Territorial Behaviour of Kiang (\u3ci\u3eEquus kiang\u3c/i\u3e Moorcroft, 1841) in Ladakh (India)

The observations of kiang behavior were made in Navokar Valley northeast of Tso Kar Lake (Ladakh, India) between July 30 and November 22, 2001. In the breeding season (end of July until the end of August) adult kiang males kept not overlapping, protected territories (about 10 km2), and marked by single defecation and urination marks. There were adult females with and without offspring on the territories (up to 12 animals, including the male). The distance between male and females on the territories was usually hundred times bigger, then a distance between stallion and his harem in horses. Females with foals didn’t take part in mating, but stood on territories approximately until mid September, when foals became 1.5 - 2 months old. From this time adult females started to join in bigger groups and bachelor groups came down to the valley from the plateau. In October - November we registered groups of adult females with offspring (up to 37 animals), accompanied by one adult male; bachelor groups of different age males, including old ones (up to 25 animals) and groups of young (2 - 3 years old) females (up to 9 animals). The number of kiangs in Navokar Valley increased by two times in autumn in comparison with the breeding season and reached 78 animals. The maximal numbers of kiangs sighted in one day in the surrounding of Tso Kar was recorded in October (151 animals)

Numbers, Distribution and Social Structure of Kiang (\u3ci\u3eEquus kiang\u3c/i\u3e Moorcroft 1841) Population in the Southwestern Part of Tibet, China

In September - October 1998 we made an extensive survey in southwest Tibet to study numbers, distribution and social structure of the kiang population in this remote part of its range. Kiangs were sighted between 29º 40’ and 32º 50’ N, and 81º- 86º E. They preferred broad flat valleys with lakes at an altitude from 4,000 up to 5,000 m. Small kiang groups and solitary animals were sighted in Transhimalaya. There were no kiangs in Tsangpo (Brahmaputra) River valley, in the sand desert near Ali and in the Clay Mountains near Tsada. Seven old kiang corpses were found along the road, and five of them near Pryang. Main exterior measurements were taken from an adult male, shot by military personnel a day before we found it. About 90% of all animals were concentrated on three territories. The density of the population on these territories ranged from 0.6 up to 4.2/km², but the average density was 0.15/km². The social structure of the population included solitary individuals, pairs and groups. The kiang population on the studied territory (190,000 km²), which does not have any protection status, was estimated between 28,000-29,000 exemplars. This must represent a considerable part of the whole population of the Tibetan Plateau. All three big kiang herds (from 91 up to 591) were found along the main road, and only one of them had natural protection in winter. The others two kiang herds are very vulnerable in winter, when snow did not allow them to run fast and they were easily shot from cars. The information about the exact location of kiang winter territories can be very useful for the correct planning of kiang protection in southwest Tibet

Kiangs (\u3ci\u3eEquus kiang\u3c/i\u3e, Moorcroft 1841) in Sikkim, India

Between the 5th and 10th of March 2001 we completed a 450 km route by car in Northern Sikkim. During the trip along the southern slopes of the Himalayas and Sikkim Plateau we didn’t see a single kiang. According to the local people and military personnel in Sikkim, kiangs are known only in the outer limits of the Sikkim Plateau, where wild animals have a possibility to migrate free over the Chinese-Indian border. In winter only small groups of kiang incidentally come to the Sikkim Plateau from South Tibet. But in May more of them come there and stay approximately until October-November, especially in the eastern part of the plateau near the lakes. The Sikkim Plateau is a breeding territory for kiangs, which spend winters in South Tibet. Local people and military personnel do not hunt or catch kiang on the Sikkim Plateau. Kiang migrations over the Chinese-Indian border are dependent on the movements of the nomadic yak herders of Sikkim, who spend winter on the plateau and go to the southern slopes of the Himalayas in spring. Nowhere in other parts of the great range of this species do kiangs breed at such an altitude (5,100 - 5,500 m above sea level). We suggest that this may be due to the small size of the southern kiang (Equus kiang polyodon). The best time for kiang surveys in Sikkim is usually the end of August to the beginning of September

Kiangs (\u3ci\u3eEquus kiang\u3c/i\u3e, Moorcroft 1841) in Sikkim, India

Between the 5th and 10th of March 2001 we completed a 450 km route by car in Northern Sikkim. During the trip along the southern slopes of the Himalayas and Sikkim Plateau we didn’t see a single kiang. According to the local people and military personnel in Sikkim, kiangs are known only in the outer limits of the Sikkim Plateau, where wild animals have a possibility to migrate free over the Chinese-Indian border. In winter only small groups of kiang incidentally come to the Sikkim Plateau from South Tibet. But in May more of them come there and stay approximately until October-November, especially in the eastern part of the plateau near the lakes. The Sikkim Plateau is a breeding territory for kiangs, which spend winters in South Tibet. Local people and military personnel do not hunt or catch kiang on the Sikkim Plateau. Kiang migrations over the Chinese-Indian border are dependent on the movements of the nomadic yak herders of Sikkim, who spend winter on the plateau and go to the southern slopes of the Himalayas in spring. Nowhere in other parts of the great range of this species do kiangs breed at such an altitude (5,100 - 5,500 m above sea level). We suggest that this may be due to the small size of the southern kiang (Equus kiang polyodon). The best time for kiang surveys in Sikkim is usually the end of August to the beginning of September

Numbers, Distribution and Social Structure of Kiang (\u3ci\u3eEquus kiang\u3c/i\u3e Moorcroft 1841) Population in the Southwestern Part of Tibet, China

In September - October 1998 we made an extensive survey in southwest Tibet to study numbers, distribution and social structure of the kiang population in this remote part of its range. Kiangs were sighted between 29º 40’ and 32º 50’ N, and 81º- 86º E. They preferred broad flat valleys with lakes at an altitude from 4,000 up to 5,000 m. Small kiang groups and solitary animals were sighted in Transhimalaya. There were no kiangs in Tsangpo (Brahmaputra) River valley, in the sand desert near Ali and in the Clay Mountains near Tsada. Seven old kiang corpses were found along the road, and five of them near Pryang. Main exterior measurements were taken from an adult male, shot by military personnel a day before we found it. About 90% of all animals were concentrated on three territories. The density of the population on these territories ranged from 0.6 up to 4.2/km², but the average density was 0.15/km². The social structure of the population included solitary individuals, pairs and groups. The kiang population on the studied territory (190,000 km²), which does not have any protection status, was estimated between 28,000-29,000 exemplars. This must represent a considerable part of the whole population of the Tibetan Plateau. All three big kiang herds (from 91 up to 591) were found along the main road, and only one of them had natural protection in winter. The others two kiang herds are very vulnerable in winter, when snow did not allow them to run fast and they were easily shot from cars. The information about the exact location of kiang winter territories can be very useful for the correct planning of kiang protection in southwest Tibet

Mapping Emission from Clusters of CdSe/ZnS Nanoparticles

We have carried out correlated super-resolution and SEM imaging studies of clusters of CdSe/ZnS nanoparticles containing up to ten particles to explore how the fluorescence behavior of these clusters depends on the number of particles, the specific cluster geometry, the shell thickness, and the technique used to produce the clusters. The total emission yield was less than proportional to the number of particles in the clusters for both thick and thin shells. With super-resolution imaging, the emission center of the cluster could be spatially resolved at distance scales on the order of the cluster size. The intrinsic fluorescence intermittency of the nanoparticles altered the emission distribution across the cluster, which enabled the identification of relative emission intensities of individual particles or small groups of particles within the cluster. For clusters undergoing interparticle energy transfer, donor/acceptor pairs and regions where energy was funneled could be identified