This report is the result of WTI’s long term commitment to the Right of Passage for these majestic animals from land acquisition and voluntary relocation to the rehabilitation of families living in the Thirunelli-Kudrakote elephant corridor, a project initiated with the Kerala Government in 2005 with the support of Elephant Family, World Land Trust and IUCN Netherlands.
This Conservation Reference Series publication brings together, in its second edition, a comprehensive listing of India’s 101 elephant corridors as listed and mapped by elephant experts in consultation with all state forest departments that are part of the elephant range in the country. Securing these corridors so that elephants and other species can locally migrate between habitats is crucial to their survival.
In conjunction with long-term measures it is essential that rapidly deployable and field-tested solutions to alleviate Human Wildlife Conflict be brought to the forefront. This inaugural volume of the Conservation Action Solutions series does just that, summarising ten successful conflict mitigation measures already employed by WTI, and two new ideas that are worth implementing as pilot projects.
This Conservation Action Series report outlines a holistic model of conflict mitigation that evolved under Wildlife Trust of India’s Uttar Pradesh Big Cat Conflict Mitigation Project (now the Terai Tiger Project), run in partnership with the state forest department. The field tested approach thus developed involves a sustained process of engagement with local communities, mated with technical expertise and effective on-ground enforcement.
A comprehensive Conservation Action Series report on the 2005 project by WTI and the World Society for Protection of Animals, UK to eradicate the medieval practice of bear dancing from India, by rehabilitating and providing alternative livelihoods to the Kalandar community.
A Conservation Action Series report on four years of work by IFAW-WTI in partnership with the Government of Bhutan, training forest guards, customs and enforcement personnel, and assisting the Bhutanese forest department in taking action to save local wildlife in distress.
This Conservation Reference Series report documents important wetland sites in the agriculture dominated landscape of Eastern Uttar Pradesh wherein the sarus crane, India’s only resident breeding crane, has been found.
This work of reference by Andrew McLean is a pragmatic manual to change one aspect of the relationship between humans and elephants that requires emergent attention; the cruelty meted out to the elephant by man during its training and sometimes due to the wrong foundations laid during trainings intermittently throughout its long
and sensitive life.
This Conservation Action Series report documents the Whale Shark Conservation Project by WTI, Tata Chemicals Limited and the Gujarat Forest Department, which turned Gujarat’s whale shark hunters into its protectors. The species’ ecological requirements, scientific studies undertaken as part of the project, the pioneering self documentation scheme for whale shark rescues and community campaigns are all covered here.
This Conservation Action Series report documents the Mithapur Coral Reef Recovery Project, launched in 2008 by WTI, Tata Chemicals Ltd and the Gujarat Forest Department. The project includes a first-of-its-kind transplantation of coral species (Acropora humilis) from Lakshwadeep to Mithapur, where they were locally extinct.
This pictorial book, released in 2012, looks back at a decade of wildlife rescue and rehabilitation work accomplished at the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation (CWRC) near Kaziranga National Park, Assam, and the Centre for Bear Rehabilitation and Conservation (CBRC) in Pakke Tiger Reserve, Arunachal Pradesh.
Four of the eight species of bears range in India. This National Conservation and Welfare Action Plan for bears in India follows the IUCN (2008) guidelines that involve participatory processes to ensure conservation successes. This publication was released by the Ministry of Environment and Forests during the 21st International Conference on Bear Research and Management in New Delhi and marks a singular change in the way India has looked at its bears.
With the tiger facing a serious challenge in its entire distribution range, the Global Tiger Forum has compiled the latest Tiger Action Plans of 13 tiger range states into this third edition of the Action Tiger, giving scientists and conservationists an insight into the strategies adopted by governments to deal with the problem.
The Balpakram and Nokrek Protected Areas are the two ecological crown jewels of the Garo Hills. The two are connected tenuously by forested lands along the spine of the Garo Hills much of which is akhin owned, private community forests and jhummed land. This Conservation Reference Series report documents the declaration of two village reserves – the Selbelgre Village Reserve Forest to protect gibbons and the Siju-Aretika Village Reserve Forest and Rewak Kosigre Village Reserve to secure a critical elephant corridor.
The movement of elephants between the Chilla forest range of Rajaji National Park, on the east bank of the Ganga, and Motichur, on the west bank, came to a virtual halt because of several man-made obstacles. This Occasional Report looks at WTI’s initiative in securing the Chilla-Motichur Corridor as well as eliminating train-hit incidents.
This Conservation Action Series report documents a joint survey undertaken primarily by the Department of Wildlife Protection, Jammu and Kashmir and the Wildlife Trust of India, of the Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii) and wild yak (Bos grunniens) in Ladakh, Jammu & Kashmir, India.
