BIODIVERSITY PROFILE OF THE API NAMPA CONSERVATION AREA Government of Nepal Ministry of Forests and Environment Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Babarmahal, Kathmandu, Nepal BIODIVERSITY PROFILE OF THE API NAMPA CONSERVATION AREA Government of Nepal Ministry of Forests and Environment Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Babarmahal, Kathmandu, Nepal Technical Team Mr. Bishnu P. Shrestha, Under-Secretary (Tech.), DNPWC Dr. Janita Gurung, Programme Coordinator-KSLCDI, ICIMOD Dr. Binaya Pasakhala, Resource Governance Analyst, ICIMOD Dr. Suresh K. Ghimire, Associate Professor, Central Department of Botany, Tribhuvan University Dr. Srijana Joshi, Ecosystem Specialist, ICIMOD Ms. Sunayana Basnet, Research Associate, ICIMOD Mr. Sunil Thapa, Remote Sensing and Geoinformation Analyst, ICIMOD Mr. Prabin Bhandari, PhD Candidate, State Key Laboratory of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, Institute of Botany-CAS Mr. Bhumiraj Upadhyaya, Under-Secretary (Tech.), DNPWC Mr. Ashok K. Ram, Assistant Conservation Officer, DNPWC Ms. Corinna Wallrapp, PhD Candidate, University of Gottingen Mr. Chandra K. Subedi, Assistant Professor, RECAST, Tribhuvan University Dr. Kamala Gurung, Gender and Natural Resource Management Specialist, ICIMOD Mr. Gauri Dangol, Research Associate Digital Cartography, ICIMOD Mr. Ashish Chaudhary, Manager, Adventure West Holidays Dr. Ram P. Chaudhary, Professor Emeritus, Tribhuvan University Review Team Mr. Man Bahadur Khadka, Director General, DNPWC Mr. Gopal Prakash Bhattarai, Deputy Director General, DNPWC Dr. Ram Chandra Kandel, Deputy Director General, DNPWC Mr. Shyam Bajimaya, Former Director General, DNPWC Dr. Mukesh K. Chalise, Professor, Central Department of Zoology, Tribhuvan University Published by Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, Kathmandu, Nepal Copyright Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, Kathmandu, Nepal 2019 Recommended citation DNPWC (2019). Biodiversity Profile of The Api Nampa Conservation Area, Nepal. Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, Kathmandu, Nepal. Front and back cover photos All photos by Jitendra Bajracharya, except Api Himal and Chameliya river by Pradyumna Rana; blue sheep by Udayan Mishra; Khar women and shrine by Chandra Kanta Subedi iv v Photo i: White-winged grosbeak (Credit: Mukesh K. Chalise) vi Table of Contents Acronyms and Abbreviations xi Executive Summary 1 1. Introduction 5 2. Physiography of ANCA 7 2.1 Topography 7 2.2 Geology 7 2.3 Soils 8 2.4 Climate 8 2.5 Drainage and river system 9 2.6 Land use and land cover 10 2.7 Biomes 11 3. Socio-economic Profile 13 3.1 Demography 13 3.2 Human development 14 3.3 Economic sector 15 4. Mountain Biodiversity 17 4.1 Vegetation and forest types 17 4.2 Rangelands 17 4.3 Wetlands 17 4.4 Species diversity 20 4.5 Endemic species 24 4.6 Biodiversity hotspots 24 5. Ecosystem Services 27 5.1 Provisioning services 28 5.2 Regulating services 30 5.3 Cultural services 31 5.4 Supporting services 31 6. Threats to Biodiversity 33 6.1 Threatened species 33 6.2 Drivers of forest change 35 6.3 Unsustainable extraction of natural resources 36 6.4 Human–wildlife conflict 37 6.5 Invasive alien plant species 37 6.6 Climate change 37 7. Efforts, Achievements and Gaps in Biodiversity Conservation and Management 39 7.1 Efforts in biodiversity conservation and management 39 7.2 Key gaps and issues (opportunities) in the management of biodiversity 42 8. Way Forward 45 8.1 Conservation priorities 45 8.2 Knowledge-management priorities 46 References 47 Checklist of Flora and Fauna in ANCA 51 List of Figures Figure 1.1: Location map of ANCA 6 Figure 2.1: Elevation map and slope map of ANCA 7 Figure 2.2: Geology and soils of ANCA 8 Figure 2.3: Drainage pattern and glaciers in ANCA 9 Figure 2.4: Patterns of land use, land cover and ecoregions 11 Figure 3.1: Demography and population density of ANCA 13 Figure 4.1: Vegetation classes in ANCA 19 Figure 4.2: Biodiversity hotspots in ANCA 25 List of Tables Table 2.1: Proportion of area under different land-use categories in ANCA 10 Table 4.1: Vegetation and forest types in ANCA 18 Table 4.2: Floral diversity in ANCA 20 Table 4.3: Botanical explorations in ANCA (and western Nepal) 21 Table 4.4: Faunal diversity in ANCA 23 Table 4.5: Major agrobiodiversity in Khar, Naugad RM, ANCA 24 Table 4.6: Biodiversity hotspots in ANCA 25 Table 5.1: Ecosystem services in ANCA services 27 Table 5.2: Major NTFPs in ANCA and their uses 29 Table 6.1: Threatened flora in ANCA and their national protection status 33 Table 6.2: Threatened mammals and birds in ANCA and their national protection status 34 Table 6.3: Invasive alien plant species in ANCA 37 Table 7.1: Relevant policies, legislations, guidelines, strategies and action plans 39 viii List of Photos Photo i: White-winged grosbeak vi Photo ii Rangeland comprise more than a quarter of the total area of ANCA x Photo iii: Many places in ANCA are remote and inaccessible 1 Photo iv: Chameliya is one of two major rivers in ANCA 2 Photo 1.1: ANCA is characterized by diverse topography 4 Photo 2.1: Terrace farming