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Softshell_Turtle

09/02/2022

by Santosh Bhattarai News

A success story: Eggs hatching and release into the wild of an Endangered Narrow-headed softshell turtle from Chitwan, Nepal.

Chitwan National Park is famous for rhinos and tigers, hold second largest population of Greater one-horned rhino in the world and known as ‘rhino land’ as this park hosts highest number of Greater one-horned rhinos and tigers in Nepal. The occurrence of highly charismatic species such as rhinos and tigers have received conservation attentions by park authorities and other conservation agencies. The conservation interventions only for these charismatic species have kept other species such as turtle into “shadow”. A recent study on “Notes on sucessful Nest Relocation of Chitra indica (Gray, 1831) from Chitwan National Park, Nepal” by Bed Bahadur Khada, Saneer Lamichhane and NCRC team member Santosh Bhattarai highlights the conservation actions needed for and Endangered turtle species, Narrow-headed softshell turtle.

Chitwan National Park experiences irregular floods every year. The construction of dyke on the bank of the river towards village side to save buffer zone villages of the park and excavation of riverbed materials (such as sand, gravel, stone etc) have changed the habitat of aquatic animals such as turtles and crocodiles and has limited the safer nesting grounds for such aquatic animals. The team observed three nests of Narrow-headed softshell turtle in flood prone inundation zone in the Rapti river of Chitwan National Park.

Figure 1. Nest of Narrow-headed softshell turtle in Rapti river, Chitwan National Park. Photo: Bed Khadka

The team relocated safely collected 496 eggs from three nests from the riverbank and relocated to the safer site with same size and dimension nests. The eggs incubated and hatched in seminatural condition and hatchlings emerged in 54 ( averaged days for three nests).

Figure 2. Hatchlings from relocated nest. Photo: Bed Khadka

Out of 496 eggs, 375 hatchlings were safely released in the wild in the Rapti river of Chitwan National Park. The successful eggs collection, hatching in safer site and release into the wild is a success story of and Endangered turtle species to send back the hatchlings in their original home. However, its is and indicative that there is many actions awaiting to safeguard the nesting and breeding habitat of turtles and other aquatic habitat. Park authorities and tiger and rhino centric conservation agencies should implement integrated conservation steps.

Figure 3. Hatchlings of Narrow-headed softshell turtle after release into the wild in Rapti river. Photo: Bed Khakda

Media Coverage

Rare turtles hatch from eggs rescued from flood-prone Nepal riverbank

A new lizard for Nepal spotted

08/19/2022

by Santosh Bhattarai News

A new lizard for Nepal spotted from Nepal’s “FORGOTTON TIGER LAND”

NCRC’s team members have recorded a new lizard species for Nepal from Chure hills of Morang district, Nepal. The lizard known as Sikkim grass lizard (Takydromus sikkimensis), the name Sikkim has been given to this species because it was discovered from Sikkim in 1888. The researchers are worried for its conservation because it is already categorized as Endangered by IUCN.

Figure 1. Sikkim Grass lizard from Miklajung Morang. Photo: Bivek Gautam

During biodiversity survey in Chure range of Miklajung Morang, a team of researchers from Biodiversity Research and Conservation Society and Nepal Conservation and Research Center spotted a lizard which was not previously encountered by them. The physical appearance of the lizard with brown upper body parts and greenish coloration on mouth and underparts stroke in mind of the team “this is something which never been reported before from Nepal”. On close observation and after measuring the body parts and counting the physical characters of the body, the lizard turned to be a new species record for Nepal and known as Sikkim grass lizard (Takydromus sikkimensis); previously thought to be found only in the state of Sikkim, India (hence the species name is named as sikkimensis). Recently, the observation of this lizard has been published in the journal Herpetozoa by the team members Bivek Gautam, Santosh Bhattarai and Ram Chandra Kandel ( link).

The lizard is a diurnal species which becomes active during the daytime. The lizard was first spotted from upper Chure region of Miklajung Mornag from Schima-Castonopis mixed forest. Although the new record has been published from Miklajung Morang, “We later spotted this species from Panchthar and Ilam districts during our other herpetofauna expeditions” Said Bivek Gautam. The lizard has already been listed as Endangered in the IUCN Red List due to human induced survival threats to the species.

The lizard was spotted approximately 100 km west from its previously reported location in Sikkim, India. “The habitat we recorded in Nepal is also facing same grave threat for the survival of the lizards, the Chure hills in Nepal is most vulnerable landscape in Nepal with unregulated resource extraction” said Santosh Bhattarai, herpetologist from Nepal Conservation and Research Center. Bhattarai also added “Even Nepal’s tiger centric conservation efforts by the Government of Nepal and conservation organizations have overlooked the conservation potential of Chure/Sivalik hill ranges. Therefore, this hill range is also sometimes termed as “Forgotten tiger land” by the tiger experts of Nepal”. The efforts should be made for regular monitoring of the biodiversity of the Chure hills of Nepal and biodiversity rich areas should be taken into account for conservation and management.