Impact of agrarian land use and land cover practices on survival and conservation of nilgai antelope (Boselaphus tragocamelus) in and around the Abohar wildlife sanctuary, northwestern India

ABSTRACT

There is an information gap on biodiversity effects of land use and land cover (LULC) dynamics of agrarian landscapes. Such data are essential for policy making and species management in agro-ecosystems. Thus, changes in LULC inside the Abohar wildlife sanctuary and its eco-sensitive zone were investigated using LISS-III satellite images from 2003 to 2016. The area under cropland witnessed a 3.6% increase, whereas wastelands significantly declined by 4.3%. Further, the impact of LULC dynamics on nilgai (Boselaphus tragocamelus) was determined through mortality distribution in the sanctuary from 2012 to 2017. The spatio-temporal distribution pattern of mortality revealed that a total of 336 nilgai died during the six years studied. Free-ranging feral dogs, in conjunction with fencing and road accidents, were the major factors involved in nilgai casualty. Fatalities were clustered in regions with significant LULC change. The results confirmed that intensified development and reuse of derelict agricultural fields disturbed nilgai ecology and habitat use pattern. Human-wildlife conflicts in agrarian landscapes are an increasing concern and should be managed following identification of sensitive areas.

RÉSUMÉ

Les effets sur la biodiversité des dynamiques d’occupation et d’utilisation du territoire (OSUS) dans les paysages agricoles sont peu connus. Cette information est essentielle à l’élaboration de politiques et à la gestion des espèces. Les changements d’OSUS dans la réserve faunique de Abohar et sa zone écosensible ont donc été étudiés avec des images satellitaires LISS-III prises entre 2003 et 2016. Les superficies en culture ont augmenté de 3,6%, tandis que les friches ont diminué significativement de 4,3%. De plus, l’impact des dynamiques d’OSUS sur le nilgaut (Boselaphus tragocamelus) a été déterminé par le patron spatiotemporel de mortalité dans la réserve entre 2012 et 2017. Un total de 336 nilgauts sont morts durant les six années étudiées. Les chiens sauvages, les clôtures et les collisions routières sont les principaux facteurs ayant causé la mortalité des nilgauts. Les mortalités étaient concentrées dans les régions où des changements significatifs d’OSUS avaient eu lieu. Les résultats confirment que l’intensification du développement et la remise en production des friches perturbent l’écologie et l’utilisation de l’habitat du nilgaut. Les conflits humains-animaux dans les paysages agricoles sont de plus en plus préoccupants et devraient être gérés après identification des zones sensibles.

KEYWORDS:

• Antelope
• conservation
• land use and land cover
• nilgai

MOTS CLÉS:

• Antilope
• conservation
• occupation et utilisation du sol
• nilgaut

Acknowledgments

We are grateful to the Wildlife Division of the Forest Department, Punjab (India) for their complete cooperation and help in conducting this research. We wish to thank Dr D.C. Loshali and his team, Punjab Remote Sensing Centre, Punjab Agricultural University, India for their valuable inputs in the interpretation of satellite data and preparation of the land use and land cover maps. We appreciate S. Kulwant Singh and all the field assistants for their help during data collection. We sincerely thank the editor and anonymous reviewers for constructive inputs. Thanks to Dr Murali C Krishna for language editing.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was funded by the Inspire fellowship scheme, Department of Science and Technology, Government of India (IF160695; DST/INSPIRE Fellowship/REL1/2016/8th Lot).