Elements of indigenous socio-ecological knowledge show resilience despite ecosystem changes in the forest-grassland mosaics of the Nilgiri Hills, India

Rodrigo León Cordero,Siddhartha Krishnan,Suma M,Chris T Bauch,Madhur Anand

doi:10.1057/s41599-018-0157-x

Abstract

The Nilgiri Hills in the Western Ghats of India constitute a region of high biological and cultural diversity, and include an endangered shola forest-grassland mosaic ecosystem. A mosaic ecosystem is one consisting of adjacent, coexisting patches of highly distinct naturally occurring land states (in this case, shola forest and natural grassland). Changes in the landscape since the nineteenth century have severely impacted the shola-grassland mosaic and challenged the traditional lifestyles of the indigenous Toda people. However, the responses of traditional Toda socio-ecological perspectives and landscape management to these changes have not been explored through population surveys. Here, using a survey method, the article explores traditional Toda perspectives of ecosystem value and landmanagement practices. The survey consists of interviews of 50 respondents belonging to 24 munds (villages), covering ten clans, neighbouring mosaic lands, plantations and agricultural areas. The findings show that traditional socio-ecological landscape management is robust and has persisted despite marked ecological and socio-economic changes during the nineteenth and twenty-first centuries, and despite frequent gathering of land management advice from non-Toda. Elements of traditional socio-ecological knowledge that have persisted include prevalent collective traditional decision-making and long-held preferences for a landscape composition with a strong mosaic component. The highly robust nature of Toda socio-ecological culture and land management suggests that the Todas have a valuable role to play in supporting the long-term persistence of the shola-grassland mosaic. Increasing their stewardship role would help conserve this endangered and highly biodiverse ecosystem, while at the same time preserving a unique indigenous culture.

Highlights

Extensive landscape transformations of natural forest and grasslands into plantations and agricultural lands are an increasingly common global phenomenon, affecting Africa, Australia, southern Asia, Europe, North America and South America (Neke and Du Plessis 2004; Fensham and Fairfax 2003; Zhao et al 2006; Bredenkamp et al 2002; Hoekstra et al 2005; Baldi and Paruelo 2008; Vega et al 2009)
Our study aims to discern relevant aspects of Toda people’s individual and social management practices, perceptions and traditional values associated with the land management history of the Nilgiri Hills in India, a region where the improvement of current knowledge may prove useful for conservation, decision-making and research
The sampling criteria entailed the selection of 19 munds in the Lord Wenlock Downs, which are a contiguous mosaic of shola-grasslands, afforested grasslands and agricultural lands

Summary

Introduction

Extensive landscape transformations of natural forest and grasslands into plantations and agricultural lands are an increasingly common global phenomenon, affecting Africa, Australia, southern Asia, Europe, North America and South America (Neke and Du Plessis 2004; Fensham and Fairfax 2003; Zhao et al 2006; Bredenkamp et al 2002; Hoekstra et al 2005; Baldi and Paruelo 2008; Vega et al 2009). The forest-grassland mosaics of the Nilgiri Hills are one of the most diverse and threatened landscapes of the Western Ghats Highlands (MeherHomji, 1967; Suresh and Sukumar, 1999). Since the mid-nineteen century, land use changes have fragmented the Nilgiri’s shola forest-grassland mosaics, and such fragmentation is an increasing focus of ecological studies (Sukumar et al 1995; Bunyan et al 2012; Mohandass and Davidar, 2009; Das et al 2015; Das et al 2017; Davidar et al 2007; Davidar et al 2010; Robin and Nandini, 2012; Thomas and Palmer, 2007; Arasumani et al 2018)

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