conservation. E.O. Wilson’s
• Preservationists usually environment with • Homo sapiens as four postulates
oppose any resource an instrumental part of nature from 1) diversity of
extraction value conqueror of the organisms is
• The goal to preserve the • Sustainable use of land. good
environment is its natural resources • Affirm living beings 2) ecological
natural form, making as for the benefit of right to continued complexity is
little change as possible the people existence and, at good
• Nature for its spiritual • Utilitarian least in spots, their 3) evolution is
and transcendental • Resource based continued existence good
qualities conservation in a natural state. 4) biotic
• Environmentalism
diversity has
intrinsic value

Enjoy Use Live/Survive with Manage it

Biodiversity is more than species

 Biodiversity includes diversity within species populations (genetic variation); the number
of species, and the diversity of ecosystems.

 Biodiversity is more than the sum of the parts

 Biodiversity is not static but constantly changing

 99% of the species that ever lived have gone extinct

Goals of conservation biology

 To investigate human impact on biological biodiversity.

 Concerned with loss of biodiversity, not just loss of species

 Fundamental loss of resources in genetics, species, community attributes and ecosystem

properties

 To develop practical approaches to prevent extinction of species maintenance of

biodiversity, ecological and evolutionary processes

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  Developing compromises between conservation and human needs.

E.g. intelligent and informed

management decisions

Current Major Threats to

Biodiversity

 Habitat Related (Loss,

Degradation, Fragmentation)

• Pollution

• Overexploitation

• Invasive Species

• Anthropogenic Climate
Change

• Disease

 Synergistic Effects of
Threats

Objectives of conservation
biologist

Conservation biologists seek to maintain three important aspects of life on Earth:

Consequences
 the natural diversity found in living systems (biological of human activities
diversity);

 the composition, structure, and function of those systems (ecological integrity);

 and their resiliency and ability to endure over time (ecological health)

Diversity and ecology

 Biological diversity is a measure of the diversity of all life at all levels of organization.

 Ecological integrity is a measure of the composition, structure, and function of biological

systems.

 Ecological health is a measure of a biological system’s resiliency and ability to maintain

itself over time.

Conservation requires a combination of many different strategies

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  Protect species at risk of extinction.

 Designate ecological reserves.

 Lessen the magnitude of human impacts on natural systems.

 Restore ecosystems that have been degraded.

 Augment populations with individuals raised in cultivation or captivity.

 Control the number of individuals harvested in nature.

 Prevent the establishment of non-native species, and eliminate non-native species that have
become established.

 Understand and participate in the policy-making process.

 Educate others about the importance of conservation.

Conservation Biology

Conservation Biology is not

 Environmentalism

 Forestry/Game Management - managing small range of species for economic objectives

 Biological Preservation – fossilizing

Conservation Biology is

 Is the long-term preservation of the entire biological communities as its primary

consideration with economic factors often a secondary consideration?

 Attempts to keep normal evolutionary processes working within a functioning ecological

setting.

Conservation Biology - Guiding Principles

 Principle 1: Evolution is the basic axiom that unites all biology

 Principle 2: the ecological world is dynamic and largely non-equilibrium

 Principle 3: human presence must be included in conservation planning

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 Principle 1: Evolution is the basic axiom that unites all biology

 Take evolution into account when trying to develop solutions to ecological problems

 E.g. the genetic composition of populations is dynamic. Thus, it is not the goal to stop the
changes, but rather ensure they have the ability to change and adapt

Principle 2: the ecological world is dynamic and largely non-equilibrium

 At some spatial or temporal scale, all systems become dynamic

 It is important to remember that just because systems are in non-equilibrium, that does
not mean species are either unpredictable or ephemeral

Principle 3: human presence must be included in conservation planning

 Any conservation efforts that do not account for humans (either as the cause of the
problem or part of the solution) are not possible.

 Human being have been an integral part of earth’s biodiversity for more than 10 000 yrs

 Indigenous people have history of

interaction with other organism in
areas of conservation interest.

Conservation Biology:

A value-laden science: Science is value-free

A Science of Eternal Vigilance

Even protected areas may not remain

protected

A science with an evolutionary time scale

Traditional resource management typically

attempts to maximize the current yield

The goal is to simply retain the diversity of structure and function, forever

A discipline responding to an immense crisis

By definition, information is frequently incomplete and sometimes missing

Conservation Biology – an integrated science

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Key conservation approaches: En -situ and ex- situ

 Gene and species conservation

 Ecosystem approach

 Landscape and eco-region approach

 Ex-situ conservation

Conservation Biology –in summary

 Current conservation efforts represent a more balanced view than the extremes

 Merging pure and applied science

 Unification of diverse field: sociology, economy, policy etc.

 Broader view of conservation: all biodiversity – local to global

 Precautionary principle or ‘First, do no harm”

 Acknowledging human role

Protected areas as a conservation tool

 Biodiversity are under threat, from habitat loss and degradation, invasive species, climate
change, pollution and over-exploitation

 Protected areas are an important tool for biodiversity conservation.

 Biodiversity patterns are not uniformly distributed. Need to know where to preserve and
manage it!

 The design of protected areas and reserve networks should foster representation of
biodiversity and its persistence.

 Reserves need to be sited efficiently to represent biodiversity.

 Size, shape and connectivity of reserves and relationship with the surrounding
landscape matrix are essential considerations for biodiversity persistence.

Maintaining biodiversity over time

 Population persistence (viability)

 Maintaining ecological processes E.g. migrations

25
 Maintaining evolutionary processes

 Potential for adaptation within populations (genetic diversity)

 Selecting areas where rapid speciation is occurring

 Response to climate change

Size and shape

Larger size à

 More species (interactions, functions), S-A relationship

 More habitats (interactions, functions)

 Larger populations –

 Protects vulnerable species

 Area demanding: large-bodied, high-tropic level, rare

 Habitat specialists (if habitat included)

 Species requiring multiple habitat types

 Shape àReduced edge/area ratio, edge effects

 Disturbance regime: maintenance of disturbance-generated patch heterogeneity

 Includes whole functional units

 Includes whole environmental gradients

CONNECTIVITY

 Isolation is a key factor causing loss of species from reserves

 Preventing gene flow, maintenance of genetic diversity

 Reducing recolonization following

extinction (rescue effect)

 Preventing access between

summer/winter grounds for migratory
species

26
  Preventing access to multiple habitat types needed for different life stages

 Preventing response to global warming

DISTURBANCE REGIME

 Disturbance promotes habitat heterogeneity

 By resetting successional sequence in parts of the

landscape

 Creating patchiness in the landscape which is

determined by the temporal and spatial scale of
the disturbance(s)

Introduction to Urban ecology

• What is urban ecology?

• Why urban ecology?

• Key aspects of urban ecology

Landscape based conservation

• Natural landscape/protective
landscape – forest/wildlife ecology

• Productive landscape – rural ecology Landscape and level of modification

• Built or urban landscape – urban ecology

Urban landscape

• Built area – buildings, roads, drainage etc

• Open green space such as public parks

• Street trees and home gardens

• Water bodies – ponds, rivers

• Urban ecosystems differ with natural one in several respects: in climate, soil, hydrology,
species composition, population dynamics, flow of energy and matters.

What is Urban Ecology?

27
• Urban Ecology is the study of ecosystems that include humans living in cities and
urbanizing landscapes.

• The application of the principles of ecology to a study of urban environments.

• The term “urban ecology” has been used variously to describe the study of humans in
cities, of nature in cities, and of the coupled relationships between humans and nature.

• Urban ecology is the study of the co-evolution of human-ecological systems

• It is an emerging, interdisciplinary field

that aims to understand how human and
ecological processes can coexist in
human-dominated systems and help
societies with their efforts to become
more sustainable.

• ‘Ecology of cities’ and ‘ecology in

cities’

History of urban ecology

• It flourished in the 1920s and 1930s,

went through a period of neglect.

• It was revived in the late 1950s and

early 1960s

• Interest is growing but it is still not

A set of strongly interacting systems or
seen as central in conservation studies. spheres

Why Urban Ecology

• Human alteration of Earth is substantial and growing. Between one-third and one-half of
the land surface has been transformed by human action.

• The future of Earth’s ecosystems is increasingly influenced by the pace and patterns of
urbanization.

• Cities are both drivers of, and driven by, ecological processes within and beyond their
boundaries.
28
 • Urbanization change natural habitat and species composition alters hydrological cycle
and modifies nutrient cycles and energy flow.

Urban population trend:

• Urban population will reach 60% by the year 2030 (4.9 billion).

• Just over half the world now lives in cities but by 2050, over 70% of the world will be
urban dwellers.

• By 2050, only 14% of people in rich countries will live outside cities, and 33% in poor
countries.

• Nepal has now 58 urban centers located in various districts of Nepal with a total urban
population 14 per cent in 2001 which will be nearly 50% by 2050.

• Nepal's urban centers

increased from 16 in 1971, 23
in 1981, 33 in 1991 and 58 in
2001.

• By 2050, most of the

population growth expected in
urban areas will be
concentrated in the cities and
towns of the less developed
regions. Asia, in particular, is
projected to see its urban
population increase by 1.8
billion, Africa by 0.9 billion,
and Latin America and the
Caribbean by 0.2 billion.

Importance of urban ecology Global urban and rural populations trend (1950-2050)
• Urban development produces
some of the greatest local
extinction rates and frequently
eliminates the large majority of
native trees.

29
 • Understanding how urban ecosystems function is integral to mitigating their negative
effects on ecosystem services, the study of the relationship between organisms and
environment.

• Interest has been growing about sustainable urban landscapes and the conservation of
Urban population trend, Nepal ('000)
indigenous vegetation within urban environments.

• Study of UE helps develop the management of healthy and biodiverse urban ecosystems.

• Quality in the urban environment will also lead to long-term social gains.

Urban ecology

• Urban ecology is a new branch of environmental studies that seeks to understand the
natural systems of urban areas and the threats that face them.

• Urban ecologists study the trees, rivers, wildlife and open spaces found in cities to
understand the extent of those resources and the way they are affected by pollution, over-
development and other pressures.

• The term is also applied to the sum of societal relations with nature, and the restoration of
non-human nature in cities.

Various aspects of Urban Ecology

(1) Ecology and evolution of organisms that happen to live within city boundaries;

(2) Biological, political, economic, and cultural ecology of Homo sapiens in urban settings;

(3) Cities as emergent phenomena of coupled human and natural processes with implications
for evolution and survival of our own and other species.

(4) Most studies in urban ecosystems focus on individuals, populations, or communities of

plants and animals, while studies of urban ecosystems typically focus on ecosystem-level
processes like nutrient cycling and energy flow.

(5) Human factors are not isolated from other biotic or abiotic factors - together, as coupled
human-natural systems; they both drive and are affected by the patterns and processes
they create.

(6) Urban ecology has been criticized for focusing too much on competition at the expense of
the cultural and subjective forces which shape the city.

(7) Needs to take into account the dynamic and heterogeneous physical and social
characteristics of an urban ecosystem.

30
 Urban adaptation

• Buildings and quarries act as cliffs for nesting and roosting birds;

• Street lamps, telegraph poles and pylons provide perching sites;

• Cellars and roof spaces substitute as caves for bats;

• Although species in urban sites are not usually unique, they may form interesting
communities which exploit the special conditions in these disturbed environments.

• Novel combinations of characteristics lead to some urban sites having a high nature
conservation value: in 1990 nearly 30 per cent of all Sites of Special Scientific Interest
(SSSI) in England were classed as urban or urban fringe.

• Large and less tolerant mammals cannot adapt in urban areas

• In many cases, native species have given way to exotic species, especially along streets
and in urban parks.

The physical, ecological and geographical make up of urban sites influence the species

Urban green and green space

• Urban green space is vital for the inhabitants of urban areas, because it provides benefits
as recreational and educational opportunities, aesthetic experiences – not to mention
human health benefits.

• The biodiversity of urban green spaces is essential for the provision of ecosystem
services. Moreover, habitats and species in urban green space can have significant
conservation values, as rare and endangered species are often encountered in urban green
space.

• In order to sustain biodiversity and maintain the provision of ecosystem services in urban
areas, it is vital to conserve habitats of adequate size and ecological quality.

• To accomplish the conservation of biological diversity and ecosystem services, it is

necessary to incorporate ecological information into land-use planning as well as green
space planning and management.

• Urban ecology helps understand structure, function and planning of urban ecosystems
and lead to ways of sustainably managing and maintaining urban ecosystems while
increasing quality of life for people living in urban areas.

Urban forestry

31
• Urban forests play a fundamentally important role in building ecological cities.

• Urban forests improve the environmental quality of the urban environment and the
aesthetics of urban landscapes, and in many developed and developing countries,

• Urban forestry has been recognized as an essential means of maintaining urban

ecosystem health, improving human living conditions, fostering a harmonious human-
nature relationship, and ultimately achieving urban sustainability.

• Local authorities in Canberra have planted 400,000 trees to regulate microclimate, reduce
pollution and thereby improve urban air quality, reduce energy costs for air conditioning
as well as store and sequester carbon.

• These benefits are expected to amount to some US$ 20-67 million over the period 2008-
2012, in terms of the value generated or savings realized for the city.

32
Unit 2: Biodiversity status at global, regional, national level with
special focus to Himalayas
2.1 Status of Biodiversity at global, HKH region and Nepal

• Global biodiversity

• Biodiversity of HKH region

• Biodiversity status of Nepal

Earth is the only living planet:

 1.8 million known species, 10-

100 million are estimated, and
300/day are being discovered

 Tropical forests house between

50 and 90 percent of this total

Biographic realms and broad habitat and vegetation types of

the earth

Biodiversity and conservation priority areas

• WWF has identified 825 terrestrial eco-regions across the globe, and a set of 426 freshwater
eco-regions

• Global 200 -- the most biologically distinct terrestrial, freshwater, and marine eco-regions of
the planet.

• 34 biodiversity hotspots have been identified by CI

 These hotspots cover only 2.3 percent of the Earth's land surface.

 Each hotspot faces extreme threats and has already lost at least 70 percent of its original
natural vegetation.

 Over 50 percent of the world’s plant species and 42 percent of all terrestrial vertebrate
species are endemic to the 34 biodiversity hotspots

• Eco-region – relatively large area, dominant assemblage of species, communities, and

conditions
33
Situation is alarming!!

• Two thirds of the

ecosystem services
examined are being
degraded or used in a non-
sustainable way.

