Status of Tigers and Prey in Nepal Government of Nepal Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Babar Mahal, Kathmandu Nepal 2014 Publisher: Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Babar Mahal, Kathmandu Nepal 2014 Citation: Dhakal, Maheshwar; Karki (Thapa), Madhuri; Jnawali, Shant Raj; Subedi, Naresh; Pradhan, Narendra Man Babu; Malla, Sabita; Lamichhane, Babu Ram; Pokheral, Chiranjibi Prasad; Thapa, Gokarna Jung; Oglethorpe, Judy; Subba, Samundra Ambuhang; Bajracharya, Pankaj Ratna and Yadav, Hemanta (2014). Status of Tigers and Prey in Nepal. Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, Kathmandu, Nepal Copy Rights © Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored, in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the permission in writing of the copyright holder. Back Cover Photo: Tiger in Bardia National Park-©Krishna Shah Printed at: Sigma General Offset Press Sanepa, Lalitpur, Nepal Tel.: 5554029 ii iii Publisher: Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Babar Mahal, Kathmandu Nepal 2014 Citation: Dhakal, Maheshwar; Karki (Thapa), Madhuri; Jnawali, Shant Raj; Subedi, iv v Publisher: Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Babar Mahal, Kathmandu Nepal 2014 Citation: Dhakal, Maheshwar; Karki (Thapa), Madhuri; Jnawali, Shant Raj; Subedi, vi Table of Contents Executive Summary ......................................................................................................................xi 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 1 2. History of Tiger Conservation in Nepal .......................................................................................... 3 3. Tiger Habitats in Nepal ................................................................................................................ 5 3.1 Terai Arc Landscape (TAL) ....................................................................................................... 5 3.2 Protected Areas ..................................................................................................................... 5 3.2.1 Parsa Wildlife Reserve ................................................................................................. 5 3.2.2 Chitwan National Park ................................................................................................ 5 3.2.3 Banke National Park ...................................................................................................8 3.2.4 Bardia National Park ...................................................................................................8 3.2.5 Shuklaphanta Wildlife Reserve ..................................................................................... 8 3.3 Forests and Corridors outside Protected Areas ..........................................................................8 3.3.1 Kamdi-Kapilvastu Corridor .......................................................................................... 8 3.3.2 Khata Corridor ...........................................................................................................8 3.3.3 Basanta Corridor ........................................................................................................ 8 3.3.4 Karnali River Corridor ................................................................................................. 9 3.3.5 Laljhadi-Mohana Corridor ...........................................................................................9 3.3.6 Brahmadev Corridor ...................................................................................................9 3.3.7 Barandabhar Corridor ................................................................................................ 9 4. Tiger Monitoring Methods – 2013 ............................................................................................... 12 4.1 Institutional setup for tiger survey .......................................................................................... 12 4.2 Orientation Training ............................................................................................................. 12 4.3 Field Methods ..................................................................................................................... 13 4.3.1 Camera Trapping for Tiger Abundance Estimation .......................................................13 4.3.1.1 Tiger Population Estimation ............................................................................13 4.3.1.2 Sampling Design and Effort ........................................................................... 13 4.3.2 Line Transect Surveys for Prey Density Estimation ..........................................................14 4.3.3 Tiger Habitat Occupancy Surveys ...............................................................................15 5. Data Analysis ............................................................................................................................ 17 5.1 Tiger Population and Density Estimation ................................................................................. 17 5.2 Prey Density Estimation ......................................................................................................... 18 5.3 Tiger Habitat Occupancy ..................................................................................................... 18 6. Status of the Tiger Population in 2013 ......................................................................................... 19 6.1 Parsa Wildlife Reserve .......................................................................................................... 19 6.1.1 Sampling Efforts and Individual Tigers Captured ..........................................................19 6.1.2 Capture and Recapture Pattern .................................................................................. 19 6.1.3 Population and Density Estimation Using SPACECAP Program ....................................... 19 6.2 Chitwan National Park ......................................................................................................... 20 6.2.1 Sampling Effort and Individual Tigers Captured ...........................................................20 6.2.2 Capture and Recapture Pattern .................................................................................. 21 6.2.3 Population and Density Estimation Using SPACECAP Program ....................................... 22 6.3 Banke National Park ............................................................................................................ 22 6.3.1 Sampling Effort and Individual Tigers Captured ...........................................................22 vii 6.3.2 Capture and Recapture Pattern .................................................................................. 22 6.3.3 Population and Density Estimation Using SPACECAP Program ....................................... 23 6.4 Bardia National Park ............................................................................................................ 23 6.4.1 Sampling Effort and Individual Tigers Captured ...........................................................23 6.4.2 Capture and recapture pattern ...................................................................................23 6.4.3 Population and Density Estimation using Program SPACECAP .......................................24 6.5 Shuklaphanta Wildlife Reserve ..............................................................................................24 6.5.1 Sampling Effort and Individual tigers captured .............................................................24 6.5.2 Capture and Recapture Pattern .................................................................................. 25 6.5.3 Population and Density Estimation Using SPACECAP Program ....................................... 25 6.6 Results from CAPTURE and DENSITY Programs ...................................................................... 25 7. Status of Prey-base 2013 ............................................................................................................ 28 7.1 Parsa Wildlife Reserve .......................................................................................................... 28 7.1.1 Sampling Efforts ....................................................................................................... 28 7.1.2 Prey Species Encountered ..........................................................................................28 7.1.3 Prey Density Estimates ............................................................................................... 28 7.2 Chitwan National Park ......................................................................................................... 29 7.2.1 Sampling Effort ......................................................................................................... 29 7.2.2 Prey Species Encountered ..........................................................................................30 7.2.3 Prey Density Estimates ............................................................................................... 30 7.3 Banke National Park ...........................................................................................................