Conservation Implications

Abstract
Tiger populations in India have been restored numerically, yet increasing human interface is eroding tigers’ behavioural integrity, creating conditions for emerging syndromes termed Intellectual Disability Development (IDD) and Self-Injurious Behaviour (SIB). These syndromes manifest as cognitive decline, abnormal movements, pathological timidity, stress-linked aggression, and elevated glucocorticoid levels. This paper proposes a shift from census-based management to also behavioural-health-based conservation. Two field tools, —the Behavioural Integrity Scale (BIS) and Behavioural Report Card (BRC)—are introduced here to quantify behavioural wildness, detect early degradation, and guide evidence-based regulation of tourism and habitat use. Similipal’s melanistic and normal tigers, sustained by long-term isolation and high ‘Taqpep’ gene frequency, are highlighted as behaviourally intact populations. Molecular
studies across India, Russia, and South Africa reinforce the role of anthropogenic disturbance in chronic stress. An integrated IDD–SIB Tiger Audit is proposed as a rapid diagnostic framework for assessing behavioural stability. If practiced, it can chalk out future management decisions, by adding parameters to MEE (Management Effective Evaluation) of NTCA-WII.

The document discusses sightings and research on stripeless and melanistic
tigers in Similipal, Odisha, highlighting significant observations and studies.
Tiger Sightings: Shailesh Ho first sighted a stripeless tiger in Similipal on July 27,
1988. Dr. Sarat Mishra reported a second sighting of a stripeless tiger on
January 14, 1990. Both sightings contribute valuable data to the understanding
of tiger colour variations. Colour Variation Research: The 14-color model for
tiger colour variations was developed between 1993-1999. Melanistic tigers
have been documented in Similipal, supported by molecular studies from scat
samples. The document references a golden tiger variant observed in
Kaziranga. Conservation Efforts: National Tiger Conservation Authority and
Wildlife Institute of India initiated camera trap data collection in 2006.
Emphasis remains on compiling and analysing data from camera traps to
enhance understanding of tiger colour variations. SINGH, L. A. K. (2024). Tiger
Without Stripes Data from Similipal. Cheetal, Vol. 61(2), ISSN: 0528-9122. pages
66-68.

The co-management approach has emerged as a significant strategy for forest and wildlife conservation, aiming to balance ecological preservation with the socioeconomic needs of local communities. Despite its adoption in several protected areas in Bangladesh, including the Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary (CWS), forest degradation and anthropogenic pressures persist. This study investigates the effectiveness of comanagement in mitigating land use and land cover (LULC) changes in CWS and explores future land use scenarios to inform sustainable management strategies. Specifically, the study seeks to (1) assess the spatio-temporal dynamics of LULC changes in CWS from 2004 to 2021, (2) project future LULC changes under natural development and ecology preservation scenarios using the CLUEs model, and (3) assess the effectiveness of current co-management strategy in conserving CWS forested area.The findings reveal a steady decline in forest cover, particularly in beats near forest boundaries, despite reforestation efforts. Agricultural expansion and settlement development were identified as primary drivers of degradation. Projections indicate that stringent conservation measures under the ecology preservation scenario could lead to significant recovery in forest and wetland areas by 2030, whereas the natural development scenario predicts continued ecological degradation. These results highlight the limitations of the current co-management framework and underscore the need for tailored interventions, enhanced governance, and community engagement to achieve sustainable conservation goals. This study contributes to the broader discourse on adaptive co-management strategies and their potential to reconcile conservation and development objectives in tropical developing regions.

The Global Forest Resources Assessment 2015 reported an increasing rate of privately owned forests on a global scale. However, deforestation was found to be very active in privately owned hill forest areas of Malaysia. Penang State was purposively chosen as it has been experiencing rapid and radical changes due to urban expansion over the last three decades. In this study, effect of differential management on land-use changes (LUC) and biodiversity were analysed. Analyses of land-use changes (LUC) were done by PCI Geomatica using Landsat images from 1991 to 2015 and future trends of LUC were assessed using EXCEL forecast function