• Approx. 10–30% of
mammal, bird, and
amphibian species are
currently threatened with
extinction. Approx 10% of
the terrestrial biodiversity
could be lost by 2050
(CBD, 2008)

• The global area of forest systems has been reduced by one half over the past three centuries.

• Human activity has caused between 50 and 1000 times more extinctions in the last 100 years
than would have happened due to natural processes

State of global biodiversity

• Scientists estimate the loss of biodiversity between 5,000 and 30,000 species a year.

• Biodiversity continues to disappear at a rate of up to 1,000 times the natural background

rate of extinction.

• This unprecedented biodiversity crisis

is compounded by climate change;
‘business as usual’ is no longer an
option for mankind;

• Over the last 15 years (1990 -2005),

primary forest has been lost or
modified at a rate of approximately six
million hectares a year (13 million in
totals).

• The biomass of fish targeted in

fisheries reduced by 90% relative to
levels prior to the onset of industrial
fishing
34
Key threats to biodiversity conservation

• Habitat fragmentation

• Unsustainable use of biological resources

• Invasive species

• Climate change

• Inadequate public support

• Edward O Wilson – ‘HIPPO’

 Habitat destruction,

 Invasive species,

 Pollution,

 Human Population, and

 Overharvesting

• Jared Diamond - "Evil Quartet"

 Habitat destruction,

 Overkill,

 Introduced species,

 Secondary extensions.

CBD: key global conservation tool

• Three principles of CBD:

 Conservation

 Sustainable use

 Equitable distribution of benefits

2020 PA target:

• 10% of the world's oceans (up from about 1 percent now) under protection;

35
 • And protecting 17% of the
world's terrestrial environments
(up from 12% currently).

Global extent of PAs

Hindakush Himalayan Region (HKH region) - high biodiversity

• The HKH region is highly heterogeneous with wide range of habitats, varied micro-climates,
and ecological conditions.

It is home to some of the world’s most threatened and endemic species.

• Overall there are approximately 25,000 known species of angiosperms, 75,000 species of
insects, 1,200 species of birds, and many ‘wild’ relatives of modern day crops.

• All or part of 4 of the 34 Global Biodiversity Hotspots

• 6 UNESCO Natural Heritage Sites

• 330 Important Bird Areas

• 53 Important Plant Areas

• 60 eco-regions (including Global 200 eco-regions)

• 29 Ramsar sites, and

• 488 protected areas (IUCN categories I-VI)

Conservation status in HKH Region

• Biodiversity conservation is a priority for the eight regional member countries of the HKH,
who have established 488 PAs over the last 89 years (1918 to 2007).

• The eight countries sharing the HKH have committed 39% of this total geographical area to
the PA network and 11% to IBAs, which is quite significant when compared to the global
target of 10%.
36
• There has been an increasing trend in PA establishment over the last four decades.

• The PA coverage within the HKH of China alone is significant (35.5%), followed by India
(1.46%) and Nepal (0.58%).

• The majority of PAs belong to Category V (39%), followed by Category IV (29%). Only
0.6% of PAs are managed as Category I.

• In recent years, Categories V and VI have increased.

• Of the total HKH geographical area, 32% is covered by four global biodiversity hotspots and
62% by the Global 200 Ecoregions.

• Only 25% of the global biodiversity hotspots and 40% of the Global 200 Ecoregions are part
of the PA network.

• There are still numerous gaps in conservation in the HKH. Coordinated and committed
efforts are required to bring other critical habitats within the PA network in the HKH.

Drivers of biodiversity changes in HKH region

Biodiversity in the Hindu Kush-Himalayas is influenced by various drivers such as changes in

land use and cover, globalization and economic growth, climate change, and socioeconomic and
demographic changes.

Specific changes include human-induced deforestation, urbanization leading to habitat

fragmentation, the growth of invasive species, forest fires, and unsustainable resource extraction
including illegal harvesting and poaching.

The challenge of biodiversity conservation

• The major challenge is to balance ecosystem conservation with the sustainable use of
biodiversity resources by poor and marginalized mountain communities.

• Related challenges include the weak implementation of conservation policies, inadequate

scientific data and information, and a lack of innovative economic measures to support
sustainable livelihoods.

Impact of climate change on biodiversity

Likely losers:

• Large territorial animals

• Late successional plant species (K-strategists)

• Species with small, restricted polulations

37
 • Species confined to summits or the plains

Likely winners:

• Small, highly mobile organisms

• Ruderal plant species (r-strategists)

• Widespread species with large populations

• Mid-slope species

K – Strategies

• Growth Pattern - large body, long juvenile period; population grows exponentially and
then stabilizes around a max value

• Population Size - smaller, but stable

• Environment - stable, diverse ecology

• Reproductive strategy - mate choice, pair bonds, large investment, parental care, few
offspring

Characteristics of offspring - not sure what this means. They're born more dependent on the
parents and stay that way longer; later onset of repro maturity Examples - elephants, humans,
oak trees

R- Strategies

• Growth Pattern - small body, rapid maturation; population grows exponentially then
crashes

• Population Size - large, but rapid fluctuation

• Environment - unstable, recently disrupted, low diversity, low resources

• Reproductive strategy - maximize number of offspring, low parental investment, random

mating

• Characteristics of offspring - independent right away, early reproductive maturity, large

numbers Examples - weeds, mosquitoes, mice

Nepal – a land linked country

• Nepal’s location in the centre of the Himalayan range places the country in the
transitional zone between the eastern and western Himalayas.

38
 • Nepal’s rich biodiversity is a reflection of this unique geographical position as well as its
altitudinal and climatic variations.

• It incorporates Pala arctic and Indo-Malayan bio- geographical regions and major
floristic.

Proportion of terrestrial areas protected (%)

39
Gap in biodiversity conservation in Nepal

• More than two thirds (67.84%) of the total area of (PAs) is in high mountains, although
this region accounts for only 23.92% of the country's total area.

• The hills comprise the highest proportion (29.17%) of the country's area but currently
have the smallest proportion (1.33%) of PAs.

• The altitudinal zones between 200–400 m are well represented with PAs;

• The region between 400–2700 m is poorly represented, and representation by PAs is

comparatively higher in the area above 2800 m.

• The ecoregions that have high conservation priority at global scale are poorly represented
in protected areas of Nepal.

• Existing PAs include 39.62% of flowering plants, 84.53% of mammals, 95.73% of birds,
and 70.59% of herpetofauna of the country.

• Threatened animal species are well protected, whereas a large number of threatened plant
species are not represented by the current PA system.

Understanding global change

• Socio-economic changes: Human population growth and dynamics, economic growth,

trade and consumption, and poverty and inequality;

40
 • Biophysical changes: Climate change, conversion and fragmentation of natural habitats,
hydrological change, invasive alien species, and biodiversity loss;

• Institutional changes: Changing global norms,

global trends in governance and and
globalization of communications, knowledge and
culture.

Values of biodiversity

Why conserve biodiversity?

• Twenty-four services which make direct

contribution to human wellbeing (MEA, 2005).

Conservation paradigms are dynamic

41
Biodiversity is life. Biodiversity is our life.

Unit 3. Policy, Legislation and Multilateral environmental

agreements at global and national level
3.1 Global and Regional policies and legislations

Conventions signed- 16

• Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) 1992

• UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 1992

• UN Convention to Combat Desertification 1996

• UNESCO World Heritage Convention (WHC) 1972

• Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna

(CITES) 1975

• Convention on Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar Convention) 1971

• Global Tiger Forum 1999

• IUCN (World Conservation Union) 1948

• Global Tiger Initiative 2008

• Convention on Migratory Species (not member)

• Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD): (to sustain the rich diversity of life on earth)

• Earth Summit (Rio Conference 92- Agenda 21)

• No. of Member States 193 (150 in 1992)

• Member: 1993

• Focal Point: MFSC (Environment Division)

Fundamental principle:

• Conservation, Sustainable Use and Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits

 Nepal Biodiversity Strategy, 2002

 NBS Implementation Plan, 2006

42
  Biodiversity Registration

 National Report on NBS

 Access to Benefit Sharing (draft)

 2010- International Year of Biodiversity

 Global Environment Fund (GEF)- (incremental)

 Political Focal Point MOF

 Implementing Agencies- UNDP, WB, UNEP

Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to CBD 2003 (As a safety measure)

• Ensure the safe handling, transport and use of living organism (LMO)

• (Modern biotechnology may have adverse effect on biodiversity and risk to Human
health)

• Focus on: Capacity building, Public Awareness and Participation, Risk Assessment and
mgmt

• Socio-economic condition

• Ratified by 160 countries (signed in 2001 but not ratified by Nepal)

Convention Bodies:

• Conference of the Parties

• Scientific Bodies- SBSTTA (Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical, Technological

Advice)

• Working Groups (review of Implementation, Protected Areas, etc)

2010 Biodiversity Target: Significant reduction of current rate of biodiversity

Loss at global, regional and national levels as a contribution to poverty alleviation and for
the benefit of all life. Revision of Nepal Biodiversity Strategy 2002 in 2010.

UN Framework Convention on Climate Change

Focal Point: Ministry of Environment

No. of Member States: 194

43
 Member: 1994

• National Adaptation Program Actions (NAPA)

• KYOTO Protocol- 1997, reduce by 5% of 1990 levels Of GHG (Co2, N2o, CH4)
(2005) by 2012, CDM, Carbon – as trading commodity, Carbon- 15-20% emission
from forest

• RED, REDD, REDD+

• Benefit sharing (Vertical & horizontal)

• Commercialization of forest carbon

• Cons. of high carbon forest vs biodiversity

• Bali Action Plan- Mitigation, Adaptation, Finance,

• Technology Development & Transfer and Capacity Building

• Melting Mountain issue (global warming)

• CoP- Copenhagen, Mexico

• Est. Fund- $100 Billion by 2020 ($30 billion by 2012)

IUCN (World Conservation Union)

Nepal become member: 1974

State Members: 84

Government Agencies with State Member: 93

Government Agencies without SM: 24

National NGOs: 811

INGOs : 97

Affiliated: 32

• World Conservation Strategy

• National Conservation Strategy

Union Bodies

World Congress 2012 (Korea)

44
 • Regional Committees- R. Councilors

• National Committees- (NNC)

• Country Office- Program level

• Expert Commission on:

• Education and Communication

• Environmental Economics and Social Policy

• Environmental Laws

• Ecosystem Management

• Species Survival Commission

• World Commission on Protected Areas

UNESCO World Heritage Convention

Conservation of Natural and Cultural Heritage (Shared Legacy, Common Responsibility)

No. of State Member: 187

Member: 1978

No. of Properties: 911 (704, 180, 27)

Asia : >135 sites (richest)

Focal Point: Ministry of Education

Authorities:

Cultural sites: Dept. of Archeology

Natural sites: DNPWC

Categories: Natural, Cultural or Mixed

Criteria of the Properties (Natural): (Be an outstanding examples)

1. Major stages of earth history (record of life, significant on-going geological processes
in the development of landforms, or significant geomorphic or physiographic features

45
 2. On-going ecological and biological processes in the evolution and development of
terrestrial, fresh water, coastal and marine ecosystems and communities of plants and
animals

3. Superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic

importance

4. Important and significant natural habitats for in-situ conservation of biological

diversity containing threatened species

Convention Bodies:

• General Assembly

• World Heritage Committee (elected 21 members)

• World Heritage Bureau

• Technical support- IUCN & ICOMOS

• Operational Guidelines

• Support for preparatory work and small grants

• Periodic Report (6 years)

• Reactive Monitoring: Kasara & Syngboche airport, Kwande Hotel, Site in Danger

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora

(Washington Treaty 1973)

Background:

Wildlife Trade- $ 20 billion business/year A quarter of this is illegal (second to Arms/drugs)

Species in Trade: primate, birds, reptiles, fish, coral, cacti, orchid (live, body parts, derivatives).

Uses: Food, pet, traditional Chinese medicine, fashion, and research. Much of the trade is from
developing countries, which contains most of the world’s biodiversity

Purpose:

• Protect species from extinction due to trade

• Regulate trade on wildlife worldwide

State Parties: 175

46
Member: 1975

Depository Government: Switzerland

Convention Bodies:

• Conference of the Parties

• Standing Committee

• Animals Committee

• Plants Committee

• Nomenclatures Committee

• Secretary General, (appointed by UNEP Executive Director)

• Technical Support: World Conservation Monitoring Center

IUCN

Species Survival Commission

TRAFFIC Network

WWF

Standing Committee

(6 geographic regions: Africa, Asia, Europe, North America,

South America & Central America and Caribbean & Oceania

1 representative 15 State Parties

2 representative 16-30 State Parties

3 representative more than 30 State Parties

1 representative Depository Government

1 representative (each) COP organizers (present & next proponent)

Main & Alternative members

Administrative Arrangements of CITES in Nepal

47
Management Authority: Department of Forest, Department of National Parks and
Wildlife Conservation

Scientific Authority: Department of Plant Resources (for flora)

Natural History Museum (for fauna)

National Legislation

Annual Report

Standard Permits and stamp

Fundamental principles of CITES

Criteria: 1) Biological, 2) Trade

Appendix I: Includes species threatened with extinction

Appendix II: Includes species not necessarily threatened with extinction,

but for which trade must be controlled to avoid their becoming threatened, Includes
species that resemble species already included in Appendix I or II

Appendix III: Includes species for which a country is asking Parties to help

with its protection

Listing, Up-listing, Down-listing, Delisting, Split listing

Other provisions:

Permits and Certificate, Export, Import, Re-export,

Quota (including zoo), Zero quota, Stockpile disposal,

Ex-situ conservation (Captive breeding)

Proposal submission- 150 days before COP

Notification for review: 60 days before COP

ETIS & CITES MIKE- Suklaphanta

Species Appendix I Appendix II Appendix III

48
FAUNA

Mammals 277 spp. + 16 spp. 295 spp. + 12 45 spp. + 8 species

species

Birds 152 spp. + 11 spp. 1268 spp. + 6 spp. 35 spp.

Reptiles 75 spp. + 5 spp. 527 spp. + 4 spp. 55 spp.

Amphibians 16 spp. 98 spp. -

Fish 15 spp. 71 spp. -

Invertebrates 62 spp. + 4 spp. 2100 spp. + 1 ssp. 17 spp.

Faunal total 597 spp. + 36 spp. 4359 spp. + 23 spp. 152 spp. + 8 spp.

