The Status of Nepal’s Mammals: The National Red List Series Compilers: Jnawali, S.R., Baral, H.S., Lee, S., Acharya, K.P., Upadhyay, G.P., Pandey, M., Shrestha, R., Joshi, D., Lamichhane, B.R., Griffiths, J., Khatiwada, A.P.,Subedi, N., and Amin, R. The designation of geographical entities in this book, and the presentation of the material, do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of participating organizations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of any participating organizations. Notes on front and back cover design: The watercolours reproduced on the covers and within this book are taken from the notebooks of Brian Houghton Hodgson (1800-1894). For 23 years, Hodgson was posted to Nepal as an official of the British East India Company—at a time when Nepal was virtually terra incognita to Europeans. Hodgson was an energetic polymath who, in addition to carrying out his political and diplomatic duties, published widely on the ethnography, linguistics, architecture, religion and natural history of Nepal and the Himalayas. He published more than 140 scientific papers on zoological subjects, ranging from descriptions of new species to checklists of the fauna. A projected massive volume surveying the birds and mammals of the central Himalaya was unfortunately never completed due to lack of funds, but the present paintings are taken from sketchbooks which Hodgson presented to the Zoological Society of London toward the end of his life. These voluminous collections comprise approximately 1500 pages of drawings, studies and miscellaneous notes. The species depictions were done in watercolours by a cadre of Nepalese traditional artists trained by Hodgson to paint birds and mammals in a natural, lifelike manner surprisingly modern in comparison with European and American artists of the day. Sadly, the names of only two members of this group—Tursmoney Chitterkar and Rajman Singh—are known today. The latter was probably responsible for the majority of these paintings, but he seems to have signed no more than a single bird painting. ISBN number: 978-0-900881-60-2 Hodgson paintings species IDs (clockwise from top left) Front cover Primates Back cover 1 Macaca mulatta 1 Semnopithecus schistaceus 1 Naemorhedus goral Rhesus Macaque; Rato Bandar Nepal Grey Langur; Kalomukhe Himalayan Goral; Ghoral 2 Ovis ammon hodgsoni Bandar, Lampuchhre Bandar, 2 Petaurista petaurista Argali; Nayan Phetawal Bandar Red Giant Flying Squirrel; Rato 3 Manis pentadactyla 2 Macaca mulatta Rajpankhi Lokharke Chinese Pangolin; Kalo Salak Rhesus Macaque; Rato Bandar 3 Felis chaus (juvenile) 4 Pteropus giganteus 3 Macaca assamensis Jungle Cat; Ban Biralo Indian Flying Fox; Raj Chamero Assam Macaque; Pahare Bandar 4 Hipposideros armiger 5 Cuon alpinus Great Himalayan Leaf-nosed Bat; Dhole; Ban kukur Small mammals Thulo Golopatre Chamero 1 Lepus nigricollis 5 Semnopithecus schistaceus Ungulates Indian Hare; Khairo Kharayo Nepal Grey Langur; Kalomukhe 1 Pantholops hodgsonii 2 Cannomys badius Bandar, Lampuchhre Bandar, Tibetan Antelope; Chiru Bay Bamboo Rat, Lesser Bamboo Phetawal Bandar 2 Naemorhedus goral Rat; Sano Tame Bansmuso Himalayan Goral; Ghoral 3 Manis pentadactyla 3 Axis porcinus Chinese Pangolin; Kalo Salak Hog Deer; Laguna 4 Caprolagus hispidus Hispid Hare; Laghukarna Kharayo Carnivores 1 Felis chaus (juvenile) Bats Jungle Cat; Ban Biralo 1 Pteropus giganteus 2 Cuon alpinus Indian Flying Fox; Raj Chamero Dhole; Ban kukur 2 Hipposideros armiger Great Himalayan Leaf-nosed Bat; Thulo Golopatre Chamero i The Status of Nepal’s Mammals: The National Red List Series Compilers: Shant Raj Jnawali, Hem Sagar Baral, Samantha Lee, Krishna Prasad Acharya, Gopal Upadhyay, Megh Pandey, Rinjan Shrestha, Dipesh Joshi, Babu Ram Laminchhane, Janine Griffiths, Ambika Prasad Khatiwada Naresh Subedi and Rajan Amin. Citation: Jnawali, S.R., Baral, H.S., Lee, S., Acharya, K.P., Upadhyay, G.P., Pandey, M., Shrestha, R., Joshi, D., Laminchhane, B.R., Griffiths, J., Khatiwada, A. P., Subedi, N., and Amin, R. (compilers) (2011) The Status of Nepal Mammals: The National Red List Series, Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Kathmandu, Nepal. Preface by Simon M. Stuart Chair IUCN Species Survival Commission ii Foreword Nepal is situated at the heart of the Himalayan belt and at a unique juncture of two of the world’s most important bio-geographic regions. Altitudinal variation over a short distance ranges from 60 m above sea-level to 8,848 m atop Sagarmatha, the highest point on Earth. This unique setting has bestowed Nepal with rich biodiversity, yet Nepal is also diverse in its ethnicity, culture and religion, giving it one of the most unique social settings in the region. A