!I Acknowledgements of this repert. Thanks.are due many people .. who have made possible and corrtributed to the production Foremost among these are Shyam Bajirnaya and Brian Peniston, Co-Managers of the Makalu-Barun Conservation Proj ect, for approval of the reporting proposal and their inputs regarding content. Shyam Bajimaya, Brian Peniston, Phil Hall and Carol Inskipp reviewed a draft of this report and provided a variety ofhelpful comments. The report has been enhanced by section maps, meticulously produced by Ramesh Shrestha. Design and layout in Kathmandu were kindly assisted by Anil Shrestha, Azad Shrestha and Suresh Shrestha of • Fonnat Graphic Studio and Patricia Roberts. The author is grateful to Dr. Tirtha M. Maskey, Director General, DNPWC, for facilitating liaison • with Department staff and local officials in the course of treks to assess the Park and adjacent I areas, and for his insight on the needs and priorities of the current management program. At the I local level, Sailendra Pokaril of the Khandbari office and Chandi Chap again at the Bung Sector • office were especially helpful, providing information on project objectives, activities and progress in the Bung and Chheskam areas. • Tip and Top Trekking (P) Ltd., Thamel, Kathmandu is warmly thanked for timely arrangement of • trekking and climbing permits, and infonnation on routes and logistics. The treks would have not been possible without the unstinting efforts of my field assistants: Dirga Shankar Rai, Chundak Sherpa, Lakhpa Sherpa, Shanta Kumar Tamang, Bhimle Bahadur Tamang, • and Tirendra Yakha. Their steadfastness, good cheer, and resourcefulness added greatly to the success and enjoyment of travel in remote areas, often under difficult conditions. Additional thanks are extended to Dirga for his assistance with data collation, and to Laxmi Basnet for assistance with • preparation of appendices. H.S. 'Kazi' Nepali and Tim and Carol Inskipp provided valuable help with identification of several • bird species. Their hospitality, support and encouragement are graciously remembered. The Inskipps and Hem Sagar Baral kindly reviewed and helped improve the bird enumeration. Tej Kumar Shrestha, I Associate Professor, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Rodney Jackson, H.S. Nepali and Phil Hall i provided comments related to mammal sightings. I The author also gratefully acknowledges the many local people who contributed their knowledge I of fauna, flora and ecology in the regions visited. Lauri Sherpa of Num, Rinzing Sherpa and other I grazers of Shersong, the settlers of Tangnag, and residents of Tashigaon deserve particular mention. Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee (SPCC) personnel contributed information on land use I in the Lukla area., and took time to discuss at length their plans and activities in adjoining I Sagarmatha National Park. ! I Thanks are also expressed to M. S. and Suraksya Bania (owners), Gokul Lamichhane (manager), and other staff of Kathmandu Lodge, Pyaphal Tole, Kathmandu, for their hospitality and provision I of logistical and communications support. I I I Table of Contents 11 I' 11 i 1 Page Introduction 1 I 1. Area 1: Hinkhu Khola watershed from Zattara Danda to Mera Peak 5 11 (19-25 April 1995 and 7-13 November 1996) :11 ,I ,",. 1.1 Route and logistics 5 1.2 Habitat types and condition la ill ! 1.3 W:tldlife observations 11 1.4 Human interactions and impact 12 1.5 Management considerations 15 1.5.1 Stakeholders 16 1.5.2 Principal issues 17 ,I Recommendations 19 'I 1 1.5.3 11 I 2. Area 2: Hongu Khola from Amphu Lapcha to Guidel 21 I , (25 April-la May 1995 and 4-7 November 1996) 2.1. Rou:re and logistics 21 " 2.2 Habitat types and condition 29 2.2.1 Upper Hongu 29 2.2.2 Middle Hongu 31 2.3 W:tldlife observations 33 2.3.1 Upper Hongu 33 2.3.1 Middle Hongu 34 2.4 Human interactions and impact 35 2.4.1 Upper Hongu 35 2.4.2 Middle Hongu 37 2.5 Management considerations 38 2.5.1 Upper Hongu 38 2.5.2 Middle Hongu 42 3. Area 3: Sanu and Irkhuwa Kholas from Guidel to Khandbari 43 (10-17 May 1995) 3.1 Route and logistics 43 3.2 Habitat types and condition 45 3.3 W:tldlife observations 47 3.4 Human interactions and impact 48 3.5 Management considerations 49 ------- ---'-"" - --------_. __ ._ ... _-_._ .. - .------.-.--~ J 4. Area 4: Kasuwa Khola from the Arun River to Shipton La 52 .'- (25-28 May and 10-16 June 1995) . ~i 4.l. Route and logistics 52 4.2 Habitat types and condition 55 4.3 Wildlife observations 55 4.4 Human interactions and impact 56 4.4 Management considerations 57 5. Area 5: The Upper Barun River from Shipton La to Pe~k 6160m 59 (28 May - 11 June 1995) 5.l. Route and logistics 59 5.2 Habitat types and condition 63 5.3 Wildlife observations 65 5.4 Human interactions 66 5.4.1 Mountaineering 66 5.4.2 Trekking 68 5.4.3 Grazing 68 5.4.4 Timber extraction 69 5.4.5 Cultivation 69 5.5 Management considerations 69 5.5.1 Trekking and mountaineering 69 5.5.2 Timber extraction 73 55.3 Cultivation 73 6. Area 6: The Upper Arun River N of Khandbari to Ghari 75 (21-25 May and 16-21 June 1995) .. 