PLANTS 295 spp. + 3 sspp. 28674 spp. + 3 sspp. 8 spp. + 1 ssp.

GRAND TOTAL 892 spp. + 39 spp. 33033 spp. + 26 161 spp. + 9 spp.
spp.

In Nepal:

Mammals

Appendix I 52 spp

Appendix II 124 spp

Appendix III 4 spp

Plants (orchids)

Appendix II 3spp.

Relevant legislations: Acts and Regulations

National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 2029, Forest Act, 2049, Environment
Protection Act, 2053, Custom Act, 2021, Export Import (Control) Act, 2015, Police Act,
2013; Postal Act, 2019; Plant Protection Act, 2029; Aquatic Life Protection Act, 2018

Regulations:

49
 General

• National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Rules, 2030

• Wildlife Reserve Rules, 2034

• Mountain National Park Rules, 2036

• Buffer Zone Management Rules, 2052

• Conservation Area (Govt. managed) Rules, 2057

Specific

• Chitwan National Park Rules, 2030

• Khaptad National Park Rules, 2044

• Bardia National Park Rules, 2053

• Conservation Area Management Rules, 2056 (NGO)

• Kanchanjanga CA Mgmt Rules, 2064

Nepal- 1975

CITES Implementation

Training, Coordination meetings, Awareness and promotional (Identification Manual)

CITES legislation (draft), CITES Units (DNPWC & DOF)

NTCC & WCCB (APO, Intelligence network system), Tran boundary and Regional
Cooperation

TAR, China 1995, MOU – 2010

India 1997, 1999, 2000, 2010

SA Wildlife Diagnostic and Law Enforcement Workshop

SA Wildlife enforcement workshop 2010- SAWEN

Misconception about CITES:

• Deals with all aspects of wildlife conservation

• Aims to ban all wildlife trade

50
• Regulate domestic trade

• Appendices are listing of endangered species

• Impose trade restriction on developing countries

Convention on Wetlands of International Importance ( Ramsar Convention)

• Wise-Use policy, wetland dependent community

• Nepal ratify convention: 1987/88 April

• No. of State Members: 160

• No. of Ramsar Sites: 1906

• Total Surface Area: 186,596,626 hectares

• Nepal: 9 sites (34,455 hectares)

Convention Bodies:

• CoP

• Standing Committee

• Scientific and Technical Review Panel (STRP)

• Montreux record

• CEPA, Site Plans

• Administrative Authority-DNPWC

Global Tiger Forum

• Initiated in 1992 and formalized in 1999

• Nepal- 2002

Membership criteria

• Tiger Range Country (13)

• Non-Range Country

• International Organizations (INGO/NGO)

51
 • Honorary

• Members- Nepal, Bhutan, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Cambodia, Vietnam and

UK

Forum bodies:

• General Assembly (every 3 years)

• Executive Committee

• Nepal- Chair (2nd term)

• Capacity building, Intl. seminar, Awareness,

Global Tiger Initiative

• World Bank President Robert Zoellick : 2008

• Pattaya meeting (Forgotten Crisis)

• Kathmandu Global Tiger Workshop, Oct, 2009

• Asia Ministerial Level Meeting, Hau Hin, Jan., 2010

• High Level meeting in Bali, Indonesia, July, 2010

• Executive Leadership Forum meeting, DC, US, April, 2010

• TOT program in India and US

• Petersburg Tiger Summit- Year of the Tiger

• Target- Doubling tiger number (3200 tigers) T X 2 by 2022

• National Tiger Recovery Plan- Compilation of NTRPs of Tiger Range Country

• Sustainable funding: WB, WWF, WCS, DeCaprio, India (3 crores)

Critical analysis of Acts, Regulations related to environment, biodiversity, PA, forest

Accomplishments

 National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act, 2029

• A Network of Protected Areas (23.2%)

• Different Management Modalities

52
• Protected Species

• Species Conservation (Rehabilitation & Translocation)

• Regulation of Sport Hunting

• Quasi-Judicial Authority to Warden & DFO

• Species to Landscape Level Conservation

• Fence to Participatory/Multiple use

• Resource management (Conservation Area, Buffer Zone, Community Forest, Leasehold,

Collaborative, Private, Religious)

• Benefit sharing (Revenue)

• Popular Tourist Destination

• International Recognition (WHS & RAMSAR Sites) and members

• Conservation partners & donors

Issues:

Policy

International

Legislation & Institutional

National

Legislation & Institutional

Backdrop

• Conflict & Post Conflict

• Office, security posts- destroyed or displaced

• Staff casualty, rhino from Babai, Ghunsa, Parsa, Sukla and Koshi

• Limited movement (patrolling)

• Restructuring of State

Policy

53
 International

CBD, UNCCF, WHC, Ramsar, CITES, GTF, GTI

Obligations/Legislation:

• National legislation for CITES Implementation

• Access to Benefit Sharing

• NAPA

• Wetland Policy

• Identification Manuals

• Annual Reporting

• Annual Fee

• Site Plans

• GTF Chair – No Secretary General, # of members,

Funding sources

Institutional

• NBCC, Thematic Subgroups

• Biodiversity Unit/Biodiversity Coordinator

• CITES Units (DNPWC & DoF)

• Ramsar Site Management Authority: GTF & GTI

• MEA: Transboundary (MoU with China & Regional Cooperation

• KSL & KCA Complex (Tri-National Peace Park) : SAWEN

• Additional staff

Policies and Plans:

Conservation not in priority

• National Conservation Strategies/Plans

54
• NBS (target 2010) & IP, Species Action Plans, TAL & SHL Strategies & IP, Management
Plans- ownership

• Master Plan for Forestry Sector/Plan for cons of Ecos and Gen. Res. (expired), DFCC

• Resources: Human & financial resources

• Sustainability- Institutional and programs

• New Forestry Strategy

• Different Planning Cycles & reporting

• Restructuring of DNPWC, 2003

National level

Paradigm shift

Species- Ecosystems-Landscape

• Preservation - Multiple Uses

• Park/Reserve – Conservation Area

• Corridor & connectivity (BZ, TAL, SHL)

TAL- priority conservation landscape

• No relevant legal base of corridor management

• No capacity building

• No institutional development

Chronic Issues:

• Ecosystem representations in PAs

(80 out of 118) - mid-hills

• PA Boundary dispute

• Protected Areas small in size

• Protected Areas in isolation

• Resettlements (Sukla & Koshi, Khairapur)

55
 • Conflict of Institutional Interest & Priority (Inter and Intra)

• Resources outside Protected Areas

• Dams (Koshi, Gandak, Babai, Karnali, & Mahakali)

• E-W Highway bisecting BNP (traffic)

• Disposal of Industrial Effluents

• Mahakali Irrigation (150 hectares) & extension national development (hydro-LNP)

Legislations:

• National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act and Regulations (No timely amended)-

• BZ institutions

• Protected Species list (not updated) - CITES- Appendices- Red list

• Overlapping of NPWC Act and other Acts provisions

• Dual Administration (Park & NA)

• Poaching and Illegal Wildlife Trade (APO & CBAPO)

Plan, Program & Budget (30:70 vs11:89) (No significant increment)

• Transport and Communication

• Hattisar & Breeding Centers (Gharial, Elephant)

• Habitat modification & fragmentation including wetlands

Research & Development:

Research follow up

Research priority

Legislations:

• 3 Policies (NP/R Mgmt to NGOs, Wildlife Farming, Captive Elephant Mgmt)

• Buffer Zone Management Rules (guidelines- harmonization)

• Hattisar regulations- Feed & Uniform

• IEE of management plans

56
Management:

• Staffing verses extension of PA area/Capacity Building (including BZ)

• Buffer Zone Program (Social change, less income PAs, weak CBOs)/tourism

• Human-Wildlife Encounters (Human casualty, property & crop damage)

• River bank cutting/compensation Livestock Depredation.

• River Bank Cutting/compensation

• Drift Wood

• Rescue animals

• Problem animals

• Ecroachment & Resettlement (Sukla, Koshi, Ramauli-Pratapur, Khairapur, Buffer Zone )

• Black Buck Conservation Area (Khairapur)

• NTFP collection (Yarsagomba)

• Concessionaires in PAs

Research & Development:

• Research policy

• Database and sharing (GIS)

• Monitoring

Paradigm shift:

Govt. managed-Collaborative-Community managed PAs

• Disparity in CA modality: ACA (100%) & KCA (50%)- NPWCA (25ka), KCA (5 yrs) &
GCA (20 yrs)

• National Development in/out of PA (Hydro-dam/High dams, Highways- Rasuwagadhi,

West Seti- Transmission lines, Mahakali irrigation-3rd phase, Koshi Flood damage, Oil
exploration etc.)

• Diversification of Tourism Products (Kwande hotel/trail, sky diving- SNP) Churia

Conservation- MMICCAP (Upstream, Downstream linkage)

57
Legislations:

• New PA Act & regulations formulation

• ShNP regulations

• SNP (WHS) regulation

• Community Conservation Area

• ILO Agreement- 169 (Indigenous People’s Right

• Reconstruction and rehabilitation of office &

Security posts

• Concessionaires in PAs

• Shikari Adda (160 staff)

• Gender Mainstreaming

• Enhancing Livelihood

• Gravel and Sands

• Monitoring/Database (Program & Wildlife)

• Governance (Principle Centered Leadership, Good Governance Act, Code of Ethics Tok
Aadesh) (Mann, Bachan & Karma)

• Instability in leadership

• PA Human Resource Development

• Misconception about PA (Dislocation, Against local people, PAs is for Human Well-
being)

• Preconceived mind about PAs (Elites, Western concept)

• Security arrangement of Pas AFF (A2F)

• Climate Change

• Invasive species management

• Sustainability (Conservation without $ become Conversation)

• Jal, Jamin, Jungle- Janatako (Janawar?) but No framework

58
 • Problem- Pigeon-hole/holistic approach

• “National Policy on Land-Use”- A Must

Unit 4 Wildlife Management in the tropics

4.1 Population management

Metapopulation:

Fragmentation

• Habitat fragmentation is the process whereby a large, continuous area of habitat is both
reduced in area and divided into two or more fragments (Shafer, 1990)

59
• Natural communities are fragmented and continue

Habitat Fragmentation in TAL, Nepal

• Fragmentation has impacts more than a loss of habitat

• Wildlife populations more isolated

 Increased rate of local extinction,

 Decreased rates of gene flow

 Decrease rate of re-colonization

Metapopulation Theory

• Population of populations (Levins, 1970)

• Dynamics of sets of semi-independent populations connected by dispersal

• Spatial ecological theory

Levins Model

• A network of extinction-prone subpopulations occupying a mosaic of habitat patches

• Subpopulations

– inhabit identical patches

– subject to equal and independent probabilities of

60
 • extinction and

• re-colonization

Island Biogeography Theory

Diversity

• Habitat geometry and its effect on species diversity

• Strong correlation between habitat area and species richness

• Isolation, in addition to area, determined the diversity (MacArther and Wilson, 1967)

Island Biogeography Theory

• Concerned with the distribution of plants and animals on island and island like areas

• The number of species is highly predictable and dependant on the size of the island and
its relative remoteness from colonising sources

• The number of species stabilizes when the rate of

local extinction equals the rate of
new immigration

• Species richness = f(Extinction and

colonization)

• Extinction is the disappearance of

a species in a community.

• Immigration is the appearance of a

species in a community.

• Extinction is related to island size while

the immigration depends on the proximity Equilibrium model
and richness of the coloniser land mass.

• Isolated islands have

– lower colonization rates

– Higher extinction rates

• A dynamic equilibrium between colonization and extinction determines the number of

species

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Implications Better Worse

• PAs should be large, rounded and Large Small

minimally isolated One large Several small
• Application in PA design Close together Far apart

Shared habitat Linear, less shared habitat

Corridors No corridors

Round Not round

4.2 Habitat Management

Landscape ecology

Biomes and ecoregions

 Biogeographical realm- based on faunal distribution

 Although these region differ in major faunal distribution, there are strong similarities
among the major ecosystem occurring within them

 Each biogeographical realm contains number of biomes (large ecological units that are
identified on land on the basis of dominant type of vegetation –eg. Conifer forest biome;
and in the sea on the basis of ocean currents and spatial pattern of primary productivity-
Bay of Bengal, Gulf of Thailand)

 Earths biomes divided in to terrestrial ecoregions (above 867 terrestrial)- relatively large
area containing a distinct assemblage of natural communities, ecological conditions
characterized by a dominant and widespread assemblage of species

 WWF map of ecoregion has been widely accepted for high level landscape planning

Hotspots

 A geographical location characterized by usually high species richness often of endemic

species

 Hotspot approach prioritized areas that are most significant in terms of biodiversity

 Priority regions for conservation

 34 areas (15.7% of land surface with 77% vertebrate species and over 300000 plant
species)

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  Based on this “Global 200” ecoregions-233

Corridors and connectivity

 Individuals often move among suitable habitat patches in the landscape

 Organism move over heterogeneous

Landscape and therefore saving single patches of “critical habitat” will rarely be enough to
maintain population.

Concept:

Human population increases less and less surface remain free from human interference

 Human activities have modified the environment to the extent that the most common
landscape pattern are mosaics of human settlement, farm land and scattered fragments of
natural ecosystem

 The process of habitat fragmentation has three components:

 Over all loss of habitat

 Reduction in size of remaining habitat

 An increased isolation of habitat

Corridors

 A link or linkage that enhances movement of animal or the continuity of ecological

processes through the landscape :

 Habitat corridor, Wildlife corridor, Dispersal corridor, Green belts

 It is a link or Linkage in general

Connectivity

 The concept of connectivity is used to describe how the spatial arrangement and the
quality of element in the landscape affect the movement of organism among habitat
patches

 Is 'the degree to which the landscape facilitates or impedes movement among resource
patches

 The level of connectivity varies between species and between communities

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The landscape:

 A landscape is a mosaic of habitat patches across which organism move, settle, reproduce
and eventually die

Benefit?

 Allowing access to a larger area of habitat

 Allowing seasonal migration

 Permitting genetic exchange with other populations

 Allowing local populations to move away from a degrading habitat

 Enhance ecosystem services

 The size of landscape depends on organism

 Landscape consists a mosaic

of good and bad patches
for species

Landscape connectivity may be achieved by managing the entire landscape to facilitate

movement

Landscape connectivity may be achieved by:

 Maintaining specific habitats that assist movement through some patterns. Stepping
stones of various shape and size.

