Authors: H. B. Katuwal, B. P. Bhattarai, S. Regmi, S. Bhandari, A. K. Ram, B. Aryal, K. Tamang, S. Kc, A. Nepali, D. Adhikari, S. Koirala, B. D. Baral, S. Devkota, R. Gautam, D. N. Mandal, J. L. Belant, H. P. Sharma, R.-C. Quan

Abstract: Large carnivores such as leopards (Panthera pardus) experience continuing threats from habitat loss and fragmentation, depletion of prey populations, and retaliatory killing following conflicts with humans. We aimed to identify factors affecting leopard occupancy and temporal overlap between leopards and tigers (P. tigris), their major prey, and human activities in the Parsa-Koshi Complex (PKC), Nepal. We deployed 154 cameras for 21 days each along wildlife trails throughout PKC during December 2022–March 2023. We found low leopard occupancy (0.17 ± 0.04) in PKC, with greater occupancy rates within protected areas, particularly in Parsa National Park and its buffer zone. Human (63.10 ± 23) and livestock (36.46 ± 102) detections were higher across the PKC. Leopard occupancy was positively associated with the presence of tigers and prey. Temporal overlap was moderately high between leopards and tigers, as well as between leopards and their prey. Our research suggests that coexistence between leopards and tigers is likely largely facilitated by higher prey availability, which may reduce competition. Further, we demonstrate that maintaining forest cohesion can improve habitat for leopards. Intensifying use of agricultural areas could reduce forest fragmentation and increase leopard habitat overall, in turn reducing leopard depredation of livestock and improving leopard-human co-existence and conservation.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.13251

Journal: Journal of Zoology

Paper link: https://zslpublications.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jzo.13251

Authors: Dipendra Adhikari, Jagan Nath Adhikari, Janak Raj Khatiwada, Bishnu Prasad Bhattarai, Subarna Ghimire and Deepak Rijal

Abstract: Wetlands support around 27% of birds in Nepal, however, there is a paucity of information about bird diversity and the wetland habitat of Western Chure Landscape Nepal. The “point count” method along transects was carried out to evaluate the species composition and habitat associations of birds. A total of 2,532 individuals representing 152 species (winter: N = 140 and summer: N = 91) from 19 orders and 51 families were reported from Jhilmila Lake and its surrounding area. The number of birds was reported to be significantly higher during winter than in the summer season. The species diversity was also higher in winter (Shannon’s index (H) = 4.38, Fisher’s alpha = 30.67) than in summer (H = 4.21, Fisher’s alpha = 34.69) as this area is surrounded by old-growth forest that provides available habitats for forest, grassland- and wetland-dwelling birds. This lake is an example of a wetland present in the Chure area that plays an important role in the conservation of biodiversity along with birds. Hence, we recommend its detailed study in terms of biodiversity and water quality.

Journal: Ornis Hungarica

Doi: https://doi.org/10.2478/orhu-2023-0002

Paper link: pdf

Authors: Binod Bhattarai, Dipendra Adhikari, Jagan Nath Adhikari,
and Bishnu Prasad Bhattarai

Abstract: Invasive alien species play a major role in biodiversity decline. We studied the impacts of invasive alien plant species (IAPS) on bird assemblages and their habitats in Jalthal Forest, a biogeographically unique lowland remnant forest in eastern Nepal. We surveyed birds by point counts and quantified environmental variables at 89 sites. Observations of 1,373 individuals of 86 species showed that species richness was the highest in wooded grasslands and floodplains and lowest in sal forests invaded by IAPS, whereas abundance was highest in IAPS invaded forests. Abundance and richness decreased with increasing cover of IAPS, shrub cover and distance to water. The abundance and richness of every feeding guild except omnivores were negatively correlated with IAPS cover. Our results increase our understanding of the impacts of IAPS on birds and clearly indicate the need of controlling IAPS in Jalthal Forest, and thus, are valuable for forest management and biodiversity conservation.