6.1 Route and logistics 75 6.2 Habitat types and condition 75 .. 6.3 Wildlife observations 77 6.4 Human interactions 77 6.5 Management considerations 78 • Literature Cited 79 iI Appendix A: List ofbirds recorded in Makalu-Barun National Park 82 and peripheral areas. • Appendix B: Enumeration ofthe birds ofMakalu-BarunNational Park 87 and Buffer Zone. • Appendix C: List ofmammals observed in Makalu-Barun National Park 102 and peripheral areas. 11 Appendix D: Itineraries 103 • • Introduction Background. This report has been prepared as a supplemental publication for the current cooperative project implemented by the Department of National Parks and W:t1dlife Conservation (DNPWC), His Majesty's Govem.mentofNepal (HMG), in collaboration witfrThe Mountainlnstitute; West Vrrginia, USA (TMI). The aim of the Makalu-Banm Conservation Project (MRCP) is to design and establish a management program based on integrated conservation and development of the unique biodiversity in Makalu-Banm National Park and Buffer Zone (MRNPBZ). Since inception in 1988 MBCP activities have emphasized a comrnuoity-oriented approach to conserving the biota of the area Formal protection for the Makalu-Barun area was initially proposed in the late 1980s following the studies of a two-year Task Force composed mainly of Nepalese scientists. In November 1991 a 2,330 sq km National Park bufferred by an 830 sq km Conservation Area (CA) was gazetted (Figure 1). The CA was re-gazetted as a Buffer Zone in Februaty 1999. MBNPBZ is bordered by 1,148 sq km Sagarmatha National Park in the NW, and the ca. 35,000 sq km Qomolongma Nature Preserve.in Tibet. Taken together the 1bree contiguous areas comprise the second largest nature reserve in the Asia-Pacific region. ~ ~~ .. y········_···r·_·····_···r····_·_·r··_··-····l···_···-···r-·_·····r-··_··-r---·····i I -I : . i . 1 • t---- -......... -. -~.-- .-... -..... j.--_. -.... -., .. ~ .. -.. --•.. ·····i····-......... + i ~ : : . : ;: i · .................. ,.. ........ I?,.~: ....~ ....."---- ..... ,. ... ,,! .. ~. ··i !_-.... -..... ".. ,;:~~ ...... i . \ ··t:·······'···I·:;7-l·:::········1 'Zl42' ~ ... -.--.. -------l-.------ .. --..... --.;.,.. -..,,. •.•• "'.";; •..• ''''.. - .--I(---...- •. .. -...... - ... -.. -.. .... -- .... -- .. .. -.......... ----...... i ----~- ---~~---- ~ • , i , .. I • • : 1 1 : 1 • I ~. '1 1 / ~ · . ~ .......... __ .. __ .... ____ ~ ________ .. _........... ..:. .. _ .. __ .... _............ ! .......................... _......... ~ .. _............... _............... ; .................. _____ .... ,: ........................... _..!.. ,. __ ...... __ ..... _...... J.. 87 8730' Figure 1: Makalu Barun National Park and Buffer Zone showing river systems: 1. Barun, 2. Kasuwa, 3.lshuwa, 4. Apsuwa, 5. Sankhuwa, 6. Hongu, 7. Hinkhu, 8.Ir1<hhuwa 1-, , I Makalu-Barun National Park contains only one permanent human settlemen~ the small village of Saisima in the NE, but approximately ]2,000 people inhabit the BZ. Diverse ethnic groups ofRais, Sherpas and Shigsawas (Bhotias) populate arable land in the lower reaches of all river valleys below the cloudline (ca. 2400 m). Soils on these slopes tend to be poor and insufficient for subsistence fanning. Consequently, grassland for grazing and forest products at higher elevations (e.g., fodder, herbs, honey, bamboo) are exploited to meet basic dietaIy needs, aIJd for small but cmcia1 amounts, of income. Due to the remoteness and isolation of these communities, development of market economies has been seriously impeded MBCP , therefore prioritizes establishment of eco-enrerprises to both assist community development and alleviate " ;1 , the pressure of unsustainable utilization on proximate habitats. Thus far this novel approach is showing ", i promise with enhanced production and marketing of allo cloth (made from nettles Girardinia '" diversifolia), lokta paper (from the inner bark fibers of Daphne bholua shrubs) and woven handicrafts !' , (from ningalo and malingo bamboos Arundinaria spp.). MBCP also supports cultural preservation , " by assisting monkshood studies, local language programs, and the restoration of gomba(s) (monasteries) :," and shrines (Anon. 1993). il Nearly the entire spectrum ofbiomes found in the Himalayan ecosystem occms in MBNPBZ, from tropical and subtropical forest associations in lower valleys of the BZ at confluences with the Anm River (as low as 330 m), to TIbetan steppe and the aeolian zone of the Kumbhakama Himal in the upper Baron Khola, i and as high as 8475 m at the summit ofMakalu, the world's fifth highest mountain - a staggering altitudinal variation of more than 8000 m. At least 3000 species of flowering plants, including 25 species of il rhododendron Rhododendron spp., 12 species of poppies Mecanopsis spp., 48 species of primulas Primu1aceae, 47 orchid species, about 75 mammals, 30 reptiles and 25 amphibians have been recorded from the area (Majpuria and Kumar 1998). 349 species of birds have been recorded thus far (see Appendix B), and the total is likely to exceed 400 species once low altitude forest residents, seasonal I I I I .' _: I Figure 2.