CHITWAN: Two rhino calves reared by the Chitwan National Park (CNP) have been released into the wild in the park. The calves kept at the National Trust for Nature Conservation, Sauraha have been held and transported on a truck before releasing them into the Tamital area, said the park’s vet Dr Bijaya Shrestha. No dart […]
The calves kept at the National Trust for Nature Conservation, Sauraha have been held and transported on a truck before releasing them into the Tamital area, said the park's vet Dr Bijaya Shrestha. No dart was used in capturing them, he said.
CHITWAN: A total of 20 crocodiles kept at the crocodile breeding center in Sauraha of Chitwan National Park have been released in the Rapti river, the natural habitat of crocodile. The CNP said that 18 female and two male crocodiles were released into the river water. Assistant Conservation Officer of the CNP Raju Ghimire said […]
CHITWAN, July 17: A baby rhino (Keto) rescued from Amaltari sector of Nawalparasi under Chitwan National Park has died. The rhino baby, which was rescued from Amaltari a week ago and taken to the National Trust for Nature Conservation at Sauraha, died of pneumonia.
The work of the tiger survey in Chitwan National Park and surrounding areas has been completed under the National Tiger Survey 2078 BS.
According to Dr. Baburam Lamichhane, head of the National Nature Conservation Fund, Sauraha, the survey is being conducted in all the areas of Parsa, Bara and Rautahat Division Forest Office except Pratappur of Parsa from the first week of January. He shared that 300 pairs of cameras have been placed in those areas.
Surveys will be carried out in Shuklaphanta and Laljhadi areas with the help of cameras and after surveying all the areas, data will be collected.
The survey started from Chitwan by dividing Chitwan and Parsa into three blocks. Camera trapping work has been completed in the first and second blocks and work has started in the third block. Every four square kilometers of the area is surveyed by assembling a pair of cameras on a grid. According to Ganesh Prasad Tiwari, Assistant Conservation Officer and Information Officer of the park, camera trap, range finder, GPS and record firm have been used in the survey.
The photos collected by the camera are now being stored on laptops and computers. He informed that after the completion of the survey work in all three blocks, the team including experts will collect the photos taken from the camera in one place and get the final result through software.
It is estimated to cost around Rs. 40 million.
After the photo study, the statistics are planned to be made public on the occasion of World Tiger Day on July 29. According to the 2018 Tiger Census, 235 adult tigers were found in Nepal. At that time, 93 tigers were found in Chitwan, 87 in Bardiya, 18 in Parsa, 16 in Shuklaphanta and 21 in Banke. This number is expected to increase.
Nepal had pledged to increase the number of tigers to 250 by 2022 at the 2010 Tiger Summit of 13 Heads of State in St. Petersburg, Russia. At that time, there were 121 tigers in Nepal.
A technical team from Sauraha in Chitwan has reached Raptisonari, an area where the tigers are prowling, terrorizing the people in Raptipari of Banke every day.
A three-member technical team led by Amir Sadaula, senior technician of the National Trust for Nature Conservation (NRNC), has reached Fattepur in Raptisonari and started searching for the man-eater, said Dadhi Lal Kandel, chief of Division One Office in Banke.
KATHMANDU, December 5: The fourth census of the rare Royal Bengal tiger is starting today from Chitwan National Park and Parsa National Park. The census is being held by making the two national parks a single block.
The tiger census is being kicked off amid a special event at Sauraha of Chitwan National Park today at the presence of Minister for Forest and Environment Ram Sahaya Prasad Yadav and other high-level officials as well as the representatives from development partners.
Director General of the Department of National Park and Wildlife Conservation Dr Ram Chandra Kandel said that another separate block would be made by including Bardiya and Banke districts from December 15. The team then conducted the tiger census in Shuklaphanta and Laljhadi.
“The total cost for the tiger census is estimated around Rs 40 million and special attention is accorded for the security of the technicians,” Dr Kandel said. The technicians involved in the tiger counting are insured for Rs 1 million and the Nepal Army personnel deployed for the security of the national park would also accompany the enumerators for their security.
It is said that a total of 120 technicians and assistants in addition to some elephants would be mobilized in Chitwan National Park for this purpose. The technicians and assistants deployed for the tiger counting would be stationed in 16 different camps there.
The camera trapping method will be used in the census wherein 360 cameras’ traps are laid along the tiger's path to capture their images as they move. The task is expected to be completed in almost two months.
The final results are expected to arrive within four months after the analysis of the images captured. This is the fourth time that Nepal is conducting tiger counting. Prior to this, the censuses were held in 2008, 2013 and 2018.
The country is going to start the National Tiger Survey from all the tiger-inhabiting national parks and nearby forests across the country from December 5.
The census which is led by the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC), is being launched from Chitwan National Park (CNP). Minister for Forest and Environment Ramsahay Prasad Yadav will inaugurate the National Survey in Sauraha of CNP on December 5.
Private elephants kept for providing jungle safari services to tourists are now on verge of displacement.
With shrinking business opportunities after the COVID-19 pandemic, the elephant owners were found to have started selling or returning the tuskers rented from India.
In two years the number of elephants has reduced to 35 from 67 in the United Elephant Ride Operation Cooperative that has been providing the riding service.
Chairperson of Regional Hotel Association Deepak Bhattarai, who was also served as the former chairperson of the cooperative, said it was difficult to keep the elephants without any business.
He further noted that the displacement of tusker was occurring with no support from government front.
Entrepreneurs said it costs more than Rs 100,000 per month to keep an elephant which normally requires over two quintals of food each day.
As informed, only three elephants among those rented from India are available at CNP. Though entrepreneurs did not provide accurate data, each elephant is said to be sold out normally at the rate ranging from Rs 8 to 120 million in Sauraha.
The sold elephants are being taken to Gujarat of India. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora has kept the elephant affairs in annex 1. It prohibits the trade and transport of endangered animals listed in annex 1.
With this legal provision, the owners here do not openly admit the trade of elephant. It has been very tough to rear elephants due to limited turn up of tourists to Sauraha, said chairperson of United Elephant Operation Cooperative Rishi Tiwari.
He further said the elephants are on verge of displacement from Chitwan district due to mounting pressure on feeding the mammoths.
The India government has allowed private sector to keep elephants but it is not permitted in Nepal, Tiwari commented, adding it has also compelled entrepreneurs to keep them away. "Elephants would not be evicted if the government provided assistance in insurance and grazing".
It was difficult to rear the elephants when the government even did not allow to cut stray grass to feed the tuskers, he complained.
Chief Conservation Officer of the Chitwan National Park, Ananath Baral said though CNP has demanded land for grazing elephants the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation has not yet made any decision to that end.
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