¿Quienes recolectan los Productos Forestales No- Maderables? : una aproximación para identificar a individuos recolectores en una comunidad Indígena de la India

Los atributos socioeconómicos influencian la colección de productos forestales no maderables (PFNMs). Ellos indican diferentes sectores sociales involucrados en la colección y, además, sugieren factores que regulan la extracción de PFNMs. Las asociaciones entre atributos socioeconómicos y colección de PFNMs cambiarían entre venta y consumo de PFNMs. Ciertas familias rurales coleccionan PFNMs para obtener un sustento económico. Otras, comúnmente más pobres, coleccionan PFNMs para obtener recursos de subsistencia. Los atributos socioeconómicos ayudarían a identificar estos dos sectores sociales. Aquí se evalúa la asociación de atributos socioeconómicos con venta y consumo de PFNMs en una comunidad indígena Soliga, India. A través de una encuesta se registró la colección de PFNMs y atributos socioeconómicos de individuos y hogar. Se realizó una regresión múltiple basada en un modelo Probit. Este modelo estima la asociación de la relación y la probabilidad que un individuo con cierta característica colecte PFNMs para vender o para consumir. Los resultados sugieren que algunas variables -edad, sexo, talla del hogar, y otras- tienen alto potencial para predecir patrones de venta y consumo de PFNMs. Se encontró que algunos atributos tienen diferente asociación entre venta y consumo. El estudio demuestra 1) la importancia de analizar atributos socioeconómicos asociados tanto a vender como a consumir PFNMs, y 2) qué diferentes sectores sociales dependen de la venta y consumo. La información de este estudio es relevante para programas de manejo que busquen asegurar el sustento de familias rurales pobres.Socioeconomic attributes influence to Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) collection. They indicate the different social sectors involved on the gathering and, besides, suggest factors that regulate the NTFPs extraction. Associations between socioeconomic attributes and NTFPs collection would change between NTFPs sale and consumption. Some rural families collect NTFPs to obtain a economic livelihood. Others, often the poorest families, collect NTFPs to obtain subsistence resources. Socioeconomic attributes would help to identify both social sectors. Here, I evaluate the association between socioeconomic attributes with NTFPs sale and consumption on the Soligas, an indigenous community from India. Through a survey were registered the collection of NTFPs and socioeconomic attributes. I made a multiple regression based on Probit model. This model estimates the type of association (positive or negative) and probability that an individual with certain characteristic collecting NTFPs. The results suggest that some variable -such as age, sex, and household size- are good predictors for NTFPs sale and consumption. Besides, the results suggest that some variables differ between sale and consumption. So, the study demonstrates 1) the importance of analyses on association between socioeconomic attributes, and 2) that different social sectors depend on sale and consumption of NTFPs. The information of this study is relevant for programs that found the poor rural families's livelihood

Biligiri Tiger reserve: include Soligas in conservation plan

Protesting against the proposal of the Karnataka forest department to notify the Biligiri Hills as a Tiger Reserve, the resident Soliga adivasis have instead proposed a community-based tiger conservation model

Small Carnivores of Biligiri Rangaswamy Temple Tiger Reserve, Karnataka, India

During the present study in Biligiri Rangaswamy Temple Tiger Reserve (BRT), nine species of small carnivores viz., Jungle Cat Felis chaus, Rusty-spotted Cat Prionalilurus rubiginosus, Leopard Cat Prionailurus bengalensis, Small Indian Civet Viverricula indica, Asian Palm Civet Paradoxurus hermaphroditus, Striped-necked Mongoose Herpestes vitticollis, Ruddy Mongoose Herpestes smithii, Common Mongoose Herpestes edwardsii and Smooth-coated Otter Lutrogale perspicillata, were recorded using camera-trapping technique, transect walks, and night surveys. Vegetation type strongly influences the presence and abundance of each species. The most sightings of small carnivores occurred in dry deciduous forests. Among all the species, the Asian Palm Civet was the most abundant and was followed by the small Indian Civet. Compared to many other forests or regions in India, the sight records of the Rusty-spotted Cat were relatively higher in BRT. Although we were unable to use statistical methods to search for higher levels of interdependencies between forest types and small carnivore abundance, our study sheds light on patterns of small carnivore distribution in this unique habitat which bridges the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats

Applications of geographic information systems, remote-sensing, and a landscape ecology approach to biodiversity conservation in the Western Ghats

