The high altitude wildlife areas of western Arunachal Pradesh

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Chapter 4 While the expedition documented the occurrence of a rich wildlife assemblage with several species of global conservation importance, it is also clear that Arunachal’s high altitude wildlife faces serious threats. The main threats include: 1. Widespread hunting (both for local consumption and to cater to the larger illegal commercial trade). 2. Retaliatory persecution of the snow leopard Uncia uncia and dhole Cuon alpinus for livestock depredation. 3. Habitat modification and loss (army establishments, continued creation of grazing land by opening up forests, etc.). 4. Unregulated collection of medicinal plants. 5. Almost complete lack of awareness of conservation issues (including within the local administration), or the implementation of conservation laws. The road ahead Against this background, conservation efforts in Arunachal’s high altitudes will need to: 1. Garner the support of the indigenous communities for wildlife conservation, and wean them away from hunting. Securing the indigenous communities’ support for conservation will require extensive dialogue to identify the important needs of the people (including educational facilities, healthcare, etc.), and to explore opportunities for establishing communitybased conservation programs. Such programs, while addressing peoples’ basic needs, will need to aim at making wildlife conservation economically beneficial to them (through programmes such as conservation linked handicrafts development and marketing, wildlife tourism etc., see Mishra et al. 1 for working models). While establishing these will necessarily take time, in the short term, there is an urgent need to set in place mechanisms that share and off-set the losses that people currently face due to livestock depredation by the snow leopard and dhole. Community managed It is essential to devise ways of offsetting the losses people bear due to livestock predation by wild carnivores. Efforts are also needed to spread conservation education and awareness, and to formulate economic incentive programs such as conservation-linked handicrafts development and marketing to garner peoples’ support for wildlife conservation. 26
The road ahead livestock insurance programs that we have established elsewhere have effectively offset such losses, and have served as instruments to stop the persecution of wild carnivores 1 . In terms of priority, all these efforts need to be undertaken first in the area of the proposed wildlife reserve. 2. Establish Arunachal’s first high altitude wildlife reserve. Our map of the proposed wildlife reserve is only indicative, and setting up the wildlife reserve will require careful examination and consultation with the village councils before the reserve boundaries are decided upon. The appropriateness of the different categories of wildlife reserves recognized under Indian law also needs to be carefully examined against the local context. It is important that establishing the wildlife reserve, while ensuring wildlife conservation, also benefits the local communities, rather than alienate them, as has happened in the past in India and elsewhere. 3. Spread conservation education and awareness in schools, villages, and in the administration. Effective implementation of conservation efforts and laws will require conservation education and awareness programs at various levels, and sensitizing the administration (politicians and bureaucrats). Having effective conservation educational programs for children would require developing locally appropriate educational aids. Politicians, bureaucrats and the defence forces must be sensitized about the global significance of the region’s wildlife assemblage, and the need for their interest and cooperation in establishing and maintaining the wildlife reserve. 4. Strengthen the local wildlife department in terms of manpower, resources, and training, and underpinning a clear mandate for wildlife conservation. Emerging conservation effort As is evident from the above discussion, partnerships between divergent groups—the state and its departments, the army, the local people, donor agencies, conservation and development organizations—will be needed for successful wildlife conservation in Arunachal’s high altitudes. Indeed, we believe that such partnerships are both necessary and possible, and would be a central concern in consolidating the future of Arunachal’s magnificent wildlife. References 1. Mishra, C., Allen, P., McCarthy, T., Madhusudan, M.D., Bayarjargal, A. & Prins, H.H.T. (2003) The role of incentive programs in conserving the snow leopard Uncia uncia. Conservation Biology, 17, 1512-1523. 27
Page 2 and 3: Mishra, C., Datta, A. & Madhusudan,
Page 5: The High Altitude Wildlife of Weste
Page 9: Acknowledgements The need for this
Page 12 and 13: Chapter 1 Wildlife of Arunachal’s
Page 14 and 15: Chapter 1 The Buddhist Monpa, the m
Page 16 and 17: Chapter 1 drawings of the several m
Page 18 and 19: Chapter 1 30. Datta, A. (1999) Smal
Page 20 and 21: Chapter 2 past to occur in the Mukt
Page 22 and 23: Chapter 2 Table 2. A comparison of
Page 24 and 25: Chapter 2 Comparison of survey area
Page 26 and 27: Chapter 2 Table 4. A comparison of
Page 28 and 29: Chapter 2 References 1. IUCN. (2003
Page 30 and 31: Chapter 3 Vegetation types identifi
Page 32 and 33: Chapter 3 Fig. 2. The proposed high
Page 35: The road ahead Chapter 4 Conserving
Page 40 and 41: Appendix 1 Pradesh, which is anothe
Page 42 and 43: Appendix 1 N. goral hodgsoni 25 . N
Page 45 and 46: The Tawang macaque Appendix 2 A rep
Page 47 and 48: The Tawang macaque Most of our sigh
Page 49: The Tawang macaque provisionally id
Page 52 and 53: Appendix 3 COMMON NAME LATIN NAME T
Page 54 and 55: Appendix 3 COMMON NAME LATIN NAME T
Page 56 and 57: Appendix 4 81. Parochetus sp. 82. P
Page 58 and 59: Appendix 5 node 6 . Besides their a

The high altitude wildlife areas of western Arunachal Pradesh

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?