Ecology, Economics, and Equity of the Pastoral Systems in the Khangchendzonga National Park, Sikkim Himalaya, India

Tambe, Sandeep; Rawat, G. S.

doi:10.1579/0044-7447-38.2.95

Cited by 22 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…and Rumex nepalensis (sensu Miehe et al. , Tambe and Rawat , Aryal et al. ), were rare in our study and were therefore removed during data processing.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 93%

“…Using information from field inspections, local herders, and the literature (Bauer , Miehe et al. , , Tambe and Rawat , Aryal et al. , ), we selected palatable and unpalatable plant species for livestock and treated these plants as grazing indicator species.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Using information from field inspections, local herders, and the literature (Bauer 1990, Miehe et al 2009, 2015, Tambe and Rawat 2009, Aryal et al 2014, 2015, we selected palatable and unpalatable plant species for livestock and ❖ www.esajournals.org treated these plants as grazing indicator species. We standardized the species abundance scores of both surveys using a square-root transformation.…”

Section: Estimation Of Explanatory Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…goniocarpa, Plantago erosa, Ranunculus spp. and Rumex nepalensis (sensu Miehe et al 2009, Tambe and Rawat 2009, Aryal et al 2014, were rare in our study and were therefore removed during data processing. However, partly in agreement with our second hypothesis, the remaining palatable and unpalatable species have increased notably (see Table 1), especially toward the lower elevations.…”

Section: Changes In Species Compositionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Downhill shift of alpine plant assemblages under contemporary climate and land‐use changes

2018

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Compositional changes in Himalayan vegetation in response to the major drivers of biodiversity loss, climate change and land‐use change, are barely documented. We quantify temporal changes in the alpine vegetation of central Nepal and attribute these changes to temporally varying climatic and land‐use factors. We re‐surveyed the alpine vegetation of two locations within Langtang National Park, central Nepal, after 25 yr using 127 plots of 100 m2. Using ordination, regression, and weighted average regression and calibration techniques, we analyzed the changes in terms of species abundance, frequency, and elevational shift in relation to changing atmospheric temperature, precipitation, and livestock grazing. We found a significant increase in the frequency and relative abundance of the majority of species, which was significantly related to the temporal trends in climatic factors and grazing intensity. Out of 12 species with unimodal responses along the elevation gradient during both surveys, the optima of eight species decreased over the time period. The observed elevations of 62 out of 92 sample plots (hence, species composition) in 2014 were lower than the elevations calibrated from species composition and elevation of 1990, indicating an overall downward shift of species assemblages. However, an upward shift of assemblages was also observed at higher elevations. These results indicate that the observed temporal changes in alpine vegetation, largely contrasting the expected upslope shift of species due to climate warming, are driven most likely by interactions of contemporary climate and land‐use changes, especially reduced grazing. The complex interactions and feedback mechanisms between warmer winters, increased precipitation, reduced grazing pressure, and thereby altered species interactions most likely facilitated the downslope shift of alpine species assemblages. Climatic and land‐use responses of plant species assemblages should therefore be studied focusing on the potential interactions between both the climatic and the land‐use factors because such interactions and feedback mechanisms have potential to mask or modify the expected climatic or land‐use response of biodiversity.

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“…and Rumex nepalensis (sensu Miehe et al. , Tambe and Rawat , Aryal et al. ), were rare in our study and were therefore removed during data processing.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 93%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Estimation Of Explanatory Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Changes In Species Compositionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Downhill shift of alpine plant assemblages under contemporary climate and land‐use changes

2018

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“…(Pandit, in press). These plant communities form critical foraging pastures for the yak populations which are the most prized possessions of the Himalayan highlanders for their entire economic and socio-cultural activities (Tambe and Rawat 2009). Replacement of grassland communities by shrublands would affect the livestock herding in these areas because shrub species have lower nutritional value and are unpalatable to most grazers and ungulates compared to the grassland species (Brandt et al 2013).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modelling the impacts of future climate change on plant communities in the Himalaya: a case study from Eastern Himalaya, India

Kumar

Telwala

Nautiyal

et al. 2016

Model. Earth Syst. Environ.

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That the Himalaya are warming at much higher rates than the global average is known. Here, we assess the future potential distribution of major plant communities in Sikkim Himalaya due to climate change using field observations and maximum entropy modelling approach. We collected data on presence and elevational distribution ranges of 584 endemic angiosperm species during field surveys at 121 sampling locations using 625 study plots and along an elevational gradient of 300-5,300 m. This field data was supplemented by already published records. Endemic species were classified into different growth forms, viz. trees, climbers, shrubs, and herbs. A total of 37,376 different species distribution models (SDMs) were built using climate projections available from 8 different general circulation models and 4 representative concentration pathways. SDMs were built for current climate (average climate for respectively. Weak and insignificant values of phylogenetic signal among the growth forms indicated that climate-induced impacts were spread across the phylogenies. We report significant increase in the habitable areas of shrubs and their northward expansion, gradually replacing the herbaceous communities. This change can alter the structure and function of the Himalayan highland ecosystems besides depleting bioresource base and endangering the local livelihoods.

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High mountain communities and climate change: adaptation, traditional ecological knowledge, and institutions

Ingty

2017

Climatic Change

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Ecology, Economics, and Equity of the Pastoral Systems in the Khangchendzonga National Park, Sikkim Himalaya, India

Cited by 22 publications

References 19 publications

Downhill shift of alpine plant assemblages under contemporary climate and land‐use changes

Downhill shift of alpine plant assemblages under contemporary climate and land‐use changes

Modelling the impacts of future climate change on plant communities in the Himalaya: a case study from Eastern Himalaya, India

High mountain communities and climate change: adaptation, traditional ecological knowledge, and institutions

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