301.31 P04 (CES) Karnataka State of Environment Report and Action Plan Biodiversity Sector Madhav Gadgil In collaboration with Achar K. P., Ameen Ahmed, Amit Agarwal, Arun Venkataraman, Ashok V, Balakrishna H, Bangari A, Bhadregowda L V, Chakravarthy A. K., Chandrashekariah H. N, Chengappa, Chennesh, Geetha Gadagkar, Girija Shankar, Gundappa B. V., Guru Prasad T. V., Harish Bhat, Hegde Anantha Ashisara, Hema H N, Hiremath B. S., Hussain S. A., Jayaram, Krishnaiah K R, Kubendra Naik, Kushalappa C. G., Lakshminarayana K. C., Laxminarayana, Madhyastha N. A., Manjappa S, Mohini Poojari, Murthy C. K., Murthy T. V. N., Nagaraj G, Nagaraju P, Nagendra R, Narasimha Murthy B, Narasimhan V., Narendra Ajay, Nyla Coehlo, Pandurangaiah D, Piran P. A., Prema Iyer, Rahaman M. F., Rajendran, Rajgopal Shetty, Ramanna, Ramesh Kumar B S, Ranganath M S, Ranganathan N., Reddy S. C. V., S.G. Neginhal, Sathyanarayan Bhat, Shanmugam M, Shanmukappa, Shetty Y. N., Shiva Murthy M S, Shivaprakash, Siddananjappa S, Sivan V. V., Sridhar.S, Srikantaiah G. N., Srinidhi S., Srinivas R, Srinivasa S., Subash Chandran M. D., Subramanian K. A.,Sudhira, Swaminath M. H., Talavar H T, Udayshankar H M, T.V. Ramachandra, Utthappa, Yatiraju C., Yogesh Gokhale ENVIS Technical Report No. 16 Environmental Information System (ENVIS) Centre for Ecological Sciences Indian Institute of Science Bangalore 560 012, India Email: [email protected]; [email protected] Web: http://www.ces.iisc.ernet.in/hpg/envis December 2004 Table of contents 1. Current status of the sector.......................................................................................................... 1 BOX 1: BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY ACT............................................................................................................................. 2 BOX 2: PEOPLE’S BIODIVERSITY REGISTER ................................................................................................................... 8 2. Key Environmental Problems.................................................................................................... 10 2.1 NON-SUSTAINABLE HARVESTS OF LIVING RESOURCES ........................................................................................... 10 BOX 3: ELEPHANT MORTALITY IN KARNATAKA.......................................................................................................... 10 2.2 HABITAT DESTRUCTION AND FRAGMENTATION ..................................................................................................... 10 2.3 IMPACTS OF POLLUTANTS ...................................................................................................................................... 11 2.4 EXOTIC INVASIVE SPECIES...................................................................................................................................... 11 BOX 4: AFRICAN CATFISH ........................................................................................................................................... 11 3. Trends........................................................................................................................................... 12 3.1 NON-SUSTAINABLE HARVESTS OF LIVING RESOURCES ........................................................................................... 12 3.2 HABITAT DESTRUCTION AND FRAGMENTATION ..................................................................................................... 12 3.3 IMPACTS OF POLLUTANTS ...................................................................................................................................... 12 3.4 EXOTIC INVASIVES ................................................................................................................................................. 13 4. Causal factors .............................................................................................................................. 14 4.1 NON-SUSTAINABLE HARVESTS OF LIVING RESOURCES ........................................................................................... 14 BOX 5: DESTRUCTIVE FISHING METHODS..................................................................................................................... 14 4.2 HABITAT DESTRUCTION AND FRAGMENTATION ..................................................................................................... 14 4.3 IMPACTS OF POLLUTANTS ...................................................................................................................................... 15 4.4 EXOTIC INVASIVES................................................................................................................................................. 15 5. Impacts ......................................................................................................................................... 16 BOX 6: KOKREBELLUR HERONARY.............................................................................................................................. 17 5.1 NON-SUSTAINABLE HARVESTS OF LIVING RESOURCES ........................................................................................... 20 5.2 HABITAT DESTRUCTION AND FRAGMENTATION ..................................................................................................... 20 BOX 7: IMPACT OF HPCL PIPELINE ON ELEPHANTS AND THEIR HABITAT IN WESTERN GHATS ................................... 20 5.3 IMPACTS OF POLLUTANTS ...................................................................................................................................... 21 5.4 EXOTIC INVASIVES ................................................................................................................................................. 21 6. Prioritization................................................................................................................................ 23 7. Hotspots........................................................................................................................................ 26 8. Policies and institutions .............................................................................................................. 31 9. Action Plans ................................................................................................................................. 34 SECTOR I. COASTAL AND MARINE ECOSYSTEMS.......................................................................................... 34 SECTOR 2: FRESH WATER ECOSYTEMS ............................................................................................................ 36 SECTOR 3: FORESTS AND WILDLIFE .................................................................................................................. 36 SECTOR 4 : DOMESTICATED BIODIVERSITY.................................................................................................... 39 SECTOR 5 : BIODIVERSITY INVENTORYING AND MONITORING ................................................................ 41 SECTOR 6: CAPACITY BUILDING FOR BIODIVERSITY MANAGEMENT ..................................................... 41 SECTOR 7: BIODIVERSITY POLICY .................................................................................................................... 41 BOX 8: ELEPHANT ACTION PLAN................................................................................................................................. 41 BOX 9: LAKE RESTORATION ........................................................................................................................................ 44 Annexure A: Details of Action Plans.............................................................................................46 Annexure B: Hotspots of Hope ...................................................................................................... 75 Annexure C: Hotspots of Despair.................................................................................................. 87 1 Annexure D : Biodiversity Elements of Significance ................................................................... 96 1. WILD RELATIVES OF CULTIVATED PLANTS ............................................................................................................... 96 2. THREATENED PLANT SPECIES ................................................................................................................................... 97 3. THREATENED FISH SPECIES .................................................................................................................................... 105 4. THREATENED BIRD SPECIES.................................................................................................................................... 107 5. OTHER THREATENED ANIMAL SPECIES ................................................................................................................... 109 6. AMPHIBIANS .......................................................................................................................................................... 110 7. MARINE MAMMALS................................................................................................................................................ 111 8. PROPOSED HERITAGE SITES .................................................................................................................................... 115 9. PICTURES OF SOME NEW SPECIES DESCRIBED FROM KARNATAKA.........................................................................