BackgroundNepal provides habitat for approximately 100–125 wild Asian elephants (Elephas maximus). Although a small proportion of the world population of this species, this group is important for maintaining the genetic diversity of elephants and conservation of biodiversity in this region. Knowledge of foraging patterns of these animals, which is important for understanding their habitat requirements and for assessing their habitat condition, is lacking for the main areas populated by elephants in Nepal. This study investigates the feeding preferences of the Asian elephant in Parsa Wildlife Reserve (PWR) and Chitwan National Park (CNP), Nepal.ResultFifty-seven species of plants in 25 families were found to be eaten by Asian elephants, including 12 species of grasses, five shrubs, two climbers, one herb and 37 species of trees. The species that contributed the greatest proportion of the elephant’s diet were Spatholobus parviflorus (20.2%), Saccharum spontaneum (7.1%), Shorea robusta (6.3), Mallotus philippensis (5.7%), Garuga pinnata (4.3%). Saccharum bengalensis (4.2%), Cymbopogan spp (3.7%), Litsea monopetala (3.6) and Phoenix humilis (2.9%). The preference index (PI) showed that browsed species were preferred during the dry season, while browsed species and grasses were both important food sources during the rainy season. Elephants targeted leaves and twigs more than other parts of plants (P < 0.05).ConclusionThis study presents useful information on foraging patterns and baseline data for elephant habitat management in the PWR and CNP in the south central region of Nepal.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12898-016-0105-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Human-wildlife conflict (HWC) often arises in shared landscapes, where human settlements overlap with wildlife habitat, impacting multiple species (Batavia & Nelson, 2016;Madden, 2004). HWC refers to the negative impacts generated by the interaction of wildlife and humans and creates numerous challenges for the conservation of threatened species around the world (Dickman, 2010;Distefano, 2005). These negative impacts can refer to the loss of human life, property, or the loss of wild species and their habitat or

Despite the development of progressive policies in forestry and wildlife management sectors in Nepal, over the last ten years it has become clear that protected areas in the country lack the landscape connectivity required to support viable populations of endangered species such as rhino (Rhinoceros unicornis) and tiger (Panthera tigris tigris). Forest resources that provide essential habitat for a diverse array of species, and forest products to many human populations continue to decline. The present study, focusing upon the northern Barandabhar Forest Corridor (BFC) aimed to begin to address these problems by establishing preliminary data concerning the extent, biological diversity and resources available for local communities of the forest in order to promote a community-based management strategy. Results established that the northern BFC covers an area of 10,644 ha between the East-West Mahendra highway and the Mahabharat range, incorporating 15 community forestry areas (3,184 ha). It was found to support a number of IUCN listed threatened and endangered species including rhino and tiger; and contains suitable habitat for a number of other endangered species. Owing to its connectivity, linking Chitwan National Park with the Mahabharat range, BFC has the potential to make an important contribution to improving the ecological integrity in Nepal. Different institutions and governance structures currently exist to manage the northern BFC. Although these institutions differ in resource utilization and benefit sharing mechanisms, they are united to safeguard the habitat of key wildlife species including rhino and tiger. We propose that the northern BFC should be managed through a new participatory scheme, the Barandabhar Forest Management Council, to foster ecological integrity of the area while providing forest products to communities.

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