Journal of Threatened Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 January 2018 | 10(1): 11243–11244

 

 

 

 

First record of the Dhole Cuon alpinus (Mammalia: Carnivora: Canidae) in Barandabhar Corridor Forest, Chitwan, Nepal

 

Saneer Lamichhane 1, Aashish Gurung 2, Chiranjibi Prasad Pokheral 3, Trishna Rayamajhi 4, Pabitra Gotame 5, Pramod Rai Regmi 6 & Babu Ram Lamichhane 7

1–7 National Trust for Nature Conservation, P.O. Box: 3712, Khumaltar, Lalitpur 44600, Nepal

1 saneerlamichhane@gmail.com (corresponding author), 2 asis_grg@hotmail.com, 3 pokheralchiran2017@gmail.com, 4 trishnarmj1@gmail.com, 5 pabitragotame@gmail.com, 6 regmiprr11@gmail.com, 7 baburaml@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

 

Systematic camera trapping survey on the Barandabhar Corridor Forest (BCF), Chitwan District, Nepal recorded the presence of the endangered Wild Dog or Dhole Cuon alpinus. The Barandhabar Corridor forest was divided into 88 grids of 1km by 1km covering the total area of BCF (87.9km2). The pair of camera was systematically placed in each grid for 15 camera trap nights (15*88= 1320 camera trap nights). A survey was conducted in two blocks between 15 December 2015 and 20 January 2016. A single picture of a Dhole was captured from a location on 11 January. The Dhole is sympatric with other large carnivores like Tiger Panthera tigris, Leopard P. pardus, and Golden Jackal Canis aureus in the area. This is the first record of a Dhole in the forest corridor outside the National Park (Image 1). It provides evidence of the healthy functionality of BCF. This discovery has created interest among wildlife conservationists, researchers and wildlife managers to rethink the conservation of Dholes.

BCF connects Terai Arc Landscape (TAL) with Chitwan-Annapurna Landscape (CHAL; WWF Nepal 2013). It is the only remaining forest of Chitwan that connects Chitwan National Park of TAL in the south to the Mahabharat Mountain Range of CHAL in the north (Bhattarai & Basnet 2004). BCF has high human pressure from densely populated areas of Ratnagar Municipality in the east, Kalika in the north-east, and Bharatpur Metropolitan City in the west (Fig. 1). BCF is bisected by a national Highway. The forest south of highway falls within the buffer zone of Chitwan National Park whereas the northern part falls under the jurisdiction of the department of forests and is managed as a protected forest. There also lies a Ramsar Site (Site No, 1313; Beeshazar and Associated lakes) in the buffer zone part of the forest corridor. As in other protected area core, protection of the buffer zone part is provided by the Nepal Army. A recent survey of the Ramsar site found 33 species of mammals, 328 species of birds, 199 species of flora, 37 species of fishes, 16 species of butterflies, and 31 species of herpetofauna (Lamichhane et al. 2016).

The Dhole has been recorded in camera traps in Nepal from Kanchanjunga Conservation Area (Khatiwada et al. 2011) and Chitwan National Park (Thapa et al. 2013). In Chitwan National Park, the Dhole was found mostly in the southern part, which is dominated by Sal forest with open grasslands at the foothills of Churia. The present study extends the range of Dhole in the northern part of Chitwan District.

References

 

Bhattarai, B.P. & K. Basnet (2004). Assessment Crop Damage by Wild Ungulates in the Eastern Side of Barandabhar Corridor Forest, Chitwan. Proceedings of IV National Conference on Science and Technology. March 23–26.

Khatiwada, A.P., K.D. Awasthi, N.P. Gautam, S.R. Jnawali, N. Subedhi & A. Aryal (2011). The pack hunter (Dhole): Received little scientific attention. The initiation 4: 8–13. Available at http://nepjol.info/index.php/INIT/article/view/5531. Downloaded on 5 April 2017.

Lamichhane, S., R.C. Kandel, C.P. Pokheral, T.P. Dahal & S. Bhattarai (2016). Biodiversity Profile of Beeshazar and Associated Lakes, Chitwan. Available at http://www.chitwannationalpark.gov.np/beeshazarlakes/images/Biodiversity_Profile_Beeshazar_Tal_2016.pdf. Downloaded on 1 April 2017.

Thapa, K., M.J. Kelly, J.B. Karki & N. Subedi (2013). First camera trap record of pack hunting dholes in Chitwan National Park, Nepal. Canid Biology and Conservation 16(2): 4–7. Available at http://www.canids.org/CBC/16/Dholes_inNepal.pdf. Downloaded on 1 February 2017.

WWF Nepal (2013). Chitwan annapurna landscape (CHAL): A Rapid Assessment. WWF Nepal, Kathmandu. Available at http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/pa00k357.pdf. Downloaded on 2 January 2018.