 Habitat corridors that provide continuous connection of favored habitat

The objective is:

 Maintenance of ecological process in landscape that have been disturbed and fragmented
by human activities

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  Movement through linkages can take place at all scales, from local (e.g. the need to cross
a road) to regional or even intercontinental ( the migration routes of Dolphin)

Concept of Metapopulation:

A population that consists of several subpopulations linked together by immigration and

emigration
Tiger population in Nepal
 Source population
Protected Areas Tiger Breeding
 Sink population Adults
 Terai Arc Landscape includes Parsa Suklaphanta 27
wildlife reserve, Chitwan National Park,
Bardia 40
Bardia National Park and Suklaphanta
Wildlife reserve of Nepal and Chitwan-Parsa 60
includes Katarniaghat wildlife
sanctuary, Dudhwa National park, Total estimated 360-370
Kisanpur wildlife sanctuary, Corbett
National park, Sonanadi wildlife sanctuary, Rajaji National Park of India.

 Sacred Himalayan Landscape includes Kanchanjunga Conservation area, Sagarmatha

National Park, Makalu-Barun National Park and Langtang National Park of Nepal

Major ecoregions:

 Terai-dwar Savanna and grassland

 Himalayan subtropical broad leaved forest (churia and foothills)

 Himalayan sub-tropical broad leaved forest

 Himalayan sub-tropical pine forest

 Eastern Himalayan broad leaved forest

 E-H subalpine conifer forest

 W-H subalpine conifer forest

The problem and solution

 What is the most effective patterns of habitats to ensure ecological connectivity for
species, communities and ecological processes?

 Isolation of habitat is a problem then Linking them together is a solution

65
Disadvantage

 Could facilitate unwanted species weeds, pests, exotic species

 Facilitate spread of disease

 Introduce new genes which could disrupt local adaptations

 Increase exposure of animal to predators, hunting or poaching by humans, road kills etc.

 Facilitate spread of fire or other disturbances

 High establishment and management cost

Challenges and opportunities of conservation at the landscape

 How human interact across the landscape

 A change in biodiversity also affect human population

 Incentives for conservation that support human welfare required

 Land scale level of conservation can only be enhanced by careful analysis and modeling

Invasive species

 I s a major challenge for Habitat management

 Invasion by local species- trees and bushes in a grassland, plants in a wetland

 Invasion by exotic species- Lantena, Mikenia etc.

 Appropriate management interventions required

WWf Nepal

Integrated watershed management project launched in Indrawati and Dudh Koshi river basins
in the Eastern Nepal

The Vision: A globally unique landscape where biodiversity is conserved, ecological

integrity is safeguarded, and sustainable livelihoods of its people are secured

Goal: To conserve the biodiversity, forests, soils and watersheds of the Terai and Churia
Hills in order to ensure the ecological, economic, and socio-cultural integrity of the
region.

Nepal: 6 PAs Total area: 23,199 sq. km

66
Bottlenecks: Dovan (Butwal), Lamahi (Dang), Mahadevpuri (Banke)

Corridor: Barandabhar (Chitwan), Khata (Bardia), Basanta (Kailali), Laljhadi (Kanchanpur)

Thematic areas

 Sustainable forest management

 Species and ecosystem conservation

 Climate change and energy

 Sustainable livelihood

 Policy and advocacy

 Conservation education, capacity building, Communication and marketing

 Planning, monitoring, development and coordination

 (Sustainable forest management, Forest Restoration in the corridors and bottlenecks e.g.
LAMAHI BOTTLENECK, Grassland restoration in priority sites, Molecular genetics of
snow leopard piloted in Nepal, Tiger population monitoring {Chitwan: 125 adults
(2010), Parsa: 4 (2009), Bardia: 18, Suklaphanta : 8}, Gharial Conservation in Nepal
{81 Wild Gharial}

 Sustainable livelihood: Income Generation Activities (forest based, agri based and off
farm based) - Over 3,000 HHs directly benefitted

 Over 500 HHs directly benefitted from climate change adaptation activities (Community
awareness, Preparation of water smart communities, Seed banks, Disaster preparedness

 Conservation Education & Capacity building

 WWF Nepal entered into a new partnership with the Ministry of Land Reform and
Management (MoRLM) by signing a 5- year MOU of joint cooperation with it (August
2).

 This partnership is intended to develop a National Land Use Policy for the country.
This is by all means a path-breaking engagement for a conservation organizations like
WWF.

 WWF country representative Mr. Anil Manandhar has been nominated as the member to
the 8 member Steering Committee formed under the leadership of the secretary of the
ministry. Other members are national experts, Director Generals (2) and joint Secretaries
(3) from the ministry.

67
  5 members Executive Committee to support the drafting of the National Land Use
Policy has been formed by the ministry. Mr. Santosh Nepal nominated as a member to
the Executive Committee which is headed by the joint secretary functioning as member
secretary to the steering committee.

 This engagement may provide an opportunity to safeguard our decades of effort by

bringing immunity (designating no go zones) to the important biological corridors,
protected areas and other areas of national and global importance. Similarly, land use
policy is the only instrument which could help protect the areas of biological importance
by associating it to appropriate portfolio. For your information, Cairn Energy, having
acquired the right to Oil and Gas exploration in Terai Arc Landscape (TAL), has plans to
initiate seismic work from this winter. In future, designating areas of biological
importance with some immune portfolio will possibly be the last resort to safeguard the
biological important areas of the country.

 Institutionalization of National Tiger Conservation Committee, Wildlife Crime Control

Bureau and South Asia Wildlife-Crime Enforcement Network (SAWEN)

 Adopting innovative technologies to curb

poaching and illegal trade (Satellite telemetry
and ID based monitoring

Biological Hotspots

• Biological hotspots are earth’s biologically

richest regions that harbour a great diversity
of endemic species and have been
significantly impacted and altered by human activities.

• Plant diversity is the biological basis for hotspot designation.

• To qualify as a hotspot, a region must meet two strict criteria: it must contain at least
1,500 species of vascular plants (> 0.5 percent of the world’s total) as endemics, and it
has to have lost at least 70 percent of its original habitat.

• Norman Myers in 1988 first identified ten tropical forest “hotspots” characterized both by
exceptional levels of plant endemism and by serious levels of habitat loss.

• In 1990 Myers added a further eight hotspots, including four Mediterranean-type

ecosystems.

Hotspots Revisited

68
 • Hotspots: Earth’s biologically Richest and Most Endangered Terrestrial Ecoregions
(1999), and a year later in the scientific journal Nature (Myers, et al. 2000), 25
biodiversity hotspots were identified.

• The updated analysis (2005) reveals the existence of 34 biodiversity hotspots, each
holding at least 1,500 endemic plant species, and having lost at least 70 percent of its
original habitat extent.

Coverage

• Overall, the 34 hotspots covered 15.7 percent of the Earth’s land surface.

• In all, 86 percent of the hotspots’ habitat has already been destroyed, such that the intact
remnants of the hotspots now cover only 2.3 percent of the Earth’s land surface.

• Examples: ‘Western Ghat and Sri Lanka’ and ‘Eastern Arc Mountain and Coastal Forests’
are two examples of biological hotspots.

• Western Ghat and Sri Lanka is the home to 2180 endemic plants and 355 endemic
vertebrates whereas Eastern Arc Mountain and Coastal Forests supports 1500 and 121
endemic plants and endemic vertebrates respectively.

Hotspots are not the only system devised for assessing global conservation priorities

• BirdLife International has identified 218 “Endemic Bird Areas” (EBAs) each of which
hold two or more bird species found nowhere else.

• The World Wildlife Fund-US has derived a system called the “Global 200 Ecoregions”,
the aim of which is to select priority Ecoregions for conservation.

• All hotspots contain at least one Global 200 Ecoregion and at least one EBA;

• 60 percent of Global 200 terrestrial Ecoregions and 78 percent of EBAs overlap with
hotspots.

Grazing and fire

Grazing Effects

• Herbaceous (dicotyledonous) plants grow from meristems in the stem and grazing will
remove many or most of the meristems and thus severely hinder growth

• Monocotylenous species such as grasses grow meristems at the base of the plant and thus
are less affected by grazing

• Grazing will tend to increase the proportion of monocot plants

69
Grazing and diversity

• Grazing can either increase or decrease species diversity

• If the dominant species is palatable then grazing will increase the diversity by reducing the
abundance of the dominant species

• If the dominant species is unpalatable then grazing will reduce the diversity by making the
dominant species even more common

Grazing Species

• Moderate grazing intensities can increase the structural complexity

• Different grazing species produce different effects

• Sheep nibble the vegetation to a uniform sward and their scattered faces have little impacts

• Cattle pull clumps of vegetation, often break the sward, and their dung have grater impacts

Trampling effects

• High level of trampling will encourage those plant species which are resistant to
trampling

• Extent of trampling depend upon the grazer

• Cattle are heavier than sheep, horses are active than cattle, youngs are active than old

Grazing Methods

Natural

• Using natural populations of wild species

• Preferred, realistic in large sites

Rotational

• Moving stock between areas

• Mosaic of different habitats can be created

• Use of ditches, fences

• Avoid areas in sensitive periods where ground nesting birds

Continuous

70
 • Keeping stock throughout the year

• Intense grazing-uniform short sward

Seasonal

• Restricting the grazing to certain seasons

• Grazing in winter-no effects on flowering

Spasmodic

• Beneficial in setting back succession

Fire

• Cheapest option for creating early successional habitat

• Mosaic of habitat by fire

• Breaking the seed dormancy, increased regeneration, reduce diseases, prevents large fires

• Burnt area-animals’ hub due to new sprouts

• Some species are intolerant of fire (pigmy hug)

Fire as a Tool

• Frequency, intensity, seasonality is imp.

• Small area first- experimental basis

• Create a fire breaks

• Season, temperature, wind speed and direction,

• Canopy fire spread over a large areas than surface fire

• Crown fires in coniferous forests due to resin smaller needles, branches etc

HABITAT MANAGEMENT

• Habitat is the combination of food resources, environmental variables, that promotes

occupancy by individual of a given species, allows them to survive and reproduce

• Habitat constitutes the subset of physical environmental factors that a species require for
its survival and reproduction
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Relative Terms used in Habitat ecology

• Biosphere: any part of earth where organism can exist, many biomes can be in one
biosphere

• Biome: habitat for several communities

• Habitat selection: choice among those available (to perform many activities)

• Habitat preference: choice of one habitat over another

• Habitat use: occupation of a given habitat without any preference

• Game management: “the art of making land produce sustained annual crops of wild game
for recreational use.” ALDO LEOPOLD (1933)

• Habitat types: Halo biotic (salt water)

Limno biotic (fresh water)

Geo biotic (terrestrial) /Biomes

“PURPOSEFUL”

• Many human activities affect wildlife, but most aren’t purposeful, For example: Habitat
destruction affects many populations and communities, but it’s not done
with that objective

• Wildlife management is not an inadvertent activity; it has specific goals and objectives

“HUMAN BEINGS”

• Wildlife management is primarily an anthropocentric (human-centered) activity (although

it also has a strong eco-centric component)

We set the goals, and they are usually intended to benefit us directly

Wildlife Conservation - Past to Future

Species Oriented Focus - Wildlife Management

 Large Game- Herbivore/ Predator

 Rare and Endangered

 Flagship

 Others - Indicators, Keystone

72
Ecosystem Approach

 Wider Range conservation approach such as

 Project Tiger

 Project Elephant

Participatory Conservation Approach

Revenue sharing for conservation, Developmental, Education, Income generating and

employment

Landscape level Conservation Approach

TAL, SHL, Trans-boundary cooperation

Multiple Use/Objectives

Biodiversity, Timber, NTFP / Grazing, People Need, Developmental, Education, Recreation

Two Keys to Our Success

A focus on Ecosystem Management Strategies, Management Priorities

 Enhance protection of ecosystems

 Restore deteriorated ecosystems

 Provide multiple benefits for people within ecosystem capabilities

 Enhance organization effectiveness

Effective communication and participation by all concerned

Habitat management: The art and science of creating, maintaining or enhancing conditions on
landscape to meet specified objectives for population of wildlife

The stability, increase or decline of wildlife species/or population depends directly on the
quality and extent of available habitat

“Wildlife management is the art and science of making decisions and taking actions to
manipulate wildlife to achieve specific human objectives.”

Basic considerations of Habitat Management

• Habitat inventory: What the habitat consists of?

73
• Habitat evaluation: How good is the habitat for study?

• Animals/or conservation objectives?

• Habitat monitoring: Is the habitat improving or deteriorating?

