POPULATION STATUS AND HABITAT USE OF BARASINGHA ( Ccrvus duvauceli duvauceli) IN ROYAL SUKLAPHANTA WILDLIFE RESERVE

摘要

Swamp deer or barasingha (Cervus duvauceli) (Cervidae family) is one of the endangered species endemic to the Indian sub-continent (Schaller, 1967; Schaaf, 1978). Among the three recognized species, Cervus duvauceli duvauceli (the northern sub-species) is found in Nepal (Ellerman and Morrison-Scott, 1951; Sankaran, 1989). Until the last century, barasingha were widely distributed in areas of suitable habitat throughout the northern Indian Gangetic plains and the lowlands of the southern Himalayas. Now, however, Barasingha populations are restricted to a few isolated pockets, mainly due to habitat alteration, habitat fragmentation and illegal hunting. Today, an estimated 5,000 individuals remain in the wild, mostly in protected areas of Nepal and India (Wemmer, 1998).