Journal: ORNIS HUNGARICA

Paper link: https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/orhu-2024-0019

Authors: Kavi Raj Bohara, Yam Bahadur Rawat, Santosh Bhattarai

Eleven species of turtles of the family Geomydidae are
known from Nepal, including the spotted pond turtle Geoclemys hamiltonii,
which also occurs in Bangladesh, India and Pakistan,
and is categorized as Endangered on the IUCN Red List.
In the most recent list of the herpetofauna of Shuklaphanta
National Park in Sudoorpaschim Province, four species of
Geomydidae were documented, not including the spotted
pond turtle. The spotted pond turtle is heavily traded, and
illegal trafficking is the greatest threat to its existence. The
seizure of more than 10,000 illegally traded individuals.

Link: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/oryx/article/first-record-of-the-spotted-pond-turtle-geoclemys-hamiltonii-in-shuklaphanta-national-park-nepal/C46433D52CC7874D12323392989CCD26

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0030605324000590

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Authors: Saneer Lamichhane, Abhinaya Pathak, Aashish Gurung, Ajay Karki, Trishna Rayamajhi, Ambika Prasad Khatiwada, Jeffrey Mintz, Sudip Raj Niroula, Chiranjibi Prasad Pokharel

Abstract: A balanced equilibrium between carnivores and their prey is crucial for maintaining ecosystem sustainability. In this study, we
applied the predator–prey power law equation to assess the balance between the biomass densities of carnivores and their wild
prey within Nepal’s lowland protected areas during 2013, 2018, and 2022. The estimated value of the power law exponent k for
predator–prey biomass was 0.71 (95% CI = 0.39–1.05), indicating an approximate threefold increase in predator biomass density
for every fivefold increase in prey biomass density. Consequently, this creates a systematically bottom-heavy
predator–prey
biomass pyramid. This finding, consistent with the k = 3/4 trophic biomass scaling across ecosystems, suggests that predator
biomass is proportionally sustained by prey biomass, indicating a balance between top predators and their wild prey in Nepal’s
lowland protected areas. We further demonstrated it is possible to retain the overall power law exponent while jointly measuring
intraguild competition between two predators with canonical correlation analysis. This understanding opens avenues for future
research directed toward unraveling the factors that drive these consistent growth patterns in ecological communities.

Journal: Ecology and Evolution

Paper link: https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.70387

Authors: Khagendra Prasad Joshi, Gunjan Adhikari, Divya Bhattarai, Ayush Adhikari, Saurav Lamichanne

Abstract: The Chure region, among the world’s youngest mountains, stands out as highly susceptible to
natural calamities, particularly forest fires. The region has consistently experienced forest fire
incidents, resulting in the degradation of valuable natural and anthropogenic resources. Despite
its vulnerability, there have been limited studies to understand the relationship of various
causative factors for the recurring fire problem. Hence, to comprehend the influencing factors for
the recurring forest fire problem and its extent, we utilized generalized linear modeling under
binary logistic regression to combine the dependent variable of satellite detected fire points and
various independent variables. We conducted a variance inflation factor (VIF) test and correlation
matrix to identify the 14 suitable variables for the study. The analysis revealed that forest fires
occurred mostly during the three pre-monsoon periods and had a significant positive relation with
the area under forest, rangeland, bare-grounds, and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index
(NDVI) (P < 0.05). Consequently, our model showed that the probability of fire incidents decreases
with elevation, precipitation, and population density (P < 0.05). Among the significant
variables, the forest areas emerges as the most influencing factor, followed by precipitation,
elevation, area of rangeland, population density, NDVI, and the area of bare ground. The validation
of the model was done through the area under the curve (AUC = 0.92) and accuracy (ACC
= 0.89) assessments, which showed the model performed excellently in terms of predictive capabilities.
The modeling result and the forest fire susceptible map provide valuable insights into
the forest fire vulnerability in the region, offering baseline information about forest fires that will
be helpful for line agencies to prepare management strategies to further prevent the deterioration
of the region.

Paper link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e28525