Habitat Expansion of White Rumped Munia (Lonchura Striata) in Western Himalayan Region of Uttarakhand

HABITAT EXPANSION OF WHITE RUMPED MUNIA (LONCHURA STRIATA) IN WESTERN HIMALAYAN REGION OF UTTARAKHAND

Kamal Kant Joshi

Department of Environmental Science, Graphic Era Hill University, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India *Correspondence: [email protected]

Climate change is one of the greatest environmental issues in the world in recent decades. It has been estimated that the current rate of greenhouse gas emissions will be responsible for the rise in global temperature from 1.5 to 4.5°C by 2100 (IPCC 2018). This rise in temperature has affected the climate pattern causing effect on biotic and abiotic components of the ecosystem. IPCC (2018) report emphasized that climate change is impacting species distribution, population size and the timing of reproduction and migration. Climate change and habitat loss are the two greatest threats to biodiversity in the present century (Jetz et al., 2007). The western Himalayan region of Indian Himalayais recognized for its biological diversity and ecological values. This area has been recognized as the Endemic Bird Area (EBA 128) by BirdLife International (Stattersfield et al., 1998). Rich abundance and diversity of avifauna attract the researchers, scientist and bird watchers in the Himalaya region.In this articleobservations made in Uttarakhand are shared which indicate the habitat expansion of avian species from the Sothern part of India to the Northern part (Himalayan region). However, it is very early to say that habitat extension Fig. 1. White-rumped Munia (Lonchura Striata) founded in is happening only because of climate change. However, such Dehradun observations are evidence of the long-term effects of climate change on avian fauna. In Uttarakhand, the first record of White-rumped Munia is in the Tarai region of the Nainital district, in 1900 by Walton Thus stusdy is based on a survey conducted between 2013 and HJ, a British forester. Afterwards, Indian ornithologist Salim 2018 at Doon valley forests, Uttarakhand, focusing on “White- Ali reported it in a wide sub-Himalayan belt on the eastern rumped Munia (Lonchura Striata)”. The White-rumped Munia side of Garhwal (Ali 2012). Many scientific notes and checklists belongs to Estrildidae family and has approximately 140 species have introduced the presence of White-rumped Munia species which are widely distributed across the world. The size of this in Dehradun district (Singh 2002; Vijay et al., 2010; Joshi et bird is about 10–11cm with dark breast, streak upperparts, al., 2015). On the other hand for the first time we reported white rump, and faint brownish streak with the grayish buff White-rumped Munia with their juveniles, in November 2013, belly (Fig. 1). In India, this species is widely distributed (breed/ April 2015, June 2016 and May 2017 in Chamoli district of residence) in some states India viz. Kerala Tamil-Nadu, Odisha, Karanprayag (500m), Tharali (665m) and Nandprayag (856 Assam, Guwahati, Goa and some districts of Maharashtra, and –1,010m) region (Joshi 2018). The presence of This bird in Madhya Pradesh (Khot et al., 2016; Satose et al., 2018; Saikia et the Chamoli district (Uttarakhand) indicates that the species al., 2011; Purkayastha, 2018; Desai et al., 2012; Praveen, 2015; range is extending in the hilly area of Uttarakhand. However, Ramesh et al., 2012; Pradhan, 2013). the weather data (secondary database) from the open sources

ENVIS Bulletin Himalayan Ecology, Vol 27, 2019 43 indicate that temperature of this region has increased by about Pradhan RN, Das UP, Mohapatra RK, Mishra AK (2013). 0.24 °C between 1991 and 2015. This increase in temperature Checklist of Birds in and Around Ansupa Lake, Odisha, may be one of the causes behind habitat extension of White- India, Int. Research Jour. of Env. Sci.e, 2(11): 9-12. rumped Munia from the southern part of India to the Northern part of India especially in the Himalayan region of Uttarakhand. Praveen J (2015). A checklist of birds of Kerala, India Jour. of However, a systematic and periodic study is required in Threat. Taxa., 13(7): 7983-8009. this region in order to understand the effects of increasing temperature in avian habitat expansion. Purkayastha J (2018). Urban biodiversity: an insight into the terrestrial vertebrate diversity of Guwahati, India Jour. of References Threat. Taxa., 10(10): 12299–12316. Ali S (2012). The book of Indian Birds, Bombay Natural History Society, Oxford University Press, New Delhi. Ramesh T, Chakravarthi JPP, Balachandran S, Kalle R (2012). CEPF Western Ghats Special Series: Birds of lower Palni Desai M, Shanbhag AB (2012). An avifaunal case study of a Hills, Western Ghats, Tamil Nadu. Jour. of Threat. Taxa., plateau from Goa, India: an eye opener for conservation of 14(4): 3269-3283. plateau ecosystems. Jour. of Threat. Taxa., 3(4): 2444–2453. Saikia PK, Devi OS (2011). A checklist of avian fauna at Jeypore IPCC (2018). report.ipcc.ch/sr15/pdf/sr15_spm_final.pdf. Reserve Forest, eastern Assam, India with special reference to globally threatened and endemic species in the Eastern Jetz W, Wilcove DS, Dobson AP (2007). Projected impacts of Himalayan biodiversity hotspot Jour. of Threat. Taxa., 4(3): climate and land-use change on the global diversity of birds. 1711-1718. PLoS Bio., 5: 1211–1219. Satose V, Choursiya V, Deulkar R, Menon S (2018). Avian fauna Joshi K, Bhatt D (2015). Avian species distribution along of Amboli Ghat, Sindhudurg District, Maharashtra State, elevation at Doon Valley (foot hills of western Himalayas), India. Jour. of Threat. Taxa., 10(13): 12805-12816. Uttarakhand, and its association with vegetation structure, Jour. of Asia Pacific Biodiversity Vol. 8(2): 158-167. Singh AP (2002). New and significant records from Dehradun valley lower Garhwal Himalayas, India. Fork tail 18: 151-153. Joshi KK (2018). Waterbird species distribution between natural and manmade wetland in Himalayan foothills of Stattersfield AJ, Crosby MJ, Long AJ, Wege DC, (1998). Uttarakhand, India. Inter.l Jour. of Eco and En. Sci. Vol. Endemic Bird Areas of the world: Priorities for Biodiversity 44(1): 11-15. Conservation. Bird Life International, Cambridge.

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