Abstract
The Greater One-horned Rhinoceros Rhinoceros unicornis has been listed as a Vulnerable species on IUCN Red List, Appendix I of CITES, and a protected animal under the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 2029 B.S., 1973. In Nepal, it was found only in Chitwan, Bardia, Shuklaphanta and Parsa national parks, but it has recently been also reported from the forests of Rautahat. The main objectives of the study were to assess habitat suitability and threats for rhinoceros in Rautahat at an elevation range of approximately 300–1,000 m. Remote sensing data and geospatial modeling techniques were used to assess habitat suitability of rhinoceros. Vegetation assessment was carried out for tree, shrubs, and herbs of plot size 10m × 10m, 5m × 5m, 1m × 1m respectively for habitat suitability. Threat analysis was carried out using purposive sampling among local people and their perceptions were collected on the movement of rhinoceros and threats. The integration of nine explanatory variables showed that about 0.06%, 29.18%, 20.45%, and 50.31% of the study area was found to be most suitable, suitable, moderately suitable and unsuitable habitat respectively for rhinoceros. Out of 30 respondents, 37%, 23%, 20%, and 20% identified the main threat to rhinoceros to be unmanaged habitat, poaching, human-wildlife conflict and environmental factors, respectively. This study recommends parts of the Rautahat District to be extended as the habitat of rhinoceros and starting of immediate conservation initiatives in the area.
Highlights
Of the five remaining extant species of rhinoceros, three live in Asia: the Greater One-horned Rhinoceros Rhinoceros unicornis, Sumatran Rhinoceros Dicerorhinus sumatrensis and Javan Rhinoceros Rhinoceros sondaicus, and two are found in Africa: the White Rhinoceros Ceratotherium simum and Black Rhinoceros Diceros bicornis (Thapa 2016)
In Nepal, the Greater One-horned Rhinoceros is found in Chitwan National Park (CNP), Bardia National Park (BNP), Shuklaphanta National Park (ShNP) and Parsa National Park (PNP), and it has recently been reported in the forests of Rautahat District
Habitat Suitability Mapping Suitability map based on remote sensing (RS) and geographic information system (GIS) application showed that only about 0.06% (28.8ha) of the area was found to be most suitable, approximately 29.18% (13198.23ha) of the area was found to be suitable, 20.45% (9248.58ha) was moderately suitable and about 50.31% (22759.65ha) was unsuitable habitat for rhinoceros in the study area (Fig. 4 (a))
Summary
Of the five remaining extant species of rhinoceros, three live in Asia: the Greater One-horned Rhinoceros Rhinoceros unicornis, Sumatran Rhinoceros Dicerorhinus sumatrensis and Javan Rhinoceros Rhinoceros sondaicus, and two are found in Africa: the White Rhinoceros Ceratotherium simum and Black Rhinoceros Diceros bicornis (Thapa 2016). In Nepal, the Greater One-horned Rhinoceros is found in Chitwan National Park (CNP), Bardia National Park (BNP), Shuklaphanta National Park (ShNP) and Parsa National Park (PNP), and it has recently been reported in the forests of Rautahat District. Rhinoceroses are mostly solitary with the exception of mothers and calves and breeding pairs, they sometimes gather at bathing areas. They are active mostly at night, early in the morning and in the late afternoon (Laurie 1978). A recently published report by WWF Nepal showed that habitat loss and poaching are emerging as major threats to rhino conservation (Rookmaaker et al 2016). Poachers kill rhinoceros for their horns, which are highly valued and used in Chinese traditional medicine to reduce fever and fear, and as an aphrodisiac (Crawford 1994)
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