• Food: Adequacy of food supply, proper kind, available in sufficient

• quality at each season and stage of the animal cycle

• Water: it is crucial, available as open water, dew drops or at succulent plant parts, some are
water dependant

• Cover: essential factor-escape cover, reproductive cover, roosting cover, ambush cover or
for performing other behavioral activities

Objectives of habitat management

• To maintain and where necessary, restore the demographic indicators of growth relating
to populations of all endangered, endemic, rare, vulnerable species of plant and animal,
Species

• To maintain and where necessary, restore the catchment capability, Habitat

• To establish mechanism & create opportunities for enhancing management capability and
knowledge in wildlife sciences. Institutional

In consistence with above objectives,

• To enhance the quality of educational, recreational and wilderness experience, Tourism

• To secure the religious interest of the pilgrims and to maintain & restore where necessary
the integrity of cultural and historical monuments, Religious

• With sensitivity to cultural & economic well-being of the forest dwelling communities of
humans, to reduce their dependency on forest-based resources. Human beings

Key issues of management

• Habitat related: fragmentation, degradation, forest fire, grazing, NTFP

• Management related: poaching, man-animal conflict, enclave settlement, lop-sided

tourism

• Legal aspects: weakness/flaw in wildlife protection act, offence bailable/non- cognizable,

disposal of seized wildlife stock, use of fire arms, delayed justice, lack of knowledge on
other acts,
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 • Administrative: infrastructural constraints, vacancy of frontline staff, lack of coordination
with others, lack of training/trained staff, Lack of physical fitness/motivation level
amongst staff

• Constraint of release of fund

Managing key protection issues

Site specific

• PA Management:

 dynamic management of PA as per need,

 reduction of conflict/tribal management,

 habitat improvement: unburned patches-not used by rhinos

 BZ activities

• Habitat amelioration:

 consolidate of habitat,

 weed eradication,

 species specific plan filling,

 swamps/open grassy patches,

 water development,

 snags/logs

 Law enforcement: strict and empowered enforcement -staff, legal-Act, management-

future strategies: motivational, to curb poaching activities

Habitat factors:

Various habitat factors provide resources necessary for an organism to meet the demands
of existence

 those things which influence availability of resources like food, water, cover, etc are called
habitat factors

 factors could be either of biotic or abiotic

 Abiotic HF: soil, climate, geomorphology, topography, water

75
  Biotic HF: Plants, Animals & their interaction

Soil-as a habitat factor

• Life is rooted in the soil: soil is the very precious resource

• Indicators of soil quality: size/body, reproduction, disease resistance, Antlers’ size

Linear relationship

Soil-Wildlife interaction

In terms of micro and macro habitat

• Burrowing: Porcupine, Marmets

• Digging: in certain soil types for certain purpose

• Trampling: Nilgai, elephant/rhino, gaur

• Dung deposition: rhino, wetland birds

• Salt licks: elephant, deers

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Management of water for wildlife

Water requirement depend on: ambient air temperature, solar & thermal radiation, metabolic rate,
forage intake, amount & distribution of activity, physiological/behavioral/anatomical/
morphological adaptation (e.g. Black buck, chinkara-increase body temperature) and brain
resistance to heat stroke

Sources of water

1. Free water: river, stream, melted ice

2. Preformed: in food

3. Metabolic water: formed in body as a result of oxidation of organic compound that contain H2

4. Addition of water: water holes (common for arid areas)

5. Mitigate the loss of naturally occurring water: check dams, anicut, water harvesting structures,
treatment of water catchment

Trade off strategy for water management

1. Diversion- water course

2. One side protected intact from livestock

77
 3. Specify time-to use by livestock : mgmt strategies)

4. Supply water stored at difficult terrain to other convenient place

Approach towards water development

1. Compensatory development: new construction

2. Ameliorative management: make better

Fire- as a management tool

some case studies of Fire ecology/management

• Claude Martin-1975:Barsingha in Kanha

Extremely high grazing pressure by chittal, quick loss in post burn regeneration, severe
food shortage, regression in plant community

Burning was stopped-Animal numbers continued to increase-kept grass height low-

woodland invasion increased

Suggested periodic burning

• Andrew laurie-1976: Rhino in Chitwan & Kaziranga

Unburned patches: not used by rhinos

78
 Immediately after burning: rhinos started to eat

• Eric Dinnerstein-1979: Herbivore community in Karnali-Bardiya WLR

Annual fires induces grass growth at a time when grazing conditions are least favorable

Strongly advocates burning for herbivores

• Johnsingh-1976: Herbivores in Bandipur

Fire: growth of tender grass-influenced movement of elephant & gaur and frequent use of burned
patches

Post fire situation witnessed dramatic increase in group size of chittal

Frequently burned areas-predominance of thorny species

Suggested patchy but periodic burning of grasslands

• Allan Rodgers-1985: Sal forest in Dudhwa

Non-burning of Sal in Dudhwa after 1974-dense growth of unpalatable shrubs-Prevented

movement of Swamp deer to drier areas in monsoon-affected availability of forage

Rangelands management

• Rangelands are among the most important ecosystems in the Himalayas (Blamont 1996)

• Rangeland comprise grazing area including grassland, alpine meadow, pasture, scrubland,
and other non-forest vegetation area used for animal grazing, in which cultivation is not
suitable due to its climatic, topographic and other physical limitations (Clement & Young
2003)

What needs to know for RM

Inventory:

Developing a plan for using rangeland resources requires information about the
productive capability of the rangelands, current condition, intended use, and land owner
objectives

Practices:

The 1st consideration is management of the vegetation resource through the use of a
prescribed grazing system: periods of grazing, deferment, rest, animal impact, and levels of
use to bring about the desired changes

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The 2nd consideration is identifying those practices necessary to implement the desired prescribed
grazing system.

These practices help control or influence the movement of livestock necessary for uniform
distribution of grazing. These practices may include water developments, fencing, salting, stock
trails, and herding

Some of the practices to consider are seeding, brush management, prescribed burning, fertilizing,
mechanical treatment, and water spreading

CC: "How many cattle, sheep, horses, etc. can I graze on this land?“

Stocking Rate: the number of specific kinds and classes of animals grazing or utilizing a unit of
land for a specified time period, or animal unit months or animal unit days per acre, hectare, or
section, or the reciprocal (area of land/animal unit month or day)

Grazing capacity: the total number of animals which may be sustained on a given area based on
total forage resources available, including harvested roughages and concentrates.

Coordinated Resource Management:

It is a team approach at the local level that promotes active participation and input from everyone
concerned,

It is used as a tool for coordinating resource planning, management and educational activities
with local agencies, private landowners and others

Monitoring:

Once a plan is developed & the identified practices are being applied, the resource needs to be
monitored to see if the desired changes are occurring

Monitoring may be short term or long term

Major threats for Rangelands

• Declining quality of Rangelands

• Higher no. of livestock and insufficient Kharkas

• Colonization of white clover in the Kharkas

• Insufficient pasture infrastructures

• Low productivity of livestock population

• Human-wildlife conflict
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 • Livestock disease and lack of veterinary services

• Herder-herder conflict

• High consumption of fuel wood

• Limited mobility of milk collection center

Strategies of RL Management

1. Strengthen local institution like RMC

2. Implement Rangeland management practices

3. Use alternative sources of energy

4. Promote forage production and stall feeding

5. Animal health and improved breeds

POACHING AND ILLEGAL WILDLIFE TRADE IN NEPAL

First Meeting of the South Asia Expert Group on Illegal Wildlife Trade Kathmandu, Nepal

May 17 - 19, 2010

Animal Species in IUCN Red List ( Source: IUCN Red List Version 2010.1)

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CR CR CR CR CR CR CR CR

9 22 45 0 46 23 983 1128

Mammals Birds Reptiles Amphibians Fishes Other Total

32 32 7 3 1 1 76

Fauna Under CITES List:

Group Appendix I Appendix II Appendix III Total

Butterfly 3 3

Amphibians 1 1

Reptiles 8 10 18

Birds 16 94 1 111

Mammals 28 16 3 47

Total 52 124 4 180

 Twenty PAs of Nepal covering 23.10% of total land area

 CITES and Nepal:

Nepal joined CITES on 18 June 1975 (entered into force on 16 September 1975)

Authority in Nepal Fauna Flora

Management Authority Department of National Parks and Department of Forests,

Wildlife Conservation, Babarmahal, Babarmahal, Kathmandu
Kathmandu

Scientific Authority Natural History Museum Department of Plant

Swayambhu, Kathmandu Resources, Thapathali,
Kathmandu

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Rhino Mortality in Nepal: Rhino Horn and hooves

Tiger Skin and bone

Leopard Skin and bone

Musk deer Musk pod

Bear Bile

Otter Skin

Turtle Live

Birds Live

Major wildlife species and their parts in trade

Major Seizures and Arrest (2004 – 2009)

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Confiscated wildlife Items by Nepal Police:

Animal 2007 2008 2009/2010

Leopard’s skin 3 pcs 4 pcs. -

Tiger’s skin 7 pcs. 9 pcs. 5 pcs.

Tiger’s Bones 57 pcs. 8 pcs. -

Temple Bone (Tiger) 11 Pcs - -

Rhino horn 1 Pcs 1 pcs. -

Musk Pod 3 Pcs 3 pcs. 2 pcs.

Otter 2 Pcs - -

Deer skin - 2 pcs. -

Wild Animal horns& 25 8 pcs. -

other parts

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Animal skin items 33 - -

Python skin 1 - -

Bluesheep skin - - 1 pcs.

- - 650 pcs.

Kutki (Dactylorhiza) 84 gm - -

Animal bone - - 360 pcs.

Parrot 96 pcs. - -

Deer horn

Agencies Involved in Anti Poaching:

 Department of National Parks & Wildlife Conservation, Department of Forests

 National Parks and Wildlife Reserves, District Forest Offices, Nepal Army

 Nepal Police, Armed Police Force , Customs Offices, Revenue Investigation Department,
Foreign Post Office, National Investigation Bureau, Nepal Army

 Nepal Police, Armed Police Force, National Parks and Wildlife Reserves

 District Forest Offices

Supporting Agencies for Controlling Illegal Activities

 Department of Plant Resources, Natural History Museum

 National Forensic Laboratory, Nepal Academy of Science and Technology

 World Wildlife Fund, Nepal, National Trust for Nature Conservation

 Wildlife Conservation Nepal, Other conservation related NGO's and INGO’s

 Civil Society Organizations

Major Acts

 National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 1972

 Forest Act 1993

 Export Import (Control) Act 1961

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  Customs Act 2007

 Environmental Protection Act 1997

NPWC Act 1972 Provisions

 Hunting is banned (other than Hunting Reserve),

 Trade in Wildlife and its parts and derivatives is illegal,

 Any person committing an offence shall be punishable with a fine of up to NRs. 100
thousands, or imprisonment up to 15 years or both

 Chief Warden/Warden have the power to hear the case

Protected Animals in NPWC Act 1972

Protected Animals:

 Twenty seven Mammal Species, Nine Bird Species and Three Reptile Species

Law Enforcement

2002 to date: In Chitwan alone more than 400 poachers, mediators and traders of rhino horns,
tiger skin and bones were arrested and punished according to the NPWC act 1972.

PA Management Plan:

Name of PA Plan period

Bardia NP 2007-2011

Chitwan NP 2007-2011

Kanchenjunga CA 2006-2011

Koshi Tappu WR 2010-2014

Makalu Barun NPBZ 2005-2010

Rara NP 2009-2013

Sagarmatha NP 2007-2012

Shey Phoksundo NP 2006-2011

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Suklaphanta WR 2007-2012

Annapurna CA 2009-2012

Makalu Barun NP 2004-2009

Khaptad NP, Shivapuri Nagarjun NP

Krishnasar CA

Langtang NP

Parsa WR

Dhorpatan HR
Gauri Shankar CA, Api Nappa CA,
Manaslu CA

Species Conservation Action Plans:

Species Period

Rhino 2006-2010

Tiger 2008-2012

Snow Leopard 2004-2014

Vulture 2010-2014

Elephant 2010-2019

Initiatives

 GoN has recently consented to CITES Bill

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  CITES Units in DNPWC and DoF

 CITES coordination meetings, trainings, workshops

 Informer’s network in strategic areas in place

 Sensitize political parties and leaders

 Conservation education and public awareness

 Wildlife Research and periodic monitoring

 Intensive block monitoring (ID based monitoring)

 Regular and intensive patrolling (MIST)

 Support from Partner Organizations

Regional and Global Cooperation

 Transboundary meetings at National and local level

 Organizing Global and Regional Workshops/Meetings

 Building partnership/collaboration (Such as Rhino Expert Group Meeting)

National Tiger Conservation Committee (Proposed):

 To be chaired by Rt. Hon. Prime Minister of Nepal and comprises Hon. Ministers and
Secretaries of Home and Forests Ministry, COAS, IG of Nepal Police and Armed Police
and DG/DNPWC

 Responsible for high level coordination, policy guidance, facilitate and support for Tiger
conservation

Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (Proposed)

 Establish crime control intelligence network, Wildlife trade monitoring

 Exercise legal powers, Coordination among agencies

 Assist concerned authorities for law enforcement

Updates and Amendments

 Amendment of National Red List of Mammals

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  Amendment of NPWC Act 1972

 Amendment of protected species list

Way Forward:

 Monitoring of wildlife trade in cities/customs,

 Capacity enhancements of enforcement agencies

 Strengthening anti-poaching operations

 Cooperation and support among law enforcement agencies within and between country

 Community stewardship

National Tiger Recovery Plan: Nepal

 Top predator in the food pyramid,

 Umbrella species,

 Flagship of Terai PAs,

Status

 Protected (NPWC Act 2029)

 Endangered (IUCN Red List)

 Appendix I (CITES)

Distribution:

Tigers in peril

 40% habitat loss over last decade

 93% of the tiger’s original range has been lost in the past 150 years,

 Only 11% of original habitat remains in Indian subcontinent,

 Ca. 100,000 in 1900 to 35,000 in 1960s to 3,200 today

Wild Tigers in Crisis?

Main threats:

- Loss of habitat and prey base, Poaching, Trade , Human-Tiger conflict

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 Tiger Conservation Action Plan

Goal
: to preserve, recognize, restore and increase the effective land base that supports
tigers in Nepal, to maintain a viable tiger population

Objectives
• Tiger and prey information
• Habitat management
• Conflict resolution
• Anti-poaching operations
• Trans-boundary cooperation

Objectives
 Increase tiger population to at least 250 adults by 2020
 Maintain, restore and conserve at least 6,500 km2 of additional tiger habitats
 Reduce national and international trade of tiger parts and products and control poaching

Landmarks in Nepal’ tiger conservation

 Enactment of NPWC Act and Regulations
 Establishment of protected areas in Nepal’s Inner/Terai
 Tiger conservation action plan
 Management plans
 Inclusion of Armed force
 Launching of TAL
 Buffer zone initiative
 Taking lead amongst in Global Tiger Forum
 Tiger, preybase and habitat monitoring
Trans-boundary Cooperation
 Transboundary meetings at National and local level,
 Fostering cooperation with neighboring countries,
 Organizing Global and Regional Workshops/Meetings,
 Building partnership/collaboration

Year of The Tiger-2010

• Kathmandu Global Tiger Workshop (Oct 2009)

• Asian Ministerial Conference - Thailand (Jan

2010)

• Summit of Range State Leaders during the Year of

the Tiger (Sept. 2010)

Kathmandu Recommendations

 Secure core tiger breeding areas

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  Ensure local support in favor of tiger conservation

 Develop innovative sustainable financing mechanisms

 Build institutional capacity

 Significantly reduce poaching and illegal trade Reduce demand for tiger parts

Nepal’s Commitments During KGTW

• Formation of National Tiger Conservation Committee

• Establishment of Wildlife Crime Control Bureau

• Declaration of Banke National Park

Experiences from India

• Project Tiger since 1973, 38 Tiger Reserves in India

• National Tiger Conservation Authority and Wildlife Crime Control Bureau legally
approved on 17th of September 2006,

• National Board for Wildlife chaired by Prime Minister (45 members),

Tiger Task Force (2005)

TAL: Priority Conservation Landscape

 Core Tiger Breeding Areas as ‘No Go’ Zone for development projects,

 Buffer as multiple use zone,

 Corridors as conservation and restoration zone,

 Bottlenecks as conservation friendly land use

Banke National park

 Commitments from Government of Nepal during KGTW

 National Park: 550 sq. km. & Buffer Zone 344 sq. km

 Suitable habitat for Tiger

National Tiger Conservation Committee (16 May, 2010)

 Chaired by Prime Minister and Minister for Forests and Soil Conservation as Member
Secretary, Ministers of Home, Finance, Environment, Defense and Law and Justice
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 Ministries, Chief Secretary of GoN, two national/international tiger experts nominated by
the Committee and a high level representative of national/international organization
contributing to tiger conservation in Nepal nominated by the Committee

Objectives: Policy guidance and high level coordination

Prop. Wildlife Crime Control Bureau

 Central level body, Equipped mobile squad with full fledged legal authority

 To control and check illegal trade of wildlife and their parts,

Transboundary Cooperation

• India and Nepal join hands for biodiversity conservation, 29 July 2010, Kathmandu,
Nepal

• Nepal signs MoU with china for biodiversity

conservation, 3 June 2010, Beijing, China

Global Tiger Recovery Plan

Asia’s most iconic animal faces imminent extinction in the

wild. Tiger numbers have plummeted from about 100,000 a
century ago, to about 35,000 in the 1970s, to below 3,500
today, and they continue to fall

TRC, Range and TCLs

• At present, suitable habitat for wild tigers covers about 1.2 million km2 in 13 Tiger Range
Countries (TRCs) in Asia: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Lao
PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russian Federation, Thailand and Vietnam.

