Determination of resource based stocking density of wild ungulates living in the floating meadows of Keibul Lamjao National Park, India

Abstract

The stocking density of the globally threatened Eld's deer (Rucervus eldii eldii) and hog deer (Axis porcinus), living in the floating meadows of Keibul Lamjao National Park, India, were derived from the forage demand of each species and the availability of forage biomass in the meadows. The biomass production was estimated by harvesting the above-ground biomass every month for 2 years from 432 plots of size 1 m × 1 m that were protected by ungulate-proof enclosures. The actual intake of the ungulates was estimated from the percentage of dry matter consumed for each food plant species through micro-histological analysis. The populations of Eld's deer and hog deer that the meadows can support were calculated on the basis of the consumable dry matter available in the park, considering the variable thickness of the floating meadows. The estimated overall stocking densities of Eld's deer and hog deer were 0.141 ± 0.06 and 0.265 ± 0.12 individuals ha−1 or 15,581.54 ± 1171.6 kg of ungulate biomass. The stocking density varied significantly with meadow type for both the species, being higher for thick meadows. The best available areas of the park having 864.29 ha, can support 170.41 ± 11.4 Eld's deer and 319.36 ± 22.94 hog deer or 17,356.38 ± 912.02 kg of ungulate biomass with a maximum of 173.6 ± 4.21 Eld's deer and 325.46 ± 9.45 hog deer or 17,684.56 ± 697.3 kg of ungulate biomass in the monsoon season. The thin meadows with an area of 732.34 ha can support another 119.37 ± 12.78 and 225.44 ± 23.88 Eld's deer and hog deer respectively or 12,201.35 ± 922.74 kg of ungulate biomass. In similar resource constraint habitat, this study will be helpful in determining the optimal stocking density for the science based management of rangelands, especially for the conservation of wild grazers.