A study was conducted at two-biodiversity conservation areas of Northeastern Bangladesh (a part of Sylhet Forest Division) to assess the species composition, diversity and density of natural regeneration of tree species both indigenous and exotic species. Data were collected by stratified random quadrate method during January 2010 to July 2010. Totally 200 circular plots of 2 m×2 m in size had 5 different habitat types of plants namely; forest, roadside, homestead (surrounding forest dwellers house), fallow land and others (canals, streams and tea gardens side), which included a total of 55 regenerating species belonging to 28 families. Meliaceae is the dominant family and shows the highest family importance value (26.3), having six species, followed by Moraceae (24.24). Among the five habitat types, forest (43 species) possess the highest number of species, followed by roadside (23 species). Total 15 exotic species among 9 families and 40 indigenous species with 24 families were recorded. For exotic species, Tectona grandis possess the highest relative density (11.7%) and relative frequency (10.5%); Senna siamea had highest relative abundance (7.83%). In case of indigenous species, Chickrassia tabularis possess the highest relative density (4.23%) and relative frequency (4%); Dipterocarpus turbinatus had the highest relative abundance (3.92%). Tectona grandis (29.66) and Chickrassia tabularis (10.8) had the highest IVI for exotic and indigenous species respectively. Different diversity indices such as Shanon-Winner diversity index, species diversity index, species richness index, species evenness index, Simpson index and species dominance index, etc. were applied to quantify definite diversity. The regeneration of species associated with low levels of disturbance was in the exotic species. Study suggests that proper protection from human disturbances and scientific management of

Small populations of endangered species can be impacted by genetic processes such as drift and inbreeding that reduce population viability. As such, conservation genetic analyses that assess population levels of genetic variation and levels of gene flow can provide important information for managing threatened species. The São Paulo Marsh Antwren (Formicivora paludicola) is a recently-described and critically endangered bird from São Paulo State (Brazil) whose total estimated population is around 250-300 individuals, distributed in only 15 isolated marshes around São Paulo metropolitan region. We used microsatellite DNA markers to estimate the population genetic characteristics of the three largest remaining populations of this species all within 60 km of each other. We detected a high and significant genetic structure between all populations (overall F ST = 0.103) which is comparable to the highest levels of differentiation ever documented for birds, (e.g., endangered birds found in isolated populations on the tops of African mountains), but also evidence for first-generation immigrants, likely from small local unsampled populations. Effective population sizes were small (between 28.8-99.9 individuals) yet there are high levels of genetic variability within populations and no evidence for inbreeding. Conservation implications of this work are that the high levels of genetic structure suggests that translocations between populations need to be carefully considered in light of possible local adaptation and that remaining populations of these birds should be managed as conservation units that contain both main populations studied here but also small outlying populations which may be a source of immigrants. a11111

Background: African wildlife experienced a reduction in population size and geographical distribution over the last millennium, particularly since the 19 th century as a result of human demographic expansion, wildlife overexploitation, habitat degradation and cattle-borne diseases. In many areas, ungulate populations are now largely confined within a network of loosely connected protected areas. These metapopulations face gene flow restriction and run the risk of genetic diversity erosion. In this context, we assessed the "genetic health" of free ranging southern African Cape buffalo populations (S.c. caffer) and investigated the origins of their current genetic structure. The analyses were based on 264 samples from 6 southern African countries that were genotyped for 14 autosomal and 3 Y-chromosomal microsatellites. Results: The analyses differentiated three significant genetic clusters, hereafter referred to as Northern (N), Central (C) and Southern (S) clusters. The results suggest that splitting of the N and C clusters occurred around 6000 to 8400 years ago. Both N and C clusters displayed high genetic diversity (mean allelic richness (A r) of 7.217, average genetic diversity over loci of 0.594, mean private alleles (P a) of 11), low differentiation, and an absence of an inbreeding depression signal (mean F IS = 0.037). The third (S) cluster, a tiny population enclosed within a small isolated protected area, likely originated from a more recent isolation and experienced genetic drift (F IS = 0.062, mean A r = 6.160, P a = 2). This study also highlighted the impact of translocations between clusters on the genetic structure of several African buffalo populations. Lower differentiation estimates were observed between C and N sampling localities that experienced translocation over the last century. Conclusions: We showed that the current genetic structure of southern African Cape buffalo populations results from both ancient and recent processes. The splitting time of N and C clusters suggests that the current pattern results from human-induced factors and/or from the aridification process that occurred during the Holocene period. The more recent S cluster genetic drift probably results of processes that occurred over the last centuries (habitat fragmentation, diseases). Management practices of African buffalo populations should consider the micro-evolutionary changes highlighted in the present study.

