Hokersar Wetland Research Articles

Diversity of Odonata in Hokersar Wetland- A Ramsar Site of Kashmir Himalaya, India

The present study was carried out from 2021 to 2023 to assess the diversity and seasonal distribution of odonates in the Hokersar wetland. A total of 18 species under 11 genera and four families were observed of which a high diversity of dragonflies were seen compared to damselflies. Libellulidae was found to be the most species-rich family followed by Aeshnidae. The most abundant species were Pantala flavescens (F) (11.98%), Crocothemis servilia (Drury) (11.35%) and Ischnura inarmata Calvert (11.09%). A change in diversity and abundance across seasons was observed with the highest being in summer followed by autumn, while absence during spring and autumn was seen, except for Sympecma paedisca (Brauer) found throughout the year.

People's perception of the impacts of drivers of degradation on Hokersar Wetland in Kashmir Himalaya

People's perception of the impacts of drivers of degradation on Hokersar Wetland in Kashmir Himalaya

Helminth fauna of migratory waterfowl ducks and geese in Hokersar wetland of Kashmir, India

Helminth fauna of migratory waterfowl ducks and geese in Hokersar wetland of Kashmir, India

Impact of Anthropogenic Activities on Physico-Chemical Properties of Sediment of Hokersar Wetland: A Protected Wildlife Reserve (Ramsar Site No.1570) Of Kashmir Himalaya

Impact of anthropogenic activities on physico-chemical properties of sediment of Hokersar wetland was carried in summer, spring and autumn seasons. Sediment at Inlet site was having higher value for physicochemical parameters viz; EC (0.509 dS/m), available nitrogen (109.86 mg/kg), available potassium (89.97 mg/kg), available phosphorus (10.18 mg/kg), Ca (352.53 mg/kg) and Mg (152.44 mg/kg) except pH which was highest (7.99) at Outlet. The values of all the physico-chemical parameters of sediment were found maximum in summer season and minimum in autumn except for pH which was higher (7.81) in autumn and lower in (7.16) in summer. Highest values for Fe (23.90 mg/kg), Mn (8.54 mg/kg), Cu (3.65 mg/kg) and Zn (2.77 mg/kg) in sediment were found at Inlet site and lowest values for Fe (11.82 mg/kg), Mn (3.52 mg/kg), Cu (0.97 mg/kg) and Zn (1.14 mg/kg) at outlet site. Further, these trace elements were observed in higher concentration during summer season as compared to autumn. This all may be due to the high rate of degradation of huge quantities of waste present in the Wetland. Bangladesh J. Bot. 51(1): 83-92, 2022 (March)

Impact of pollution load of water and sediment of Hokersar wetland on nutrient concentration and biochemical parameters of Trapa natans L.: An economically important plant species of Kashmir, Jammu and Kashmir, India

Impact of pollution load of water and sediment of Hokersar wetland on nutrient concentration and biochemical parameters of Trapa natans L.: An economically important plant species of Kashmir, Jammu and Kashmir, India

Carbon Sequestration Potential of Macrophytes and Seasonal Carbon Input Assessment into the Hokersar Wetland, Kashmir

Wetlands are the most effective terrestrial carbon sinks as their vegetation has high gross primary productivity. Species specific efficiency of wetland macrophytes for sequestering carbon, however, has not been studied well. This study highlights the carbon sequestration efficiency of twelve abundant macrophytes in Hokersar Wetland, Kashmir, India. The total dry biomass and the carbon (C) content were higher in post-summer than summer and winter seasons. In the selected macrophytes, C content was higher in the above-ground (AG) component than in the below-ground (BG) one. Among the twelve species studied, the C in the total dry biomass of Phragmites australis was highest followed by Sparganium erectum and Typha angustata. It was estimated that a total amount of carbon sequestered by twelve macrophytes was 0.85 Kg C m−2 yr.−1 of which marginal emergent macrophytes sequestered 0.73 Kg m−2 yr.−1, rooted floating types 0.08 Kg m−2 yr.−1 and submerged macrophytic species 0.042 Kg m−2 yr.−1 in Hokersar wetland ecosystem. This study will be helpful to refine our understanding about the role of macrophytes in carbon sequestration of wetlands and could also be explored in earning carbon credits in the global carbon market.

