View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Wageningen University & Research Publications Environ Manage (2006) 38:934–941 DOI 10.1007/s00267-005-0356-2 Perceived Conflicts Between Pastoralism and Conservation of the Kiang Equus kiang in the Ladakh Trans-Himalaya, India Yash Veer Bhatnagar Æ Rinchen Wangchuk Æ Herbert H. T. Prins Æ Sipke E. Van Wieren Æ Charudutt Mishra Received: 17 November 2005 / Accepted: 10 March 2006 Ó Springer Science+Business Media, Inc. 2006 Abstract An emerging conflict with Trans-Himalayan overstocking perception in Ladakh. In the Hanle Val- pastoral communities in Ladakh’s Changthang Plateau ley, an important area for the kiang, its density was ) threatens the conservation prospects of the kiang higher (0.56 km 2) although even here, we estimated (Equus kiang) in India. It is locally believed that the total forage consumed by kiang to be only 3–4% Changthang’s rangelands are overstocked with kiang, compared to 96–97% consumed by the large livestock ) resulting in forage competition with livestock. Here, population (78 km 2). Our analysis nevertheless sug- we provide a review and preliminary data on the causes gests that at a localized scale, some herders do face of this conflict. Erosion of people’s tolerance of the serious forage competition from kiang in key areas kiang can be attributed to factors such as the loss of such as moist sedge meadows, and thus management traditional pastures during an Indo-Chinese war fought strategies also need to be devised at this scale. In-depth in 1962, immigration of refugees from Tibet, doubling socioeconomic surveys are needed to understand the of the livestock population in about 20 years, and full extent of the conflicts, and herder-centered par- increasing commercialization of cashmere (pashmina) ticipatory resolution needs to be facilitated to ensure production. The perception of kiang overstocking ap- that a sustainable solution for livelihoods and kiang pears misplaced, because our range-wide density esti- conservation is achieved. ) mate of 0.24 kiang km 2 (± 0.44, 95% CL) is comparable to kiang densities reported from Tibet. A Keywords Equus kiang Æ Conflicts Æ Pastoralism Æ catastrophic decline during the war and subsequent Nomads Æ Livestock Æ Ladakh recovery of the kiang population apparently led to the Introduction Y. V. Bhatnagar (&) Æ C. Mishra Nature Conservation Foundation & International Snow One of the seven equid species in the world, the kiang Leopard Trust-India Program Equus kiang, occurs in parts of China and India, with 3076/5 IV Cross, Gokulam Park, Mysore small populations also reported from Pakistan and Karnataka, India - 570002 E-mail: [email protected] Nepal. Unlike the Asian wild ass E. hemionus,of which the population has declined drastically over the R. Wangchuk last century, kiang continues to have a wide distri- Snow Leopard Conservancy bution with fairly large populations (Schaller 1998). Ibex Hotel Complex Leh, Ladakh, Jammu & Kashmir, India Within India, Ladakh (approximately 75° 50¢ to 75° 80¢ E; 32° 30¢ Nto32° 37¢ N) remains a stronghold for H. H. T. Prins Æ S. E. Van Wieren the kiang (Fox and others 1991; Shah 1996), where Tropical Nature Conservation and Vertebrate Ecology local Buddhist communities have been fairly tolerant Group, Department of Environmental Sciences Wageningen University of the species, and large herds of kiang can be rela- 69 Bornsesteeg, 6708 PD Wageningen, The Netherlands tively easily seen in eastern Ladakh. Kiang is classed 123 Environ Manage (2006) 38:934–941 935 as a Least Concern species under the IUCN Red List dow region is semiarid to arid, with winter tempera- category; however the Western Kiang, E. k. kiang, tures dropping to below )25°C. Western and central which occurs in Ladakh, is classed as ‘‘data deficient’’ Leh are mostly rugged, relatively lower in elevation, (Shah 2002). and inhabited by agropastoralists. The eastern part of Yet, with growing integration of the local economy the district, called Changthang, on the other hand, of Ladakh with better developed cash markets, pasto- comprises high plateaus and rolling hills (usually ral communities are fast losing their tolerance towards >4000 m) interspersed with lake and river basins that the kiang and it is increasingly seen as a competitor of have moist patches of relatively dense graminoid veg- livestock (Fox and others 1991). Ironically, its rela- etation. Most of the remaining arid region is dominated tively large population and conspicuousness are by medium to sparse steppe vegetation. Changthang becoming concerns for the continued conservation of covers approximately 20,000 km2 and is inhabited by the species. Although the species is not persecuted the nomadic Changpa community and Tibetan refu- (except for driving them away from pastures by herders gees, both of whom primarily rear goat and sheep. on horseback) in Ladakh largely due to the