The Mithun (Bos gaurus frontalis), a semi-domestic bovid, is susceptible to predation causing economic loss to villagers in Arunachal Pradesh. The villagers retaliate by killing the predators ‘thought’ to be responsible. This Occasional Report attempts to identify the causes of conflict, incorporating socio-economic and livelihood strategies of local communities, status of mithun, predators (especially Dhole or Indian wild dogs) and wild prey.
Railways and highways are a source of wildlife mortality throughout the world. At least thirty-five elephants lost their life due to train hits in Assam between 1990 and May 2006. This Occasional Report throws light on the issue of elephant mortality due to train-hits in Assam and provides recommendations to deal with the same.
This Conservation Reference Series report is the first detailed account of the distribution, threats and conservation status of the Asian elephant in the Kameng Elephant Reserve, Arunachal Pradesh. This project has over seven years analysed the extent of man-animal conflict in the area and implemented mitigating measures.
This Conservation Reference Series report catalogues over five years of effort by the Wildlife Trust of India in partnership with the Bodoland Territorial Council, the Assam Forest Department, the International Fund for Animal Welfare and the British High Commission to Bring Back Manas, working to restore the protected area to its former glory.
The IFAW-WTI Emergency Relief Network provides a platform for wildlife rehabilitators to get together and exchange ideas, and also to use their skills, available across the country, to act in case of wildlife emergencies. This digest is a compendium of reports and article filed by the ERN members between April 2006 and March 2007.
At the turn of the century, the world’s largest fish, the whale shark, was being slaughtered commercially in large numbers along the coast of Gujarat. The Whale Shark Conservation Project by WTI, Tata Chemicals Limited and the Gujarat Forest Department has turned Gujarat’s whale shark hunters into its protectors. This Conservation Action Series report documents the early years of the project.
This Conservation Action Report documents the Asiatic Black bear Rehabilitation Project initiated jointly by the Wildlife Trust of India and the Department of Environment and Forests, Arunachal Pradesh, in partnership with the International Fund for Animal Welfare in 2003. This was the first instance of bear rehabilitation being taken up in India.
The purpose of this Conservation Action Series report is to suggest measures which could be employed to reduce this conflict. The report presents the findings of a comprehensive survey and suggests both short term and long term measures to improve the situation vis-à-vis human-wildlife conflict.
Large-scale open-cast mining is one of the prime reasons for the destruction of elephant habitat in Jharkhand. As a result, the elephants from such dispossessed habitats have managed to move into new territories in Chhattisgarh. This Occasional Report on a Rapid Survey conducted over two weeks throws light on this issue and suggests preliminary methods to manage elephants in Chhattisgarh.
This Occasional Report documents an investigation that was carried out in the Sonitpur region of Assam, looking into reasons for the declining tolerance of the villagers towards elephants, and recommending immediate measures, as well as a long-term strategy to tackle the issues relating to Human-Elephant Conflict.
The most common reaction to human–leopard conflict is their trapping and translocation to nearby forests. This Occasional Report documents the technical and veterinary support provided to the Maharashtra Forest Department during the capture and translocation of leopards from conflict areas. It recommends science-based action keeping in mind the ecology of the species.
Popularization of Alternatives to Dolphin Oil Among Fishermen for the Conservation of the Ganges River Dolphin (Platanista gangetica) in Bihar. Wildlife Trust of India, New Delhi.
This Conservation Action Series report documents the first ever survey of the endangered and elusive Pir Panjal markhor, conducted in collaboration with the J&K Wildlife Department and the Nature Conservation Foundation with support from the Environment and Ecology Cell of the Indian Army. It also marks the launch of the Schaller Conservation Surveys by the Wildlife Trust of India.
Over several decades, elephants have steadily moved out of their range states into non-elephant ranges in search of more conducive ecosystems. This leads them to direct conflict with humans who have never lived in the vicinity of elephants before. This Occasional Report throws light on the issue of human-elephant conflict in Maharashtra and Goa and provides recommendations to deal with the same.
Veterinarians, para-vets, wildlife managers and conservationists across India are facing situations where they need to react rapidly to cases of elephant poisoning. This Conservation Reference Series volume, which lists out every known poison affecting Asian elephants, its symptoms, effects and antidotes, will prove handy to all those dealing with poisoned elephants.
An Occasional Report on the status and distribution of greater adjutant storks (Leptoptilos dubius) in the Ganga and Kosi river floodplains near Bhagalpur, Bihar.
