Conservation Status of Primates in the Central Western Ghats, Karnataka, India
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Primate Conservation 2018 (32): 175-183 Conservation Status of Primates in the Central Western Ghats, Karnataka, India P. Ramesh Kumar1, Honnavalli N. Kumara2, M. Malathi Priya3, Hosur S. Sushma2, K. M. Meharabi4 and Swati Udayraj5 1Karnataka Forest Department, Bellary Territorial Forest Division, Bellary, Karnataka, India 2Sálim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India 3Karnataka Forest Department, Working Plan and Survey Division, Bellary, Karnataka, India 4Department of Animal Science, Central University of Kerala, Padannakkad, Kasaragod, Kerala, India 5Department of Ecology and Environmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences, Pondicherry University, Kalapet, Puducherry, India Abstract: Kudremukh Wildlife Division is one of the largest of the Protected Area Network (henceforth the Kudremukh Forest Complex) in the Western Ghats that includes Kudremukh National Park, Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary and Mookambika Wild- life Sanctuary, covering an area of about 1,285 km². The Kudremukh Forest Complex support three species of diurnal non-human primates: the lion-tailed macaque (Macaca silenus), bonnet macaque (Macaca radiata), and the black-footed gray langur (Sem- nopithecus hypoleucos), hereafter called the Hanuman langur. A survey of diurnal primates was carried out between December 2014 and April 2015 in the Kudremukh Forest Complex. A grid of 5-km² cells was superimposed on a map of the three protected areas of the Kudremukh Forest Complex. Each grid cell was systematically surveyed for four consecutive days using an existing network of trails and animal paths. The encounter rate of the Hanuman langur was significantly higher than the bonnet macaque and lion-tailed macaque. The encounter rates of the Hanuman langur, bonnet macaque, and lion-tailed macaque were 0.20 ±0.27 SD, 0.11 ±0.16 SD, and 0.03 ±0.10 SD, respectively. Mean group size of the bonnet macaques was 18.3 ±5.9 SD individuals per group, the adult female to male ratio was 1:2.3, and the adult female to immature ratio was 1:2.4. Mean group size of the Hanuman langurs was 6.7 ±3.10 SD, the adult male to adult female ratio was 1:1.9, and the adult female to immature ratio was 1:1.6. Mean group size of the lion-tailed macaques was 15.9 ±7.3 SD. The adult male to adult female ratio was 1:2.8, the adult female–immature ratio was 1:1.8, and the adult female to infant ratio was 1:0.3. The results of the current population assessment show a viable and large population of the lion-tailed macaque with a minimum population size of 585 individuals in 39 groups, making this one of the largest populations of the lion-tailed macaque in the entire Western Ghats. Key words: Lion-tailed macaque, bonnet macaque, Hanuman langur, population status, central Western Ghats Introduction and a good number of protected areas (Gubbi et al. 2016). Although narrow, the rainforests in Karnataka are contiguous The Western Ghats of continental India and the island over long stretches, and so may be crucial for the survival of of Sri Lanka have been classed together as one of 25 global the region’s many endemic species, including primates. The Biodiversity Hotspots (Myers et al. 2000), keeping in mind, Western Ghats are home to five of the 17 primates in India, however, that flora and fauna of the two regions differ sub- similar to the Northeastern Himalaya regarding primate diver- stantially (Dittus 2013). The Western Ghats are spread over sity and endemism. Due to the presence of continuous canopy an area of 1,64,280 km² from 8°0'N to 22°26'N and from and the availability of diverse fruit-bearing trees round the 72°55'E to 78°11'E and extend over a distance of 1,600 km year, the rain forests of the Western Ghats are extremely rich from Tapti River in the north to Kanyakumari in the south, in arboreal faunal diversity, especially non-human primates. traversing six states: Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, The five species of diurnal non-human primates are the lion- Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The Western Ghats range is divided tailed macaque (Macaca silenus), bonnet macaque (M. radi- into three sections—the Northern, Southern, and Central ata), Nilgiri langur (Semnopithecus johnii) and two species Western Ghats. Karnataka holds the major portion of the Cen- of Hanuman langur, Semnopithecus hypoleucos and S. priam tral Western Ghats, with large tracts of relatively intact forest (see Ashalakshmi et al. 2014). Although the bonnet macaque 175 Ramesh Kumar et al. and Hanuman langur are widespread throughout southern of primates in the three protected areas of the Kudremukh India, the lion-tailed macaque and Nilgiri langur are endemic Wildlife Division, the Kudremukh Forest Complex. to the Western Ghats. The distribution of the lion-tailed macaque once extended from the southern tip of the West- Methods ern Ghats to some parts of the states of Goa and Maharashtra (Green and Minkowaski 1977). Lion-tailed macaques were Study site eliminated from Maharashtra and