Buddhist According to the human census in 2001 conducted by beliefs of the local pastoral communities, this per- the government, the population of the Leh district was ceived conflict is currently one of the most serious is- 117,637, with the majority (85%) being in the western sues being faced by the local district administration and region. The population is sparse in the Changthang ) the wildlife department, with vehement demands for (13,444) with a density of approximately 0.7 km 2. compensation. Indeed, a decreasing tolerance for the Ladakh is home to a diverse assemblage of wild car- species may lead in future to a worsening willingness to nivores, ungulates, and birds (Pfister 2004). preserve it. There is a belief among the administration Within Ladakh, the kiang occurs in the eastern that Ladakh’s rangelands are presently overstocked by Changthang part of the Leh district. Our survey cov- kiang, and that they are degrading the pastures (Anon ered most of this region, from the Pangong Tso in the 2003). Over the last decade, as a measure to protect North, along the eastern border with Tibet, to Hanle in forage from kiang and make it available to livestock, the south (Figure 1). We divided the entire region into the local government and some nongovernmental five blocks based on their location and overall simi- organizations have started fencing the most productive larity in terms of topography and vegetation, and sur- pastures, the sedge meadows near rivers and streams, veyed each block (Table 1). Our repeated counts of thereby increasing forage availability for livestock and kiang were conducted in the Hanle Valley. This valley reducing the available habitat for the kiang (Richard (79° 0¢ 45† E, 32° 37¢ 29† N; approximately 2800 km2) 1999; Bhatnagar and Wangchuk 2001). extends from the Zanskar mountains in the south to The purpose of this article is to document this the Indus Valley in the north into which the Hanle intensifying conflict between pastoralism and conser- River drains at Loma. The higher reaches are primarily vation of the kiang in Ladakh. The kiang subspecies in rolling mountains and plateaus, while the mid and question is categorized as ‘‘data-deficient’’ by the lower portion is a wide valley fringed by a high range IUCN (Moehlman 2002). We examine the primary exceeding 5000 m on the east, and a lower, more ecological, socioeconomic, and political aspects of gradual ridge on the west. kiang–human conflict, and summarize the results of our rangewide surveys of the kiang population in Ladakh. We also discuss the growing linkages between a tradi- Data Collection and Analysis tional way of life and the global cashmere market, and their consequences for conservation of the kiang. Through archival research and field observations, we documented the intensifying human–kiang conflict in Ladakh. We describe the perceptions of the Ladakhi Methods administration regarding this conflict, and the efforts they have undertaken to address it. Through archival Study Area research, we also examine recent land-use changes in eastern Ladakh, describe the growing pashmina or Administratively, the Ladakh region in the state of cashmere industry, and its fallouts for the kiang–hu- Jammu and Kashmir (India) is divided into two dis- man conflict. Literature was also surveyed for obtain- tricts: the western Kargil district and the eastern Leh ing information on the past status and distribution of district. Leh district is a high-altitude cold desert the kiang. We also obtained data on livestock popu- spread over approximately 45,000 km2. This rain-sha- lations from the Sheep Husbandry Departments in 123 936 Environ Manage (2006) 38:934–941 Fig. 1 The five blocks surveyed for kiang in eastern Ladakh during 2000 to 2003. The estimated ‘‘viewscape’’ is based on modeling for areas visible within 3 km on either side of the road (see text for details). Distribution of kiang in Ladakh is also shown (based on Chundawat and Qureshi 1999). We also surveyed some additional adjacent areas with similar habitat Table 1 Density of kiang in the surveyed blocks of eastern The study area was surveyed from a slow-moving Ladakh, India vehicle (traveling at 10–12 km/hour) and areas on ei- Transect Area No. Kiang density ther side were periodically scanned using an 8· bin- ) Survey block length (km) (km2) Kiang (km 2) ocular and/or 20· spotting scope. On every sighting, Loma-Demchok 82 288 249 0.86 animals were counted and classified, and habitat vari- (Indus) ables such as topographic feature, elevation, slope, Hanle Valley 66 347 78 0.23 aspect, dominant plant species, and approximate plant Chushul-Loma 63 299 19 0.06 cover were recorded. Classification of kiang by sex was Parma Valley 74 360 9 0.03 Pongong Tso 80 359 10 0.03 not possible in most instances due to the similarity Total 365 1653 365 0.24 (95% CL ± 0.44) between the sexes, especially when seen from a dis- tance.