Distribution,status and aspects of ecology of mammalian species in Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary,Uttarakhand Himalayas,India

The study was conducted in kedarnath wildlife sanctuary during 2012,a year before the major natural disaster took place in himalays. kedarnath wildlife sanctuary is situated in chamoli district of uttrakhand himalayas covering an area of 975 sq km. a total of 28 mammalian species were reported from this sanctuary. however,scientific information on many of these mammals are scanty and there is a gap of knowledge regarding their status,distribution and ecology . considering this,an attempt was made to study sambar,alpine musk deer,himalayan tahr,asiatic black beer and red fox found in shokharak area of kedarnath wls. direct as well indirect methods were used to assess the population and habitat use. twenty four trail-transect of different length were laid throughout the study area and monitored three times,covering 43 km in 124.50 hours . the overall encounter rate (group/km) among different species was recorded maximum for himalayan tahr (0.208 group/k.m) and tugnath was the place where its density was maximum (31.83 ± 13.59).the pattern of habitat use by different species revealed that himalayan tahr,alpine musk deer and asiatic black bear prefer high altitude areas therefore they are found in shokhark,tungnath and chandrasila,whereas,sambar and red fox prefer middle altitude and because of this their presence was not recorded from above mentioned areas. a further investigation is needed to understand the post disaster impact on the abundance and habitat use of mammals in kedarnath wildlife sanctuary. findings of present study could be a best baseline data to make future strategy for the better management,conservation and habitat improvement of the species.