Diet Overlap Between Wild Ungulates and Domestic Livestock in the Greater Himalaya: Implications for Management of Grazing Practices

Abstract

We investigated the diet overlap between wild ungulates and livestock (sheep and goats) at Bedini-Ali (20 km2) and Tungnath (9.6 km2) regions in Uttarakhand during 2005–06 and 2003–04, respectively. Diet overlap between Blue sheep (Pseudois nayaur), Himalayan musk deer (Moschus chrysogaster), Sambar (Cervus unicolor), and livestock was carried out at Bedini-Ali, and between Himalayan tahr (Hemitragus jemlahicus) and livestock at Tungnath. The diet of wild ungulates and livestock comprised mainly of grasses, sedges, forbs, shrubs, ferns, lichens, and mosses. At Bedini-Ali, of the total 53 food plant species recorded in the study area, 26 (49 %) were consumed by both wild and domestic ungulates, while species recorded in the diet of livestock, musk deer, sambar, and blue sheep were 35, 25, 25 and 17, respectively. Trophic niche overlap showed high percentage of diet overlap between wild ungulates and livestock. In Tungnath, of the 32 species of food plants found in the diet of Tahr and Livestock, 22 (68 %) were found in the diet of both; each having 26 and 28 species, respectively. Musk deer and tahr showed a gradual shift from monocotyledons to comparatively high nutritious dicotyledons in winter. Recovery of wild ungulate population in Bedini-Ali via reduced and intermittent livestock grazing and proper management interventions following the example of Tunganath area is still possible.