Dynamics of physico-chemical limnology of a shallow wetland in Kashmir Himalaya (India)

The variability in surface water chemistry within and between aquatic ecosystems is regulated by many factors operating at several spatial and temporal scales. The present study was carried out on one of the famous shallow wetlands of Kashmir known as Hokersar wetland. As the wetland is under tremendous pressure of anthropogenic activities besides suffering from internal wetland processes, it becomes imperative to study the seasonal dynamics of various physico-chemical characteristics of water. For this purpose, six study sites were chosen for the collection of water samples from September 2013 to August 2014. Among the parameters recorded, lower values of depth (0.9 m), dissolved oxygen (2.4 mg/L), higher values of chloride (44 mg/L), ammonical nitrogen (251 µg/L), nitrate nitrogen (688 µg/L) and both the forms of phosphorus reflect that the wetland is under the heavy influence of sewage, silt and unmanaged agricultural activities in the surrounding catchment which seems to be the foremost cause of deterioration of the wetland waters. When the present study is compared with the previous studies in terms of physico-chemical characteristics of water, it clearly reveals that some aspects depict distinct variations while some showed close proximity. Further, some of the recorded parameters of water were in range with national standards while some portray wide variations. Principal component analysis revealed that component 1 explains 82.157% of the variation, component 2 with 8.345% variation and component 3 having 3.26% variation. Among various parameters, nitrate nitrogen, total alkalinity and total hardness contribute strongly towards the seasonality of the remaining parameters in the wetland. From the present study, it seems that the wetland has still the capacity to absorb major nutrients especially the nitrogen and phosphorus that drain from the immediate catchment into the Queen wetland of Kashmir.

Environmental characteristics and phytoplankton productivity of a shallow Ramsar‐site floodplain in the western Himalaya

Hokersar wetland (altitude of 1584 masl), a shallow (0.5 m) floodplain waterfowl habitat in Kashmir, India, gained international importance in 2005 with its declaration as a Ramsar site. Although isolated in the western Himalayan mountains, it is being impacted by a silt-laden river (Doodhganga). Human activities, not the least of which is affected by the closeness of the wetland to suburban areas, have gradually altered its trophic state. Its alkaline- and calcium-rich waters contain many planktonic diatoms, green algae and cyanobacteria. Nitrate–nitrogen and total phosphorus concentrations are high (370–4750 and 101–968 μg L−1, respectively). A pronounced seasonal cycle in phytoplankton production (g C m−2 day−1) was evident in a minimum value of 0.38 (Jan–Feb, 2002) and a maximum value of 4.02 (July, 2002), closely paralleling the seasonal cycles of temperature and light. The photosynthetic efficiency of the wetland was highest (1.97%) during the summer. The annual phytoplankton production of this wetland ecosystem was 210 × 102 KJ m−2, suggestive of a meso-eutrophic status.

Dynamics of key plant nutrients (N & P) in hokersar, a typical wetland of Kashmir Himalaya, India

Hokersar wetland suffers highly due by nutrient inputs from the catchment area, internal wetland processes and various types of anthropogenic pressures around. To characterize nutrient dynamics of the wetland, nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) samples were collected from six study sites in the Queen wetland of Kashmir Himalaya for a period of one year from Sep. 2012 to Aug. 2013. Clear spatial and temporal variations were observed among the recorded parameters (ammonical nitrogen, nitrate nitrogen, total orthophosphate phosphorus and total phosphorus) throughout the year. Ammonical nitrogen concentration was found to be maximum in winter (242.3±10.1 µg/L). Lower nitrate nitrogen was observed in summer, recording 259.6±35.3 µg/L. Both the forms of phosphorus registered higher values in summer and lower values in winter. Scatter plot showed highly significant values among all the parameters (R²=0.748 and 0.719). Principal component analysis showed highest principle component vector displacement among the sites IV and VI reflecting polluted nature of the sites. Further, higher Eigen-vector displacement values were due to ammonical nitrogen and nitrate nitrogen, registering values 3.36724 and 0.542639 respectively. Similarity matrix was highest between total phosphorus and ammonical nitrogen (92.9666%), followed by ammonical nitrogen and nitrate nitrogen making 58.5729%.

