Assessment of Swamp Deer Habitat in and Around Jhilmil Jheel Conservation Reserve, Haridwar, Uttarakhand, India

Abstract

Swamp deer (Rucervus duvaucelii duvaucelii) or Barasingha is categorized as vulnerable on the IUCN Red list. With a global population of less than 5,000 the species has a very limited distribution spanning over 2,000 km2 in India and Nepal. A small population of swamp deer was recently rediscovered in Uttarakhand state at Jhilmil Jheel. This population warranted a conservation initiative because the habitat around this Conservation Reserve is heavily fragmented due to expansion of agriculture, habitation and various other land use practices. The reserve provides an area of only 0.009 km2 per animal, which is insufficient in maintaining a viable population of swamp deer. It is therefore important to identify further potential habitat and to begin linkages between existing and potential habitats. A habitat conservation evaluation can play a key role in influencing conservation strategies by conducting detailed research including identification of potential habitat blocks and suggesting linkages between existing and adjacent potential habitat blocks. In this way the initiative can help to increase the number of swamp deer and to maintain a viable population of the species.

Keywords

• Habitat evaluation
• home range
• linkage
• potential habitat
• swamp deer.