Population Structure, Habitat Use and Conservation of Ungulates in Mosaic Landscapes of Garhwal Himalayas, Uttarakhand

摘要

We studied the population structure, habitat use and conservation problems of three sympatric ungulate species namely muntjac (Muntiacus muntjak), goral (Nemorliaedus goral) and sambar (Cervus unicolor) in mosaic landscapes of Garhwal Himalayas. The average group size of goral and muntjac was 1.61 ±0.1 5 and 1.73±0.1 8, respectively. Mean group size was higher in winter followed by summer and monsoon. Sex ratio in all three species was female biased. Encounter rate of goral and muntjac was 0.336/km and 0.3/km, respectively. The encounter rate between seasons was not significantly different. The mean pellet group density of muntjac differed significantly between seasons (F=9.059, P＜0.003), however, no such significant seasonal difference was found in mean pellet group densities of goral (F=0.312, P＞0.577) and sambar (F=0.432, P＞0.432). The mean pellet densities differed significantly between different habitats for muntjac (F=2.7, P＜0.001), goral (F= 1.7, P＜0.001) and sambar (F= 1.5, P＜0.001). All three species showed positive correlation with altitude and overlapped maximum in oak forest above 1600m. Water limitation and habitat destruction are the key issues for the conservation of the ungulates in the studv area.