• Mostly forest, this habitat has been categorized as 76 Tiger Conservation Landscapes
(TCLs).

GTRP Goal

• To reverse the rapid decline of wild tigers toward extinction and to strive to double the
number of wild tigers (Tx2) across their range by 2022 (3,566 tigers to 5,835, 64%)

• The Tx2 goal embodies the larger goals of conserving and managing sustainably 1.2
million km2 of forest habitat and 115 inviolate core breeding areas, including 42 source
sites, covering about 135,000 s km2.

Nepal NTRP Goal and Activities

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 • 250 adult tigers by 2022

• Manage the TAL as a priority conservation landscape

• Controlling prey and tiger poaching

• Institutional strengthening and capacity building

• Tiger human conflict and community engagement

• Scientific monitoring, research and surveys

• Tran boundary management

Policy and Institutional

• Amend the NPWC Act 1973 and Forest Act 1993 to enable landscape conservation

• Gazette the TAL as a priority conservation landscape and place TAL conservation as a
high-profile feature in the political agenda

• Establish a National Tiger Conservation Committee (NTCC), WCCB, and SAWEN

• Create separate and specialized wildlife conservation and enforcement units.

Restoration Ecology

Ecological Restoration

• process of intentionally altering a site to establish a defined, indigenous, historic ecosystem

• Emulate the structure, function, diversity and dynamics of the specified ecosystem

Habitat Restoration

• Causes of habitat degradation

– Natural (flooding, fire, volcanoes): recover through succession

– Human-induced: recovery is unlikely, ability to recover is

severely limited

No Action in situation where,

• Restoration is too expensive

• Previous attempts of restoration have failed

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 • Experience has shown that it recovers of its own

Restoration

• Restoration of the area to its original species composition and structure by an active
program of reintroduction, in particular by planting and seeding of the original plant
species

Rehabilitation

• To restore at least some of the ecosystem functions and some of the original species, for
example, replacing a degraded forest with a tree plantation

Replacement

• Replacement of a degraded ecosystem with another productive ecosystem type; for

example, replacing a degraded forest area with a productive pasture

Vegetation restoration

• Seeding

• Plantation of seedling: seedling 1m ht, less susceptible to fire, grazing etc. and grow
quickly

• Construct/maintain fire breaks

• Fencing to protect from browsing herbivores

• Seed tree stands nearby –fruiting trees- all years round of wildlife

• Grassland by cutting, uprooting, girdling ( ring cutting/ bark cutting)

Translocation :

Translocation is the deliberate movement of individuals to an existing population of con-

specifics. It is a deliberate and mediated movement of wild individuals or populations from one
part of the range to another.

It is simply introduction of species into wild, generally, outside its range but into suitable habitat.

Conservation\Benign Introduction

• An attempt to establish a species for the purpose of conservation outside its recorded
distribution but within an appropriate habitat and eco-geographical area.

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• This is a feasible conservation tool when there is no remaining area left within a species
historic range.

• Introduction may be useful in stocking new or artificially altered habitats for example where
dams or irrigation projects have created new lakes or swamps.

Reintroduction

• is an attempt to establish a species in an area which was once part of its historic range but
from which it has become extinct. The principle objective is to create new population.

Reestablishment

It implies that the reintroduction has been successful. Simply it is an introduction of species back
into the wild area that has been used by the species previously.

Reinforcement/Supplementation

It is the addition of individuals to an existing population of conspecifics.

Translocation

3 main circumstances:

• where land development is about to destroy wildlife habitat and translocation is seen as a
possible way,

• where a wild population is not faring well and the manager wishes to boost its numbers and

• Where a manager decides to split a population to reduce the risk of losing the entire
population.

Success:

• Greater for game species (86%) than for threatened, endangered and sensitive species (44%)

• Greater for release in excellent quality habitat (84%) than in poor quality habitat (38%)

• Greater in the core of the historic range (78%) than at the periphery of and outside the
historic range (48%)

• Greater with wild caught (75%) than with captive bred animals (38%)

• Greater for herbivores (77%) than for carnivores (48%)

(Source: Griffin et al 1989: 198 birds and mammals reintroduction program conducted between
1973 and 1986)

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Examples:

• 83 Rhinos to BNP and 4 Rhinos to SWR have been translocated from CNP between 1986 and
2003 (DNPWC, 2007a).

Rhino Translocation in Nepal

S.N. Year Sex Destination Total

Male Female

1 1986 8 5 BNP 13

2 1991 8 17 BNP 25

3 1999 4 0 BNP 4

4 2000.3 5 5 BNP 10

5 2000.11 3 3 BNP 6

6 2000.11 1 3 SWR 4

7 2001.3 2 3 BNP 5

8 2002.3 4 6 BNP 10

92003 4 6 BNP 10

TOTAL 39 48 87

• 43 Blackbuck Antilope cervicapra were translocated to Bagoura Phanta of BNP from Central

• Zoo, Kathmandu in 1977-79 and 1992 (DNPWC, 2007b).

• 19 barking deer were translocated to Jaudhike and Panimuhan area of ShNNP from DRC,
Godawari in November 2007

• 81 spotted deer were translocated from DRC Godawari to PWR in November 2007

• More than 708 Gharial crocodiles were released in Koshi, Gandaki, Karnali, Babai, Rapti and
Narayani since 1978

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Unit 5 Monitoring Biodiversity
4.1 Population Monitoring

4.1.1 Direct Method: Direct counts, Vantage point Sampling, Sweeping techniques,
flushing

4.1.2 Indirect Method

Camera Trapping Surveys

• In traditional capture-recapture studies, target species (fish, birds, reptiles, mammals) are
usually marked using artificial tags or bands.

• However, tigers have natural body markings in the form of stripes, which allow us to
identify individually.

• Setting out camera traps within some area of interest

• Cover the area fairly completely (no holes)

• In most camera trapping situations, it would be unwise to trap for only two sample
period. Traps are set for several consecutive days. Each day is considered as a sample
period.
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Lincoln-Peterson 2-sample estimator:

• N= n1*n2/m

Where, N= total number in the sampled population, n1=Number of individuals caught and
released in occasion 1 (eg, 7), n2= Number of individuals caught and released on occasion 2 (eg
5), m= Number of animals recaptured in occasion 2 (animals caught at both occasions) (eg, 2)

• Then, N= 7*5/2 = 18

If sample size is small, N= [(n1+1)(n2+1)/(m+1)]-1

• Then, N=[(8*6)/3]-1 = 15

Assumptions

– Pop is closed, All animals have equal catchability

– Marks are not lost and gained

K-smaple closed population capture-recapture models

Closed population models

• These models are used when no gains to, or losses from the population occurred between
sampling occasions.

• Generally, these models applied for studies of shorter period, usually less than 90 days.

• It satisfied two conditions; demographically closed (no birth and no death) and
geographically closed (no emigration and no immigration).

Open population models

• These models are used when there are gains, losses or both occurring between sampling
periods.

• Typically used for longer time intervals.

Density Estimation

• Density D= estimated number of animals (N)/sampled area (A)

• Where A is area of core camera trap polygon. Actually, it should be more than that. So,
the Density:

D= N/A*W

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 • Where W is effective strip width which is calculated by averaging the sum of mean
maximum distance traveled by tigers who have captured twice or more. AW is the
effective area for estimation of density.

Example:

• Suppose, camera trap polygon area (Minimum convex polygon method)=142.37 sq. km.
and mean maximum distance traveled by tigers is 4.31. Then effective strip
width=4.31/2=2.16

• Then, effective area (AW)= 282.02

• Density (D)= 33/282.02 = 0.117

• Density of 11 tigers per 100 sq. km.

Survey Design Considerations

Time: keep it Short, so assumptions for closed population models not violate.

Space:

• Adequate number of camera +small area: Then camera traps can be spread throughput the
area

• No enough traps + very frequent (daily) movement of traps is possible: Then area divide
into grid cells, then X grids=Day 1, new X grids= Day 2 ………….

• No enough traps + moderate movement of camera is possible: then Block division e.g., 1-
4, Block 1:1-5 days, Block 2:1-5 days……

• No enough camera + movement is not possible: then Block A (5-15 days), Block B (5 to
15 days) then after……complete the area

Data Analysis

• Capture history is formed after individual identification of tigers and then the capture
history is fed into computer program CAPTURE.

CAPTURE

• Software for closed population capture-recapture model

• Estimates of abundance under 7 models

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 • Sources of variation in capture probability:

– individual heterogeneity,

– behavioral response and

– time

• Individual heterogeneity: variation in capture probability among individuals

• Behavioral response: changes in capture probability that occur after an individual is

caught for the first time

• Time variation: variation in capture probability from one sampling occasion to another

Models

• M0 assumes no variation in capture probability with individuals or occasion

• Mh permits a different capture probability for each individual

• Mb permits a different capture probability for unmarked and previously marked animals
(trap-shyness and trap-happy)

• Mt assumes variation in capture probability from one sampling occasion to another

• Mtb, Mbh, Mth: two sources of variation in capture probability

• Mtbh: three sources of variation

CAPTURE

• Computes goodness-of-fit and between-model test statistics (M0 vs Mt, M0 vs Mt, M0 vs

Mb)

• Computes closure test statistics

DISTANCE

 Line transect survey data can be analysed

 Models: Half-normal, uniform cosine

 Choose estimate with lower Akaikr Information Criterion (AIC)

Sign Survey

Animals have Ears.

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This is jungle, Barren yet beautiful; Quite but noisy; Peaceful but dangerous; Here, people speak
in whisper, Not out of fear but with respect.

Sign Survey

• Wildlife Biologist is first and foremost the good observer: Keen observation rather than
measurements

• Terestrial, arboreal, fossorial: look all sides.

• Most often animals are not seen, but their signs are

• Depends on substrate conditions: easy in dusty road, sandy riverbed, alluvial soil but
difficult if unsuitable soil, rainfall and leaf litter

• Fewer scats than tracks

• Best season and month: less leaf litter

• Sign in case of terrestrial animals

• Territorial animal leaves signs: not all animals are territorial and leave signs (anti-
predator strategy). Signs in breeding seasons.

• Age of sign: very fresh, fresh, old, very old (relic and non-relic site)

• Time of survey: Most of the animals active during early morning and late evening (Diurnal)

• Single animal leaves multiple signs: Site or sign.

Sign Survey: Matter of Chance

 Field crew may not find any signs at all: pls recognize that such outcomes are not unusual

 Not finding signs does not necessarily mean that the crew team is not doing its job

 It also does not necessarily mean that animals are absent from the area

Sign Survey: Do not Guess

 Donot guess: take specimen and photographs

 Bad data: false conclusions

 Much better off without any data

 Record sampling efforts (starting and ending time)

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 Presence-Absence Survey

 Presence-absence survey

 Estimating the area occupancy

 Mapping the habitat

 Observability: signs can be missed

 Presence is assumed to be determined without error, such that detection of sign of one
species are not confused with sign of other species

 Absence can reflect either true absence OR presence with non-detection of sign

Types of Observation

Direct observation (No.)

2 Pug marks (main sign) Left hind foot

3 Droppings (scats, dungs, pellets) Small Sambar =large chital, Goat pellet=chital pellet,
pugmark of adult leopard and tiger cub

4 Marking (urinating, scraping, digging, claw marks on trees etc)

5 Feeding or grazing (Grazers or browsers)

6 Call, sound (communication, attract opposite sex, threaten predators)

7 Carcass (Double advantages, killing, scavenging: tiger Throat/neck bite)

8 Other. Define in remarks.

Estimating Observability

 Multiple independent observers on different day OR different time

 Multiple visits by one observer

5.2 Habitat Monitoring

Habitat Selection

What? Why?

• Behavioral response/process that may result in the disproportionate use of habitats

• Principle aim is to influence the fitness and survival

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 • Heterogeneous habitats-some good while others bad- better fitness in good whereas give
lower fitness in bad habitats

Causes

• Habitat selection is due to;

– Differences in food availability

– Differences in predator occurrence

– Differences in ease of defense

– Differences in likelihood of offspring survival

– Microclimatic variations

– Disturbance level etc

Habitat Selection

• Some group of animals are much more habitat specific than others

• The extent to which a habitat can fulfill the requirements of an animal determine habitat
selection

• Habitat selection is affected by factors like abundance and quality of food, suitability of
weather, shelter against extremes of weathers, escape cover for predators etc

• Habitat use is the way an animal uses (or consumes) a collection of physical and
biological components in a habitat

Sexual Selection

• As a special subset of natural selection or as a type of natural selection in which

reproductive success among individuals is determined by the way in which mating occurs

• All sexually reproducing animals seek reproductive partners, or mates, who will enable
them to enhance their reproductive success.