The mountains along the west coast of peninsular India, the Western Ghats, constitute one of the unique biological regions of the world. Rapidly occurring land-cover and land-use change in the Western Ghats has serious implications for the biodiversity of the region. Both landscape changes as well as the distribution of biodiversity are phenomena with strong spatial correlates. Recent developments in remote-sensing technology and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) allow the use of a landscape ecology and spatial analysis approach to the problem of deforestation and biodiversity conservation in the Western Ghats. Applications of this approach include analyses of land-cover and landuse change; estimation of deforestation rates and rates of forest fragmentation; examination of the spatial correlates of forest loss and the socioeconomic drivers of land-use change; modelling of deforestation; analysis of the consequences of land-cover and land-use change in the form of climate change and change in distribution of biodiversity; biomass estimation;gap analysis of the effectiveness of the protected area network in conserving areas of importance for biodiversity conservation; and conservation planning. We present examples from our work in the Western Ghats, in general, and in the Agastyamalai region and Biligiri Rangan Hills, in particular, as well as that of other researchers in India on various aspects of applications of GIS, remote sensing, and 'a landscape ecology approach to biodiversity conservation

Livelihood gains and ecological costs of NTFP dependence: assessing the roles of dependence, ecological knowledge and market structure in three contrasting human and ecological settings in south India

Non-timber forest products (NTFPs) constitute the single largest determinant of livelihoods for scores of forest fringe communities and poor people in the tropics. In India over 50 million people are believed to be directly dependent upon NTFPs for their subsistence. However, such human dependence on NTFPs for livelihood gains (win) has most frequently been at a certain ecological cost (lose). If livelihoods are to be maintained, the existing ‘win-lose’ settings have to be steered to a ‘win-win’ mode, otherwise, there could be severe erosion of the biological resources and loss of livelihoods (‘lose-lose’). Examining the dependence of forest fringe communities on NTFPs at three sites in south India with contrasting human and ecological settings, three key factors (extent of dependence on NTFPs, indigenous ecological knowledge and market organization) are likely to constrain reaching the win-win situation. How these factors shape the ecological cost of harvesting NTFPs at the three sites is examined. Within the parameter space of these factors, it is possible to predict outcomes and associations that will conform to win-win or win-lose situations. Empirical data derived from the three study sites demonstrate the causality of the observed associations. The key for long-term livelihood gains lies in reducing the ecological cost. Certain interventions and recommendations that could optimize the balance between livelihood gains and ecological cost are proposed

Vegetation Structure and Prioritizing Plants for Eco-Restoration of Degraded Wildlife Corridor in Dry Tropical Forest of South India

Wildlife corridors are critical to manage wildlife and maintain ecological processes. However, they are fragmented and degraded due to various anthropogenic activities. Fragmentation in turn affects population viability of species by affecting their dispersal, re-colonization and genetic exchanges. But the process can be reversed through restoration and management of ‘functional corridors’. So far in the forestry sector, monoculture plantations are known to be the ideal reforestation/afforestation strategy to restore degraded landscape but experts argue that monoculture plantations have failed to recover former biological diversity. Therefore, for successful eco-restoration, first, the regional plant stock has to be identified and then suitable plant species have to be prioritized. The habitat enrichment through assisted vegetation method in the degraded wildlife corridors can improve green cover and also bring back the original vegetation. The study was conducted in the Edeyarahalli-Doddasampige wildlife corridor area, which is part of Biligiri Rangaswamy Temple Tiger Reserve, Western Ghats, India. The vegetation was enumerated through transect and quadrate method. The vegetation structure was analyzed and ten suitable native plant species were prioritized for eco-restoration. The priority was given based on site condition and socio-ecological importance of the plants such as trees with timber value, non-timber forest products, nectar source for honey bees and also food source for elephants. At a time of unprecedented forest destruction, the interventions made through this line of research would not only improve the habitat quality but also increase the functionality of wildlife corridors by providing safe passage for animals’ movement. In addition to this, convergence of local multistakeholders and their responsibility needs to be explored toward eco-restoration process

The use of traditional ecological knowledge in forest management: an example from India

Many forest communities possess considerable knowledge of the natural resources they use. Such knowledge can potentially inform scientific approaches to management, either as a source of baseline data to fill information gaps that cannot otherwise be addressed or to provide alternative management approaches from which scientists and managers might learn. In general, however, little attention has been given to the relevance of quantitative forms of such knowledge for resource management. Much discussion has focused on the integration of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) into management, but less attention has been paid to identifying specific areas where it is most useful and where it may be most problematic. We contrasted scientific data with information from TEK in the context of a threat to the sustainable harvesting of a nontimber forest product (NTFP) of livelihood importance in southern India, specifically, a fruit tree infected by mistletoe. The efficiency of deriving information from NTFP harvesters compared to scientific field studies was assessed. We further evaluated the potential of TEK to provide novel solutions to the management problem in question, the degree to which TEK could provide quantitative information, and the biases that might be associated with information derived from TEK. TEK complemented previously gathered ecological data by providing concordant and additional information, but also contradicted some results obtained using a scientific approach. TEK also gave a longer-term perspective with regard to NTFP harvesting patterns. Combining information on historical and current harvesting trends for the NTFP with official data suggests that current assessments of sustainability may be inaccurate and that the use of diverse information sources may provide an effective approach to assessing the status of harvested resources