total of 208 species of mammals are found in Nepal, constituting 4.2 % of the world’s mammalian fauna. Nepal’s faunal diversity ranges from the second largest terrestrial mammal, the Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) to one of the world’s smallest mammals, the white-toothed pygmy shrew (Suncus etruscus); it includes the largest of the cats, the Royal Bengal Tiger (Panthera tigris) and the smallest deer, the Indian Spotted Chevrotain (Moschiola indica). Much of the biodiversity in the country has been conserved through the establishment of the protected area system, which covers nearly 25% of the country’s land mass and represents diverse ecosystems at various elevations. However, ecosystems and biodiversity outside the protected areas suffer the greatest threat, primarily due to encroachment of forest lands, overgrazing,over-exploitation of forest resources and poaching of wildlife species. Deterioration of the quality of the wildlife habitats both inside and outside protected areas due to invasive alien plant species such as Mikania micrantha, Chromolaena odorata and Lantana camara has only exacerbated the threats. The Status of Nepal’s Mammals is an invaluable project, providing crucial information on taxonomic and geographical gaps in knowledge, and for informing conservation decision making and research, and influencing policy. The information contained here will form the baseline for further development and research in the field of mammalian conservation in Nepal. Nepal is a signatory of many international conventions, including CBD, Ramsar Convention and CITES. The work and publication of the National Red List of Mammals coincides with the ‘International Year of Biodiversity’ and the Government of Nepal remains committed in its part to conserve the rich natural heritage that it has been graced with. I would like to thank the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, National Trust for Nature Conservation, Zoological Society of London, World Wildlife Fund Nepal and all partners and individuals who have coorperated in this publication. In particular, I would like to thank Dr Hem Sagar Baral, Dr Shant Raj Jnawali, Dr Rajan Amin and Samantha Lee for their untiring efforts in the publication of the Status of Nepal’s Mammals. Nabin Kumar Ghimire Secretary, Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation. iii Preface It is with great pleasure that I write this foreword to The Status of Nepal’s Mammals. This landmark publication gives us, for the first time, a comprehensive and detailed understanding of the national conservation status of the 208 species of Nepalese mammals. Almost a quarter of Nepal’s mammals are threatened with extinction (23%). However, the true percentage of threatened mammals will probably be much worse than this, because 38% of the species are Data Deficient, and many of these will almost certainly be found to be threatened once they have been properly studied. The most threatened group of mammals in the country is the ungulates, of which 57% are threatened. Species such as the Barasingha Rucervus duvaucelii, the Hog Deer Axis porcinus and the Himalayan Musk Deer Moschus leucogaster have globally important populations in Nepal, as do the South Asian River Dolphin Platanista gangetica, Greater One-horned Rhinoceros Rhinoceros unicornis and the Hispid Hare Caprolagus hispidus. The most poorly known groups in Nepal are the small mammals (bats, shrews, rodents), of which 48% are Data Deficient. The Status of Nepal’s Mammals has been an invaluable project which was only possible due to the contribution of many committed scientists and conservationists, and the close collaboration between: the Government of Nepal, Ministry of Forest and Soil Conservation, Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation; the National Trust for Nature Conservation; the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN); and the Zoological Society of London. Long-term commitment is needed to continue producing national red lists in the region, including birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish and flowering plants. Nepal was one of 183 governments that are parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity that adopted the following target at the Nagoya conference in October 2010: By 2020 the extinction of known threatened species has been prevented and their conservation status, particularly of those most in decline, has been improved and sustained. This book provides an excellent basis for measuring whether or not Nepal can achieve this important target for mammals. This publication will have the following outputs for conservation: • It provides a baseline for further assessments,