Phytoremediation Potential of Phragmites australis in Hokersar Wetland - A Ramsar Site of Kashmir Himalaya

Heavy metals are an important class of pollutants with both lethal and sublethal effects on organisms. Wetlands are cheap natural alternatives for removal of heavy metals from soils; however, wetland plants vary greatly in their degree of metal uptake. Hokersar wetland, a Ramsar site of Kashmir Himalaya, India is a game reserve of international importance that provides suitable habitat for resident birds and an excellent stopover point for migratory birds visiting from Palaearctic breeding grounds in Central Asia, China, N-Europe and Siberia. The toxicity of chronic dietary metal exposure in birds may have adverse reproductive effects which include decreased egg production, decreased hatchability, and increased hatchling mortality. Thus, the present study aimed to assess the heavy metal sequestration capability of one of the most common wetland plant species Phragmites australis in Hokersar wetland. The accumulation of the different elements was in order of Al > Mn > Ba > Zn > Cu > Pb > Mo > Co > Cr > Cd > Ni. Translocation factor, i.e. ratio of shoot to root metal concentration revealed that metals were largely retained in the roots of P. australis, thus reducing the supply of metals to avifauna and preventing their bio-accumulation.

Assessing the impacts of changing land cover and climate on Hokersar wetland in Indian Himalayas

Monitoring the spatiotemporal changes in wetlands and assessing their causal factors is critical for developing robust strategies for the conservation and restoration of these ecologically important ecosystems. In this study, the spatiotemporal changes in the land cover system within a Himalayan wetland and its catchment were assessed and correlated using a time series of satellite, historical, and field data. Significant changes in the spatial extent, water depth, and the land system of the Hokersar wetland were observed from the spatiotemporal analysis of the data from 1969 to 2008. The wetland area has shrunk from 18.75 km2 in 1969 to 13 km2 in 2008 with drastic reduction in the water depth of the wetland. The marshy lands, habitat of the migratory birds, have shrunk from 16.3 km2 in 1969 to 5.62 km2 in 2008 and have been colonized by various other land cover types. The land system and water extent changes within the wetland were related to the spatiotemporal changes in the land cover and hydrometeorological variables at the catchment scale. Significant changes in the forest cover (88.33–55.78 km2), settlement (4.63–15.35 km2), and water bodies (1.75–0.51 km2) were observed in the catchment. It is concluded that the urbanization, deforestation, changes in the hydrologic and climatic conditions, and other land system changes observed in the catchment are the main causes responsible for the depleting wetland extent, water depth, and biodiversity by adversely influencing the hydrologic erosion and other land surface processes in the catchment. All these causes and effects are manifest in the form of deterioration of the water quality, water quantity, the biodiversity changes, and the decreasing migratory bird population in the wetland.

Geoinformatics for characterizing and understanding the spatio-temporal dynamics (1969 to 2008) of Hokersar wetland in Kashmir Himalayas

In the present study, the Hokersar wetland, in Kashmir Himalayas, that is abode to millions of migratory birds, has been chosen to assess the changes in the land use/land cover and areal extent of the wetland during the last four decades. Topographic maps of 1969 and the remote sensing data for 1992, 2001, 2005 and 2008 was used for determining the spatio-temporal dynamics of the wetland. Significant changes in the Hokersar wetland and in the surrounding uplands were observed from the analysis of the data during the last four decades. The wetland area has reduced from 1875.04 Ha in 1969 to 1300 Ha in 2008 with drastic reduction in the open waters in the wetland. Results from this study show that the encroachment by farmers, sediment load carried by Doodhganga River and extension of willow plantations in the wetland are the main causes responsible for the wetland depletion. The marshy lands, the habitat of the migratory birds, have reduced from 754 Ha in 1969 to 610 Ha in 2008. In addition, the increasing development of settlements around the wetland over the past few decades has adversely affected its varied aquatic flora and fauna. Apart from these causes, change in climatic conditions in the study area is also responsible for decreasing the water level and water spread in the wetland. These changes in the composition and structure of the wetland have affected its functionality and are manifest in the deterioration of water quality and changes in the aquatic vegetation composition. Key words: Geoinformatics, land use/land cover, urbanization, remote sensing, biodiversity, water quality.