• It is the selection of males (females) for trials which are solely concerned with increasing
mating success

• Sexual selection results in morphological distinction of the sexes, or sexual dimorphism.

• Reproductive behavior can favor the evolution of traits that the attractiveness of
individuals to members of other sex.

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 • Anderson (1982) explained that females of many species exhibit strong preferences for
particular male characteristics. Experiment on effects of tail length of widow-birds,
female choose male with long tail and found that success of mating was higher in birds
that had elongated tails.

Handicapped Principle

• Zohari (1975) postulated good genes hypothesis. He suggested that male display indicates
some components of male fitness. E.g., bright coloring or long tail in mail bird indicates a
lack of parasites. Display characters serve as a signal to females that this particular male
has good genes.

• Long tail of peacock is a handicap for day to day survival and it acts as an advertisement
of the quality of male for the female. Longer tails are preferred by females.

Habitat Suitability Assessment

Habitat Suitability Index

• It was first developed by National Ecology Resource Centre (USFWS-Clorado).

• HSI is a formalized synthesis of biological and habitat information published in

literatures.

The suitability index value ranges from 0 to 1 (unsuitable to optimum habitat)

Musk Deer habitat Suitability Index

Requirements:

 Sub alpine/alpine areas/Adjacent to timberline

 Vegetation: Oak, conifers, birch, rhododendron

 Lichen as food species+grass+browse+mosses

• Water: wet mosses are required, Rocky terrain

• Glacier river valleys with moist scrub and pastures

HSI

• Then we can develop HSI in the form of a equation such as

• HIS musk deer = [{V1+V2+V3}/3*V4*(V5)2]*V6

Where, V1,V2………..are variable defined as the requirements of musk deer.

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Model Applicability

• It is based on site/landscape, season, cover types etc

• Model testing is critical.

5.3 Management effectiveness of protected areas

Management effectiveness of Protected Areas

• defined as the assessment of how well protected areas are being managed

• It includes:

– Design issues

– Adequacy and appropriateness of mgt system and processes

– Delivery of PA objectives

Why MEE?

• Growing concern amongst PA professionals that some PAs are not achieving their
objectives and some losing the values

• CBD POWPA (2004) calls on Parties to

implement MEA for at least 30% of their Pas by 2010

• To fulfill reporting requirement like MDG, BT 2010

etc

• To apply results for adaptive

management

Context

• Status and Threats (Where are we now?)

• Assessment tools:

Identifying the site values, Identifying threats, Relationship with stakeholders, Review of
national context

Planning

• Where do we want to be and how will we get there?

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 • Assessment tools:

Assessment of management planning

Design assessment

Inputs, Proceeses

Inputs

• What do we need?

• Allocation of resources

• Assessment of management needs and inputs

Processes

• How do we go about it?

• Assessment of management processes

Outputs

• What did we do and what G&S were produced?

• Assessment of mgt. plan implementation

• Assessment of works/site output indicators

Outcomes

• What did we achieve?

• Assessing the outcomes of the mgt: ecol. integrity

• Assessing the outcomes of mgt: Achievement of principle objectives

Main Activities in an MEA

1. Compile relevant data

2. Undertake any quick and inexpensive activities

3. Identify monitoring and data gaps

4. Compile and analyze worksheet through using data and meeting and consultations

5. Adapt and improve management 9Adaptive management)

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Unit 6 Human Dimensions in Biodiversity Conservation
Concept:

Relationship between human and wildlife

Impacts (positive & negative)

Conflict management

• Human beings – a member of animal Kingdom

As mammals, we have been predators and predated

• Animal + Brain = Human

• Wildlife for food

• Wildlife for recreation

• Wildlife for religious purpose

• Wildlife for income

Why we value animals?

• We have relied on wildlife as valuable resources for >99% of human history

• Today, we value wildlife in 2 basic ways:

– Instrumental value: We still value animals that are useful to us because they help us
achieve our own goals (an anthropocentric view)

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 – Intrinsic value: We also value animals in their own right, regardless of their usefulness (a
bio-centric view)

Basic attitudes Knowledge of

Towards animals Animals

Preferences for Values attributed

Certain animals to animals

Relationship between Human and Wildlife

Bio – physical situation

 Socio economic

 Cultural and religious

 Ethic and education

 Policy

We generally prefer animals that are:

– beautiful, intelligent, related to us, large, useful, economically valuable, not threatening,
not predatory, graceful

Human use of wild resource

Bio – physical situation

• As the life style changes from rural to urban the dependence on wild resources reduced

• Use of wild resources changes according to distance to these resources

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 • Women and indigenous people have special relationship with wild wildlife resources

Change in relationship

• In early stage of human civilization

– Heavy dependency in wild resources/raw/for survival

• In the later stage -

– domestication/processed/ subsistence/commercial purposes

• Subsistence - commerce

 Livelihood purpose - economic purpose

 No. of chicken may be many times more than jungle fowl.

 Banana and rice are more grown in the agriculture field than in the wild

 Buffalo, goat are more produced in the farm than in the forest

Production and protection of

biological resources

HISTORICAL CHANGES IN
ATTITUDES

Socio – economic situation

• Wild resources- simply not be

looked at and admired but
something that
(must)contribute to human
livelihood
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• Used both for subsistence and commerce

 Nutritional well being: Supplements seasonal food deficiency,

 Insurance against hunger: Acts as a buffer against drought and famine, food security

 Source of energy and building materials

 Preventive and curative health care

 Source of cash income

• Gross worth of a Lion in Amboseli National Park, Kenya – US$ 27, 000/year

• A elephant heard is estimated as worth as 610, 000/year

• About 50, million worth of wild meat (pig) derived every year by Sarawak Villagers in
Indonesia.

– Overall 42 mammal species of international conservation concern have been

identified in the commercial African bush meat trade.

• Use of wild resources in Tanzania in 1988 was estimated to US$ 120 million

What would be a gross value of a Rhino in CNP?

Use of wildlife

• Central African Republic- 30 –40 % of meat consumed is from wildlife

• Liberia- 75% of the estimated total meat production approx. 105 000 tonnes/year

• Botswana – 50 species of wild animal, 40% of diet

• Ghana – 75% of the populations depends on wildlife protein, 80% fresh meat consumed
from bush meat.

• Zaire- 75% of the animal protein comes from wild animals

• Nigeria – 20% protein comes from wild animals.

• 100 million tons of wild fish harvested annually in the world

• 100, 000 tones of giants rat consumed every year in Nigeria

• Over 3 million kg of springhare are eaten every year in Botswana

Poorest suffer the most if biodiversity is lost.

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Killing wild animals: for
rich – fun, for poor - food

GENDER AND
ATTITUDES

In Africa, lion is the most

problem animal in male
perspective where as for
female farmer it is
elephant.

Religion and Culture

• Religion and shape

our attitude and
action towards nature/wildlife

• Christianity is more hostile to nature (believe on human supremacy on other living beings
(‘Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it’- genesis 1:28)

• Hinduism believes on the survival rights of all living beings (Basudhiva Kutumbakam)

• Buddhism believes on non valiance and considered to be the most eco friendly religion in
the world.

• Religion and cultural practices attach special values to different species. For example
elephant, rat, snakes, lion, tiger

• Wildlife plays a vital role in cultural activities e.g annual hunting of Satter tribes in
Nepal, Masai tribes in Kenya

CULTURAL VIEWS OF WHALING

• Immigrants exploit the wild resource

indiscriminately while indigenous
community lives in harmony.

• Example: Killing of American Bison

to reduce food supply to Red Indians
and to expand agricultural land in
Great Northern Plains of USA.

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 • Over 8.5 million bison were shot dead in 1871-73. Boson population dropped from 60
million to 150 within 30 yrs, (1869-1889)

• 15 million passenger pigeon shipped to market in 1861

Resource Management and Governance Policies

• Establishment of PAs

– traditional users turns into poachers

• Resettlements

• Community based resource conservation initiatives

– Community forestry programme

– BZ programme

Ethic and Education

• Human beings as a supreme creature has responsibility to save other forms of lives or
not?

• Need or greed, which we want to fulfill?

• Compassion to nature

• Compulsion - Better future to coming generation

• Understanding the complex system

 Conservation – democracy of living beings including human beings

 Democracy – democracy to human beings only

 Democracy respect diversity so as conservation can succeed in democracy.

• ‘Nature can fulfill everyone’s needs but not their greed’- Mahatma Gandhi

• ‘Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. What ever we
do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together All things connect….”
Chief Seattle

• ‘To do violence to the Earth is inevitably to do violence to its human inhabitants’- DA

Coleman

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 • “Civilization is a state of mutual and interdependent cooperation, between human
animals, other animals, Which may disrupted at any moment by the failure of any of
them” Aldo Leopold

Human-wildlife relationship

• How we interact with wildlife influences our relationship with wildlife

• Differences exist between different cultures

• Changes take place over time

• Education, Benefits

Park people relationship – key observations

In CNP:

• All studies suggest that people are not against park. They are only unhappy with the
approach of park management

• People close to park are more negative towards park than distance inhabitants

• Adult (> 40 yrs) are more negative than youth

• Women and indigenous people are more negative

• Educated are more positive to park

• Reduction/compensation of personal losses by wildlife

In Africa:

• Reducing conflicts between wildlife and people is likely to reduce the negative attitudes
that many communities have towards wildlife and conservation.

• Improving food security by reducing wildlife related impacts on crops and livestock will
also reduce the need to seek alternative sources of food, such as hunting of wildlife.

Negative Impacts – conservation at whose costs?

Hardship in people’s livelihood

1. Restriction to use of forest products and Public rights of way

2. Relocation - From Mugu district to Bardiya/Banke (about 20 thousand hh (?) were relocated
to establish various national PAs in Nepal).

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3. Lives and property damage including livestock losses – free food

4. Crop damage – farm field: free forage

5. Degradation of forests outside PAs

– PAs slowly turning into green islands

– more than 88% of all elephant sites are less than 500 m from the settlements

Cost of conservation: lives and property damage

88 people were killed by tiger in CNP between 1979-2006

 Intensity of crop damage is high within 0.5 Km from the park boundary

 About 88% settlement reported cereal damage

 Out of 37, 4 VDCs loss 200 – 700 ton crop every year.

 Farmer living close to the CNP lose about 800 kg crop /hh/year

Major wild animals which cause crop damage in Nepal:

Park/Reserve Wildlife (> 90% of the

damages)

KTWR Wild buffalo

PWR Deer and wild boar

CNP Rhino and deer

BNP Elephant, deer and wild boar

SWR Deer

Losses from wildlife in USA

• 75, 000 people get injured or become ill every year

• 415 die/year

• US$ 3 billion economic loss every year from wildlife damage

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 – More than $ 367 million damage to timber by white tailed deer

– $ 1 billion to repair automobile

• Total crop damage - $ 533 million (1989 price)

– Livestock - $160 million, Crop - $ 274 million

Vegetable - $ 53 million

Example from Canada:

• Between 1994 -2003, 54 people lost their lives in vehicle collisions with wildlife in
Ontario.

• The number of reported vehicle-wildlife collisions increased from 7,388 in 1994 to

13,729 in 2003; an increase of 86 percent.

• The cost of wildlife damages on Ontario farms was over $41 million in 1998.

 For managers it is endanger but for people it is danger

Human –wildlife conflicts also inflect wildlife losses

• On average, 100-150 elephants die every year in Sri Lanka due to intense human-elephant
conflict (source:http://www.elephantconservation.org/downloads/pdf/SaveElephants.pdf. 17
Dec 2009)

• Between 1979 and 2006, out of 37 tigers involved in killing people in CNP; 17 were
removed because of their man-eating behavior (Gurung et al 2006)

Cost - benefits relationship

Conflicts

‘Jantu thulo ke Janata thulo Sarkar ‘

• Illegal grazing and cutting of trees

• Poaching/killing

• Bad park- people relation: covert and

overt

Conflicts - different perspectives

Understanding root causes of conflicts

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 The conflict between national park and local people is rooted in the conception of park as
areas without human habitation.

 A study carried out by Machlis and Tchnell in 100 parks from 49 countries identified 1611
specific threats to parks. The fundamental issues in these conflicts is the customary rights of
use of park resources by the local people

 Local people have seen the park as an attempt by the government to curtail their access to
traditional rights of resources use.

Conflict is an interaction of competing interests and values

“Conflict is not necessarily a bad thing. It some times provide an opportunity to draw a range of
parties together to resolve issue, share information and come to understand each other’s hope and
aspirations. Compromises produced by conflict resolution may be better for the environment
than decision nobody respect”- Park for life

A good conflict resolution process is one in which stakeholders have the opportunity to really understand
each other’s needs, develop a range of alternatives for how to address those needs, and reach a
mutually agreeable solution.

Situation Park People Outcomes

Conflict resolved with Win Win Sustainable conservation

agreement

Conflict resolved with Lose win Lose of biodiversity

public pressure

Conflict resolved by force Win Lose Park offences and conflicts

Conflict not resolved Lose Lose Destruction of resources in long

run

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Conflict management

• Avoidance theoretically involves inaction or attempts to avoid responsibility. The implicit

avoidance policy has been especially frustrating for farmers.

• Prevention is usually possible and realistic through preventive infrastructures.

• Reduction plans involve assumptions that conflicts are inevitable and that conflict-resolution
mechanisms should be established in advance to minimize the impact of wildlife-related
losses.

• Elimination means total removal of conflict, which is possible - but not without killing or
controlling all animals.

Ten principles of successful partnerships/conflict resolution (Mc Neely J, 1995)

1. Provide benefits to local people – include the provision of benefits to local people as essential
elements of their support to protected areas

2. Meet local needs - make provision in policy to facilitate people’s needs

3. Plan holistically – harmonies social with the protected area management

4. Plan protected area as a system – integrated in broader land use management planning

5. Define objectives for management – which category of PAs and define management
interventions

6. Plan site management individually with linkages to the system - No blanket approach

7. Manage adaptively – Adopt dynamic planning approach

8. Foster scientific research – carry out ecological as well as socio economic research

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9. Form networks of supportive institutions - a range of different institutional arrangements can
contribute to national conservation goals. Expand conservation constituencies

10. Build public support – ensure that information about how PAs are meeting society’s needs is
communicated to wider

Conflict to coexistence

Multiple strategies:

A combination of prevention and reduction strategies including land-use planning, fencing,

problem-animal control, benefit sharing and compensation appears to be the best long term
strategy for managing conflict.

