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- Title
Status ofthe Critically Endangered Bengal Florican Houbaropsis bengalensis (Gmelin, 1789) in Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve, Nepal.
- Authors
Baral, Hem Sagar; Bhatt, Tek Raj; Gir, Sailendra Raj; Ram, Ashok Kumar; Shah, Shyam Kumar; Poudyal, Laxman Prasad; Chaudhary, Dhiraj; Bhattacharya, Gitanjali; Amin, Rajan
- Abstract
The Bengal Florican is one ofthe rarest bustard species and is listed 'Critically Endangered' by the IUCN. The species is restricted to the lowland grasslands of India, Nepal, and Cambodia with fewer than 1,000 mature individuals. To assess the species status in Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve, Nepal, we repeated our first comprehensive survey conducted during the 2012 breeding season. In spite of a larger area coverage we recorded only 41 adult Bengal Floricans in 2017 compared to 47 individuals in 2012. Detectability of this rare species is low in its Imperata-Saccharum grasslands. We, therefore, used a long pole with black and white clothing to mimic Bengal Florican's display flight to stimulate male Bengal Florican. The number of adult males recorded was the same as in the 2012 survey and the adult male density remains one ofthe highest in the Indian subcontinent. Management recommendations for the long-term conservation ofthe species in Koshi Tappu include maintenance of Imperata-Saccharum grasslands in the reserve favoured by the Bengal Florican and working with farmers and communities adjacent to the reserve where the birds breed in order to maintain some agricultural lands with vegetation height suitable for the species especially during the species' breeding season.
- Subjects
NEPAL; WILDLIFE refuges; ENDANGERED species; WILDLIFE conservation; BIRD breeding; KEYSTONE species; BIRD ecology
- Publication
Journal of Threatened Taxa, 2020, Vol 12, Issue 9, p16006
- ISSN
0974-7893
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.11609/jott.4832.12.9.16006-16012