is common in ANCA 10 Photo 3.1: Subsistence agriculture is a major livelihood strategy 12 Photo 3.2: Women comprise more than half the population in ANCA 14 Photo 4.1: Primula macrophylla is found at elevations from 3,400 to 5,600 masl 16 Photo 4.2: ANCA is the western-most distribution for Cephalathera erecta var. oblanceolata 20 Photo 4.3: The Egyptian vulture is a globally threatened species 23 Photo 5.1: Local people move to high-altitude rangelands during April and May for yartsa gunbu collection 26 Photo 5.2: Allo is collected from forests to produce fibre 28 Photo 5.3: Traditional water mills are powered by streams and used for grinding grain 28 Photo 5.4: Chameliya hydropower project generates 30 MW electricity 30 Photo 5.5: Non-timber forest products are an important source of income 31 Photo 6.1: Natural disasters can be aggravated by climate change 32 Photo 6.2: Forest degradation is a threat to biodiversity 35 Photo 6.3: Forest fires damage understory as well as trees 36 Photo 7.1: Engaging local people supports biodiversity conservation 38 Photo 7.2: Biodiversity-based enterprises enhance local livelihoods 40 Photo 7.3: Efforts are underway to ensure greater inclusion of women in conservation 41 Photo 7.4: Capacity building of women improves their livelihoods and increases support for conservation 43 Photo 8.1: Documentation of local knowledge is essential for biodiversity conservation 44 Photo 8.2: Research contributes to bridging the knowledge gap 44 Photo 8.3: Awareness raising supports biodiversity conservation 46 Photo ix: Himalayan musk deer and ghoral captured by camera trap in ANCA 82 Photo x: Assam macaque is a protected species in Nepal 84 ix Photo ii: Rangeland comprise more than a quarter of the total area of ANCA (Credit: Suresh K Ghimire) x Acronyms and Abbreviations ANCA Api Nampa Conservation Area BCN Bird Conservation Nepal BS Bikram Sambat CBS Central Bureau of Statistics CDB Central Department of Botany CF Community forest CITES Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora DMG Department of Mines and Geology DNPWC Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation DPR Department of Plant Resources EIA Environmental impact assessment GLORIA Global Observation Research Initiative in Alpine Environments GoN Government of Nepal HDI Human Development Index HWC Human–wildlife conflict IAPS Invasive alien plant species IEE Institute of Ecology and Environment ICIMOD International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development KATH National Herbarium and Plant Laboratory kg Kilogram KSL Kailash Sacred Landscape kW Kilowatt LPG Liquefied petroleum gas masl Metres above sea level MAP Medicinal and aromatic plant MEA Millenium Ecosystem Assessment MoFE Ministry of Forests and Environment MoFSC Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation MoPE Ministry of Population and Environment MoWSS Ministry of Water Supply and Sewerage Mt Mount MW Megawatt NPC National Planning Commission NPWCA National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act NTFP Non-timber forest product ODF Open defecation free RDS Regional Database System RECAST Research Centre for Applied Science and Technology RM Rural Municipality Rs Nepali Rupee SCBD Secretariat of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity xi sp. Species sq. km Square kilometre SRTM Shuttle Radar Topography Mission TAR Tibet Autonomous Region TU Tribhuvan University UNDP United Nations Development Programme USD United States Dollar VDC Village Development Committee WHO World Health Organization xii The Api Nampa Conservation Area (ANCA), that can be added to it. This ANCA Biodiversity Profile established in 2010 (BS 2067), is spread over an area is useful as a reference document for researchers, of 1,903 sq. km in Darchula District, Sudurpashchim development partners and policymakers in the field of Province, in western Nepal. ANCA encompasses parts biodiversity and conservation in the future. or all of five Rural Municipalities and one Municipality. ANCA is a home to 59,609 local residents, Named after two mountain peaks, Mt Api (7,132 masl) with women comprising 52 per cent of the total and Mt Nampa (6,757 masl), ANCA hosts a wide population. Distributed in 10,412 households (with variety of plants and animals, while also being rich in an average household size of 4.8 persons) across cultural sacred and spiritual heritage. 440 settlements, the population density is higher in This Biodiversity Profile was prepared using the the lower region of ANCA (100–160 persons per sq. available data from past studies and assessments of km) than in the upper region (less than 70 persons several researchers in ANCA. It includes a currently per sq. km). The social groups of Chettri, Brahmin, comprehensive checklist of flora (angiosperms, Thakuri and Dalit collectively comprise over 98 per gymnosperms, pteridophytes, fungi and lichens) and cent of the population, while the remaining groups fauna (mammals, birds and insects) that serves as a include the ethnic groups of Shauka, Tamang and baseline of the present status of biodiversity in ANCA.