Multiple institutions:

Interdisciplinary collaboration, as well as collaboration between sectors, is critical to improving

the understanding of underlying causes needed to shift the emphasis from reactive mitigation of
conflict to proactive prevention strategies.

Approaches to address HWC

• A united effort

– In order to be truly effective, prevention of HWC has to involve the full scope of
society: international organizations, governments, NGOs, communities, consumers and
individuals.

• Land-use planning

– If we plan properly, there's room for everyone. Ensuring that both humans and animals
have the space they need is possible. Protecting key areas for wildlife, creating buffer
zones and investing in alternative land uses are some of the solutions.

• Community Based Natural Resource Management

– The local community is key. If people are empowered to manage their relationship with
wild animals, these "unwanted" neighbors can become allies in bringing income and
promoting a better quality of life for all.

• Compensation / insurance

– Compensation or insurance for animal-induced damage is another widely accepted

solution.

– In Kenya, US$ 545 for human death and US$ 273 for human injury

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 – West Bengal the relief rate per death by elephant is US$ 2051 (IRs. 100,000.00), US$
1021 (IRs. 50,000.00) for permanent disability.

– Nepal – Rs 150 000 for death, Rs. 50 000 in case of serious injury, max. Rs 10 000 for
livestock loss, max. Rs. 5000 for crop loss

• Payment for Environmental Services

– Payment for Environmental Services (PES) is a concept that has recently gained
popularity in the international development and conservation community. The most
popular of these is financial reward for the sequestering of carbon, but it is also seen as a
potential solution for HWC.

• Wildlife Friendly Products

– This is where you can do your bit - from anywhere in the world. Always look for
products that are environmentally friendly and recognized by serious organizations.

• Field based solutions

– There are a number of practical field based solutions that can limit the damage done both
to humans and human property, and to wildlife.

• Monetary compensation schemes - "a flawed concept" (1 - 3 below) and “practical

problems" (4 - 8 below).

• 1. Compensation is unable to decrease the level of the problem (because the cause of the
problem is not being addressed)
2. Compensation reduces the incentive for self-defense by farmers (and therefore could even
exacerbate the scale of the problem)
3. Compensation cannot address the unquantifiable social 'opportunity costs' borne by
people who are affected by the threat of problem animals

• 4. Compensation is cumbersome, expensive and slow to administer,

5. Compensation is open to considerable abuse or blatant corruption
6. There are usually never sufficient funds to cover all compensation claims.
7. Payment of compensation to only some victims may cause disputes or social problems.
8. Difficulty to keep pace with changing economic circumstances or changes in social policy
is hopelessly slowed down.

• Opening limited access to Park resources

- annual grass cutting, rotational grazing, permits to collect NTFPs, for household
purposes, limited provision of timber and firewood in the Himalayan National Parks

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 • Sharing park revenue/benefits to adjoining communities to create alternative livelihood
and resource base

– BZ management programme in the terai and Mountain NPs

• Preventive and compensative measures

• Managing PAs in collaboration with communities

- Conservation areas such as ACA, MCA, KCA

If we have to preserve biodiversity by keeping people poor, that is a poor choice to make’ - Prof.
Anil Gupta

Unit 7: Sustainability of Protected Area Management

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7.1 Payment for environmental services (PES)

Payments for Ecosystem Services as an Alternative Source of Sustainable PA financing?

Key Messages

 PA management is centralized and focused on individual species

 PAs are falling short of financing and too dependent on donor money

 Tenure and rights to local communities?

 PES can be an viable alternative of sustainable PA financing


Need
for

policy and institutional infrastructure and change in management approach

Ecosystem Services

Economic incentives for ecosystem services

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  Ecosystem Services are externalities

 Tendency of free riding

 Caused rapid deterioration of ecosystems and disincentives to resource managers

 Realization for need to provide direct economic incentive

Major Ecosystem Services under PES framework

1. Carbon sequestration and storage (e.g. a Northern electricity company paying farmers in the
tropics for planting and maintaining additional trees);

2. Biodiversity protection (e.g. conservation donors paying local people for setting aside or
naturally restoring areas to create a biological corridor);

3. Watershed protection (e.g. downstream water users paying upstream farmers for adopting land
uses that limit deforestation, soil erosion, flooding risks, etc.);

4. Landscape beauty (e.g. a tourism operator paying a local community not to hunt in a forest
being used for tourists’ wildlife viewing).

What is PES?

1. A voluntary transaction where

2. A well defined environmental service is being bought by

3. At least a buyer from a minimum of one environmental service provider

4. Subject to the condition that the environmental service provider secures the agreed
environmental service provision standard

(Wunder 2005)

Principles of PES

• Those who provide ES get

paid for doing so (Provider
gets)

• Those who benefit from ES

pay for their provision (User
pays)

• Payments are conditional

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 • Participation is voluntary

Basic Logic of PES

Competing Conceptions of PES

 Conservation efficiency PES

 Environmental economists in academia who believes on pure market based mechanisms

 Pro-market, pro-poor PES

 Double benefits primarily

promoted by development
organizations

 Compensation of
ecosystem services

 Advocates of sustainable
rural development who
believe that conservation
and poverty reduction are
inseparable

 Anti-PES

 Some critics reject PES altogether on grounds that it will further dispossess the poor

Prerequisite for PES mechanisms:

 Additionality

 Leakage

 Permanence

 Efficiency

Major Ecosystem Services under PES framework worldwide: Carbon, watershed, landscape
beauty, Biodiversity

Commonly used PES mechanisms

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  Eco-labelling or certification (indirect)

 Public payment schemes

 Private market based deals

Challenges to Instituting PES

• Undefined or inadequate policy

• Free riding

• Evidence to verify conditionality and baseline data

• Leakages

• Scale: small watershed to larger public schemes

• Insufficient payments to induce change

• Possibility of costs becoming higher than benefits

• Paying for services that would be adopted anyway (additionality)

PA Governance highlight

 Command and control approach and use of armed force

 Conservation against human costs

 Centralized PA management and PA management lack autonomy for generation and use
of resources for PA management except in come CAs like ACA

 Individual species and habitat focused management neglecting the overall ecosystem
management

 Access resource use by local communities is denied (Sundarijal)

 PAs are owned by government and controlled by PA management

 Due to lack of tenure to local, no legitimate claim of local communities over income
except under buffer-zone and Cas

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  Funding limitations (limited government funding and in most cases donor dependent )

Livelihoods of local community at risk

 Human settlements inside the park

 Local’s dependency on park resources

 Limited access to development and livelihood opportunities for the locals

PES: An alternative and innovative approach?

 PAs offer numerous ecosystem services including carbon sequestration, watershed

services and scenic beauty

 ES generated from the PAs are currently not accounted and used for FREE!

 Sustainable financing in PAs, would help increase PA effectiveness

 Experiences of PA benefits sharing with local communities under Buffer-zone and CA

approach

 PES can be a economic incentives for better management of PAs

 However adapting PES calls for:

 Need for management changes towards landscape and ecosystem based

approaches so as to generate bundle of services .

 Policy and institutional infrastructure to accommodate the PES approach

International Experiences on PES

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Sumberjaya, Indonesia

Problem:

Deforestation by squatters within Protected Area for

Coffee farming

PES Scheme Launched:

Community Forestry Program

Maintenance of watershed’s hydrological function

Reward to upland communities:

Secure Tenure and permit coffee farming

Existing PES like practices and initiatives in PAs

 Hotels/businesses within PA paying royalty to the government

 Conservation fee collected spend on park management

 Himalayan Spring Water Company agreed on paying certain portion of income to

Langtang National Park

Policy considerations

 Blue print model of PES mechanisms may not necessarily fit into local socio-economic
context and resource management institutions for the achievement of both ecological and
social outcomes

 Nepal does not have sufficient policy and institutional infrastructure for implementing
PES

 So, there is need for piloting of PES schemes, reflective learning and policy deliberation

126
Unit 8: Protected Area Planning and management
8.1 Planning Model: Conventional planning and modern planning

Site conservation planning framework in The Nature Conservancy

• Site conservation planning is a scale-independent process that defines the landscape within
which conservation targets (i.e., species and communities of concern) can persist

• The process integrates more traditional preserve design and land acquisition activities with
newer conservation biology and ecosystem management concepts into a single dynamic
framework

• It is cost effective and popular means

• Site conservation planning can be thought of as a series of questions, which if answered

would constitute the major components of a plan

Questions asked in site conservation planning

• Planning component Component question

• Teams Who should be included in the planning process and

implementation of the plan?

• Targets and goals What are the significant conservation targets and long-term goals
for those targets?

• Ecological information What biotic and abiotic attributes maintain the targets over
the long term?

• Human context information What are the basic characteristics of the human
communities at the site?

• Threats What current and potential activities interfere with the survival of
the conservation targets and the maintenance of ecological processes?

• Stakeholders Who are the organized groups and influential individuals at the
site, what impacts might we have on them, and how might they
help or hinder us in achieving our goals?

• Conservation strategies What can we do to prevent or mitigate threatening activities, and

how can we influence important stakeholders?

• Conservation zones What are the areas on the ground where we need to act?

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• Implementation What kinds of actions are necessary to accomplish our goals, who
will do them, how long will they take, how much will they cost?

• Feasibility Can we succeed in our goals, based on assessment of ecological

and human context concerns and programmatic resources?

• Measures of progress How will we know if we are making progress toward our
goals and if our actions are bringing about desired results?

8.2
Components of plans

Protected Areas Planning

Plan

• A plan is an image or vision to

represent the form and/or
feature of desired situation.

• PA plan is defined as a set of

organized objectives with the
provision of the means for
achieving those objectives.

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• A Plan tells about the state of resources, trends in the state of resources, objectives of
resource management, problems, different strategies and monitoring resources.

Planning

• Planning is the process of selecting objectives and then determining the means by which
those objectives will be achieved.

• Planning is the bridging activities that take us from where we are to where we want to be
in some future desired time.

• It is deciding in advance what to do, how to do it, when to do it and who is to do it.

• Planning is in line with objectives, actions, and time.

• Planning is the conscious process of selecting and developing the best course of action to
accomplish an objective.

• Planning is a continuous process which involves decisions, choices about alternative

ways of using available resources, with the aim of achieving particular goal of sometime
in future.

• Planning includes what we have (gathering background information), what we want (state
the goal and objectives) and how we do it (create realistic programme).

• Good planning lead to good management.

Good panning is central to good PA management

Successful Mgt Plan (Thomas and Middleton, 2003)

• It is a process not an event,

• It is concerned with the future,

• It involves value judgments,

• It is systematic and pre-determined,

• It is a continuous process,

• It takes a holistic view

Benefits of Mgt Plan

• get away from ad hoc approach,

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 • reflect the current state of management,

• assess values and conservation significance ,

• identify program gaps, challenges, issues and threats,

• outline the goals, objectives, strategies, outcomes and activities,

• figure-out resources required,

• identify possible stakeholders and their role

• build consensus and seek review,

• define scope and boundaries,

• facilitate the park managers,

• direct and control the management,

• facilitate to monitor changes and track progresses,

• integrate with other planning processes,

• more proactive in conservation

Steps

• Planning process involves assess, analysis, action and evaluate.

• The first step in planning is formulation of clear objectives.

• The second is to outline the actions needed and

• The third is to evaluate the results and follow up plan.

Planning Process

Comprised four steps:

• establish a goal or objectives, define the present situations,

• identify aids and barriers, develop a set of action plant

PA Management Plan

• sets out the desired future for protected areas

• the road map to guide and control PA efforts

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 • assess the accomplishments against the targets

• the basis for guiding and reporting PA work

• Is not a wish-list of all the work

• Management plan is flexible plan that can be modified to reflect new information and
changing needs.

• Plan should be as simple as possible. The simpler the plan the easier it will be to develop
and implement. It should not be is a compendium of all existing biological information
and scientific descriptions about a given park.

• It should be published in the official language of the country.

Contents

• In any management plan document, it includes existing condition (description) and the
proposed management (prescription) followed by required forms, lists, maps in appendix.

• It also includes tourism plan, buffer zone plan and research monitoring and training plan.

• Values for which the PAs are established

• Objectives of management

• Problems in achieving those objectives

• Guiding Principles: Policies and ecological principles

• Issues, strategies and activities

• Zone plan, theme plan

• Budget and time schedule

• Organization and administration

PA Mgt Plan: Nepal

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 Name of PA Management Plan Plan period

Chitwan NP Approved 2007-2011

Bardia NP Approved 2007-2011

Shivapuri Nagarjun NP No

Khaptad NP Draft 2009-2014

Rara NP Approved 2009-2013

Shey Phoksundo NP Approved 2006-2011

Langtang NP Draft

Makalu Barun NP No (Approved BZ Plan) 2004-2009

Sagarmatha NP Approved 2007-2012

Banke NP Draft 2010-2014

Suklaphanta WR Approved 2007-2012

Parsa WR Draft

Approved
Species
Koshi Tappu WR Approved 2010-2014 Action
Plan

Species Period
Dhorpatan HR Objectives/
No Activities Cost (USD)

outputs

Rhino 2006-2011
Annapurna CA 9 94
Approved 29,00,000.00
2008-2012
Tiger 2008-2012 5 22 11,50,000.00

Snow 2004-2014
Manasalu CA 8 NO 44 29,20,000.00
leopard

Vulture 2010-2014 6 42 07,99,623.00

Kanchenjunga CA Approved 2006-2011
Elephant 2010-2019 6 21 26,25,000.00

Krishnasar CA Draft

Api Nampa CA Draft 132

Gauri Shankar CA No
Past and Present of PA Management

• Strict protection to active people participation,

• Species focus to ecosystem focus,

• Control in resource use to resource and revenue sharing,

• Ecosystem to landscape (core/buffer/corridor),

• Preservation to conservation,

• Park without people to park with people

• Island to integrated/system plan concept (Isolated to holistic approach),

• Linking with people (People cantered approach),

• Eccentric to anthropocentric approach,

• Conservation in isolation to conservation in collaboration and partnership,

• Conflicts to coexistence,

• Participatory protected area management,

• Community based biodiversity conservation,

• Livelihood approach

• Barrier for development to tool for development

• Fences/fine/forces to collaborative

• Control and command to connect and coordinate

• State managed to community managed

PAs needs to expand in size, in concept and in the number of partners involved and cconnect to
each other, to the wider landscape, to the society and the economy to other countries

133