Status and conservation threats to large mammals of the Laljhadi Mohana Biological Corridor, Nepal

Wildlife corridors connect isolated patches of habitat and support the movement of migratory species from one site to another. Human disturbances cause forest degradation and habitat fragmentation adding to the high risk of species extinction. We laid out 44 grids of 2 km × 2 km in Laljhadi Mohana Biological Corridor (LMBC). In each grid, we generated line transects ranging from 1.5 to 2 km and a systematic line transect survey was carried out with single replication to assess the distribution and relative abundance of large mammals. GPS coordinates were recorded for each direct sighting or indirect sign. Similarly, a local household survey (n=40) and key informant interviews (n=9) were conducted to explore the local perception about existing problems, major conflicting species habitat components, conservation threats and attitude towards the large mammals. A workshop was also held to discuss information about the conflicting species, possible solutions, and the ranking of threats based on a relative ranking system. A total of 51 individuals belonging to six species of large mammals were found in LMBC. Distribution was primarily confined to the south of the corridor, and the relative abundance, in descending order, is the Blue bull (29.4%), Asian elephant (25.5%), Spotted deer (21.5%), Wild boar (15.7%), Common leopard (5.9%) and Bengal tiger (2%). Major conservation threats were forest encroachment and habitat fragmentation (Very High), followed by grazing and forest product consumption (High), natural disaster (Medium) and illegal poaching, infrastructure construction, and invasive species (Low). The LMBC was found to support six large mammals, where mostly Asian elephants and Blue bull are using it for migration.

Keywords:

Biological corridor , large mammals , distribution , relative abundance , perception