Population characteristics and habitat suitability of Asian elephants (Elephas maximus Linnaeus, 1758) in the Khao Yai National Park, Thailand

The aim of this study was to investigate the population and habitat of wild elephants in the Khao Yai National Park, to provide elephant population densities using the line transect method. Habitat suitability was also assessed based on the data obtained from the location of the species during monthly ranger patrol across the park area, with the rate of dung decay used for population calculation. The population structure and age class were studied by direct observation to estimate the population trend. On the basis of 116 systematic transect lines that were 2 km in length and separated by 500-m intervals, a total of 1,209 elephant dung piles were found in more than 213.20 km. The analysis of the combined data showed that the dung density was 531.49 dung piles/km 2, with a decay rate of 0.0039 dung piles/day based on 56 dung piles checked every 7 days. The annual data showed that the population density was 0.15 individuals/km 2. The population structure comprising  calf:juvenile:subadult:adult was 1: 1.09:1.14:2.10; the sex ratio of adult male to adult female elephants was 1:1.10; and the ratio of reproductive ability among adult females, juveniles, and calves was 1.00:0.99:0.90. The combined data also showed that the main environmental factor affecting the presence of the animals was salt lick sites. The pooled data analysis found that the habitat most suitable for the elephants covered an area of 220.59 km 2. The habitat suitability, based on the dry season appearance data, covered an area of 258.64 km 2, whereas during the wet season, it covered an area of 517.45 km 2. As the most suitable habitat for elephants appears around the park boundary, habitat improvements for wild elephants should address the central areas of the national park. A greater emphasis should be placed on creating salt licks, being far from human activity sites

Mushroom diversity in the Biligiri rangana hills of Karnataka (India)

Evergreen forests of Biligiri rangana hills (BR hills) spread over an area of 540 sq. KM over eastern most edge of Western Ghats in Karnataka. Climatic conditions are more favorable for establishment of mushrooms and complete their life cycle. In this study, fourteen mushroom species were collected from BR hills region during monsoon (June through September 2013) with the help of Solega tribe inhabited the region since many years. Of the fourteen mushrooms, two mushrooms were identified as Ganoderma lucidum and Polyporous flabelliformis based on their phenotypic characters. The other 12 mushrooms were identified by ITS (Internal Transcribed spacer)region sequence homology as Termitomyces sp. (BRM-3)., Auricularia delicate (BRM-4), Termitomyces microcarpus (BRM-5), Amanita sp. (BRM-6), Podoscypha petalodes (BRM-7), Agaricaceae sp. (BRM-8), Macrolepiota sp.(BRM-9), Calvatia holothurioides (BRM-10), Gymnopillus crociphyllus (BRM-11), Coprinus comatus (BRM-12), Gyrodontium sacchari (BRM-13) and Clitocybeafffellea (BRM-14). Among the fourteen mushrooms, three species viz., Termito-myces species, Auricularia delicate and Termitomyces microcarpus were edible. The others were non edible/poisonous species. This study reports the diverse mushroom species as addition to biodiversity at BR hills

A Dynamic Semi-Circular Bending Configuration for the Rheological Characterization of Asphalt Mixtures

Many experimental procedures have been proposed for the determination of the rheological properties of asphalt mixtures. Among them, the indirect tensile test (ITT) has gained a lot of attention because of its relative simplicity and advantages. However, a biaxial state of stress is developed into the sample and then, the Poisson ratio must be estimated or measured for the calculations of the dynamic modulus. Looking for a testing configuration with the same simplicity and advantages, this paper proposes the Semi-Circular Bending (SCB) geometry with dynamic loading conditions in order to characterize the rheological properties (dynamic modulus and phase angle) of asphalt mixtures. Samples compacted in the laboratory or cored from in-service pavements can be used. A uniaxial state of stress is developed in the lower plane surface of the sample doing negligible the influence of the Poisson ratio on the dynamic modulus calculations. A specific experimental configuration was adopted and a 2D-FEM model has been used for the development of an equation for the calculation of the dynamic modulus. Two different asphalt mixtures were tested at diverse testing temperatures and loading frequencies. The obtained results have been analyzed and compared with those acquired with the more conventional testing configuration in uniaxial compression. An excellent agreement has been found for either the dynamic modulus or the phase angle with both sets of results. It could be concluded that the SCB configuration has been validated as a simple and promising methodology for the characterization of the viscoelastic response of asphalt mixtures