When civilization extends its arm to isolated tribes, its impact is felt in the form of pressure and conflicts with poachers and new settlers, fishing, hunting and dwindling forest resources. This report is the outcome of a study on the impact of settlers on the Jarawa tribal reserve in the Andaman Islands.
WTI and IFAW, along with their collaborators, conducted rapid assessment surveys in the coastal areas of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to review the ground situation in the tsunami hit areas. Each volume of this Conservation Action Report documents several useful recommendations for ecological restoration and re-construction activities on the mainland and the islands, respectively.
WTI and IFAW, along with their collaborators, conducted rapid assessment surveys in the coastal areas of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to review the ground situation in the tsunami hit areas. Each volume of this Conservation Action Report documents several useful recommendations for ecological restoration and re-construction activities on the mainland and the islands, respectively.
An Occassional Report on a Habitat Recovery project conducted by Wildlife Trust of India in partnership with International Fund for Animal Welfare and supported by Assam Forest Department.
An Occasional Report on a conservation survey of the Phayre’s leaf monkey (Trachypithecus phayrei) in Assam and Mizoram supported by National Geographic Society and Conservation International.
The first edition of Right of Passage released in 2005 is a significant contribution to elephant conservation in India. The publication is an outcome of concerted efforts by Wildlife Trust of India, a number of acknowledged elephant experts, officials and NGO’s who identified 88 elephant corridors across India, detailing them in a Conservation Reference Series report.
Conservation Reference Series No. 2
A compendium of resources on wildlife rescue and rehabilitation, this is a compilation of rehabilitation experiences from across the world. The various chapters, principles, guidelines, standards and the case studies detailed in this report are a distillate of the experiences of wildlife veterinarians, biologists and hands-on animal rehabilitators. Recommended reading and suggested reference material for every wildlife rescue and rehabilitation worker.
While the Oriental small-clawed otter inhabits the forested stretches of the River Cauvery in the upper reaches, the smooth-coated otter inhabits the lower tracts. Limiting human disturbances along these stretches and curbing the poaching of otters and illegal trade in pelts are vital for the conservation of otter populations.
Conservation Reference Series No. 1
This ready reckoner has proven to be a handy legal tool for forest department staff who are the first responders to wildlife crime. This ready reckoner incorporates the procedures relating to arrest, search, collection and recording of evidence along with guidelines on the rights of the arrested or detained perpetrator. This reckoner includes provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) and the Indian Evidence Act to aid the field enforcement official in dealing with a wildlife offence and building up a case.
Conservation Action Series 20040602
A Study report is a result of research on how conservation laws were affecting the livelihoods of the ‘Jogi-Nath’ snake charmer community spread across five states in north India. This multidisciplinary research included the socio-economic status of the community, the herpetology and the welfare conditions of the captive snakes kept by the community. This study also details the oral ethnobotanical pharmacopoeia of the community. Recommended reading for both sociologists and conservationists alike for the nuanced approach taken by the research team. The study was supported by WTI and the Rufford Maurice Laing Foundation.
A Report from the field in three wetlands namely Sarsai Nawar, Sauj and Gaad using questionnaire survey and verification of land survey records. This assessment was carried out post the Allahabad High Court order which put a stop to the implementation of Usar Sudhar Nigam, a government scheme which would have proven detrimental to Sarus Crane habitats in these wetlands by eventually draining them. The High Court Order was one of our early conservation successes. Read on to know what this early assessment recommended for the conservation of these wetlands.
The mass nesting of Olive Ridley turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea) along the coast of the eastern Indian state of Odisha is affected by anthropogenic pressures. The six-kilometer beach at Rushikulya is an important rookery that was the focus of this Rapid Action Project to protect the eggs, hatchlings and the habitat of the Olive Ridley turtles.
Several thousand workers in Jammu & Kashmir made a living off shahtoosh, the wool derived from killing the endangered Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii). IFAW and WTI initiated a survey to assess the actual and potential economic impact of the ban on shahtoosh on these workers and provide suggestions their rehabilitation.
An occasional report of a training camp on the health and management of captive elephants in Jaipur from 20th to 23rd of August 2001. Health of 98 captive elephants were examined in this camp. Read this report to know more about WTI’s early Wildlife Veterinary efforts, our learnings which we documented to improve our efforts in outreach and wildlife health care.
This Occasional Report documents the scientific studies and recommendations behind one of WTI’s most successful rapid action projects when a series of short-term pro-active reforms were undertaken in collaboration with Northern Railways to prevent elephant deaths due to collisions with trains in Rajaji National Park.
An International Campaign to Save the Endangered Tibetan Antelope (IFAW-WTI 2001)