Studies on biomass changes and nutrient lock-up efficiency in a Kashmir Himalayan wetland ecosystem, India

Wetlands are landscape sinks which accumulate and sequester a wide range of nutrients, heavy metals and pesticides. Whilst some studies hitherto have addressed the phyto-sociology and sequestering potential of wetland plants in isolation, we attempted to integrate the two aspects in a Kashmir Himalayan Ramsar site (Hokersar wetland), India. The results of studies (November, 2000 – October, 2001) on the seasonal biomass fluctuations and nutrient accumulation of aquatic plant communities in Hokersar wetland ecosystem are presented. Phytosociological attributes show emergents dominated by Sparganium erectum and Typha angustata , colonizing mainly the littorals. Nymphoides peltata , a dominant rooted floating plant species, is of frequent occurrence in relatively shallow and open waters. Ceratophyllum-Myriophyllum association dominates the submersed forms whilst the free-floating Lemna-Salvinia complex grows luxuriantly in side-channels. The plant biomass levels on areal basis (m

Composition and distribution of macrophytes in Hokersar - A wetland of international importance in Kashmir Himalaya

The paper reports about the distribution of macrophyte in the wetland community of Hokera with special reference to macrophyte composition and vegetation analysis through phyto-sociological studies. The ecosystem supports diverse aquatic plant communities (emergent, rooted–floating leaf type, free-floating leaf type, submersed type) marked by striking variability in composition, frequency and extent of colonization. Several ecological factors, such as habitat loss related to siltaion, pollution, expanding agricultural activities and drastic hydrological fluctuations, have induced considerable changes in the dynamics and distribution pattern of sustained biota. The shift in macrophytic community structure is evidenced by the local extinction of Nelumbio nucifera and the near-disappearance of some economically important plants (Euryale ferox). The investigation of various aspects of wetland ecology of Hokera reveals that species composition has witnessed great variations. The shrinkage of the wetland area, once spread over 13.26 sq km has been now gradually reduced 5.6 sq km. The paper highlights the rapidly deteriorating environmental status of the Hokersar Wetland and stresses the need for its urgent ecological restoration with special reference to its macrophytes.

The environmental status of a Kashmir Himalayan wetland game reserve: Aquatic plant communities and eco‐restoration measures

AbstractThe data (November 2000 – October 2001) are presented on environmental status, hydrology, sedimentation rate, water quality and macrophytic community architecture of an important game reserve (Hokersar Wetland) in the Kashmir Himalayan valley. Of the total water input, 91% was contributed from surface inlets and just 9% through precipitation. Of the total surface water output, 67% occurred through outlets while evapotranspiration and other losses accounted for 33%. The net annual sediment accumulation was principally a function of suspended load carried by Doodganga inlet. The ecosystem supports diverse aquatic plant communities (emergents, rooted–floating leaf type, free‐floating leaf type, submersed type) marked by striking variability in composition, frequency and extent of colonization. Several ecological factors, such as habitat loss related to siltation, pollution, expanding agricultural activities and drastic hydrological fluctuations, have induced considerable changes in the dynamics and distribution pattern of sustained biota. The shift in macrophytic community structure is evidenced by the decline of Nelumbio nucifera and the near‐disappearance of some economically important plants (Euryale ferox, Acorus calamus). The shrinkage of the wetland area, once spread over 1800 ha, by ≈28% is a cause for environmental concern. The paper highlights the rapidly deteriorating environmental status of the Kashmir Himalayan Hokersar Wetland game reserve and stresses the need for its urgent ecological restoration.

Landscape dynamics in Hokersar Wetland, Jammu & Kashmir—An application of geospatial approach

Geospatial presentation of habitat has become a key issue for planning conservation and management of any ecosystem. Hokersar wetland, one of the best resorts of migratory waterfowl in Kashmir, is under anthropogenic pressure and siltation due to floods. This has resulted in the degradation and change in the habitat quality of varied aquatic flora and fauna. Moreover, the seasonal changes affect the water level and land cover characteristics of the landscape. In the present study temporal mapping of the wetland has been carried out using the data sets for the autumn and spring seasons to assess the land cove/land use dynamics. The temporal change analysis, in the urban sprawl and the wetland, has been carried out to assess the rate of changes in the wetland and its environs. The wetland initially comprised of patch of marshy waterfowl habitat with some open water bodies. It has been fragmented into a large number of land uses because of anthropogenic activities. The increase in the settlement has been observed proportionate to the rate of fragmentation in the wetland. This study has created an information base, which will help to design conservation schemes for long term maintenance of the wetland.