Goa because of the destruc- The Kudremukh Forest Complex situated in the middle tion and degradation of their habitat over the centuries with of the central Western Ghats was reorganized and made a the fragmentation of the rainforests and consequent isolation separate Wildlife Division in 1992, with jurisdiction over of the macaque groups (Umapathy 1998; Kumara et al. 2011). three protected areas: Kudremukh National Park, Somesh- The species’ range is today restricted to Karnataka, Kerala wara Wildlife Sanctuary, and Mookambika Wildlife Sanc- and Tamil Nadu (Kumara and Sinha 2009), and the majority tuary (Fig. 1). Initially, the three protected areas were not is now in numerous small isolated populations. Owing to its contiguous but separated by reserved forests. The original restricted distribution, low global population, and the existing areas of the Kudremukh National Park, Someshwara Wildlife threats (habitat or population fragmentation, habitat degrada- Sanctuary, and Mookambika Wildlife Sanctuary were 600.32 tion, hunting and vulnerability to random events), the lion- km², 88.40 km², and 246.99 km², respectively. However, in tailed macaque has been listed as “Endangered” on the IUCN 2011, as a part of wildlife conservation strategy, the boundar- Red List, and in “Schedule I” in India’s Wildlife Protection ies of the Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary and the Mookam- Act 1972. bika Wildlife Sanctuary were rationalized by the inclusion of Large populations of lion-tailed macaque are expected to the reserved forests between the protected areas. Accordingly, occur in very few regions over the entire Western Ghats, and about 225.85 km² areas of reserved forests were added to the the conservation status of the species is likely to differ across Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary to connect it to the Kudre- these sparse populations (Kumara and Sinha 2009). Along mukh National Park located on its southern side. About the Western Ghats, the Kalakad-Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve 123.37 km² of reserved forest were added to the Mookambika harbors approximately 31 groups with about 460 animals Wildlife Sanctuary, connecting it to the Someshwara Wildlife (Sushma et al. 2014), and there are 32 groups in Sirsi-Hon- navara in Uttara Kannada district, Karnataka (Kumara and Singh 2004a), and 14 groups with an estimated 260 animals overall in Silent Valley National Park (Joseph and Ramach- andran 1998). The lion-tailed macaque habitat in Anamalai Hills is highly fragmented and surrounded by plantations, including tea estates, yet holds about 62 groups (Kumara et al. 2014). A drastic decline of the lion-tailed macaque popula- tion was reported from the Brahmagiri Wildlife Sanctuary, the Talacauvery Wildlife Sanctuary, the Pushpagiri Wildlife Sanc- tuary, and the Sharavathi Valley Wildlife Sanctuary, all due to extensive hunting (Kumara and Singh 2004a, 2004b; Kumara and Sinha 2009). Karanth (1985) provided the first baseline data on the lion-tailed macaque’s status and distribution for the entire state of Karnataka using secondary information that included three protected areas of the Kudremukh Wild- life Division, Karkala. Kumara and Singh (2008) assessed the population status of the lion-tailed macaque for all the then three protected areas of the Kudremukh Wildlife Divi- sion (an area of about 935 km²) and revealed a minor decline in population numbers. The study did not include, however, the adjoining suitable habitats (reserved forests), which have recently been included in the protected area network there. Lacking population data for the entire landscape, the status of the lion-tailed macaque in the Kudremukh landscape or Kudremukh forest complex (Kudremukh National Park, Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary, and Mookambika Wildlife Sanctuary) was not clear, and the body of literature revealed the need for population assessment in unexplored habitats of Figure 1. Three protected areas (Mookambika Wildlife Sanctuary, Someshwara the species. Here, we report on a survey to establish the status Wildlife Sanctuary, and Kudremukh National Park) of the Kudremukh Forest Complex in the Western Ghats, Karnataka. 176 Primates in the central Western Ghats Sanctuary (Table 1). Kudremukh National Park (600.57 km²), Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary (314.25 km²) and Mookam- bika Wildlife Sanctuary (370.36 km²) are now connected, with a total area of about 1,285 km² and form the single larg- est contiguous protected area network in Karnataka (Fig. 2). Major habitat types in the Kudremukh forest complex include wet evergreen forests, semi-evergreen forests, moist deciduous forests, high elevation grasslands and planta- tions (Fig. 3). The evergreen and semi-evergreen forests are mostly restricted to the valleys and steep slopes, whereas the Figure 2. Forest ranges in three protected areas (Mookambika Wildlife Figure 4. Encounter rate of primates in the Kudremukh Forest Complex Sanctuary, Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary, and Kudremukh National Park) (LTM: Lion-tailed Macaque, BM: Bonnet Macaque, HL: Hanuman Langur).