After discovery of the melanistic tiger in Similipal in 1993 July, the concept for 14 colour variation in colour of tiger developed by 1999 and the WWF-book Born Black. I had also thought about the possible use of melanistic tiger in a Sanctuary and Tiger Reserve. Now, an idea is developing to have a "Safari" outside Similipal Sanctuary. This is expected to boost tourism and bring better and round-the-year earning for local people. The discussion is based on a presentation at a National Seminar in an Autonomous College of Odisha. It says, that we have to adopt our strategies the way the happenings happen in the wild. A resource after all.

The slug Geomalacus maculosus is a prominent member of the Lusitanian fauna. As its global distribution is restricted to western Ireland and northern Iberia, it is protected under EU legislation. Nothing is known about the genetic variability and population structure of this species, so, with a special view to shedding light on the origin of the Irish G. maculosus, tissue samples from 78 specimens were collected from 13 locations within Ireland and ten locations within Iberia and partial sequences of the mitochondrial 16S rRNA and cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (COI) and from the nuclear internal transcribed spacer 1 region (ITS-1) were compared. The genetic diversity of the Irish G. maculosus was found to be greatly reduced compared with the Iberian populations, with only one (16S rRNA) and two (COI) mitochondrial haplotypes identified respectively. No private Irish ITS-1 haplotype was found. Based on the COI sequences, the Irish specimens clustered closest to Spanish specimens from Northern Asturias and Cantabria, and the bGMYC analysis identified five further Iberian clades that were highly genetically differentiated suggesting long-term allopatric divergence.

Ten microsatellite loci were characterized for 34 locations from roundtail chub (Gila robusta complex) to better resolve patterns of genetic variation among local populations in the lower Colorado River basin. This group has had a complex taxonomic history and previous molecular analyses failed to identify species diagnostic molecular markers. Our results supported previous molecular studies based on allozymes and DNA sequences, which found that most genetic variance was explained by differences among local populations. Samples from most localities were so divergent species-level diagnostic markers were not found. Some geographic samples were discordant with current taxonomy due to admixture or misidentification; therefore, additional morphological studies are necessary. Differences in spatial genetic structure were consistent with differences in connectivity of stream habitats, with the typically mainstem species, G. robusta, exhibiting greater genetic connectedness within the Gila River drainage. No species exhibited strong isolation by distance over the entire stream network, but the two species typically found in headwaters, G. nigra and G. intermedia, exhibited greater than expected genetic similarity between geographically proximate populations, and usually clustered with individuals from the same geographic location and/ or sub-basin. These results highlight the significance of microevolutionary processes and importance of maintaining local populations to maximize evolutionary potential for this complex. Augmentation stocking as a conservation management strategy should only occur under extreme circumstances, and potential source populations should be geographically proximate stocks of the same species, especially for the headwater forms.

Animal hybridization is well documented, but evolutionary outcomes and conservation priorities often differ for natural and anthropogenic hybrids. Among primates, an order with many endangered species, the two contexts can be hard to disentangle from one another, which carries important conservation implications. Callithrix marmosets give us a unique glimpse of genetic hybridization effects under distinct natural and human-induced contexts. Here, we use a 44 autosomal microsatellite marker panel to examine genome-wide admixture levels and introgression at a natural C. jacchus and C. penicillata species border along the São Francisco River in NE Brazil and in an area of Rio de Janeiro state where humans introduced these species exotically. Additionally, we describe for the first time autosomal genetic diversity in wild C. penicillata and expand previous C. jacchus genetic data. We characterize admixture within the natural zone as bimodal where hybrid ancestry is biased toward one parental species or the other. We also show evidence that São Francisco River islands are gateways for bidirectional gene flow across the species border. In the anthropogenic zone, marmosets essentially form a hybrid swarm with intermediate levels of admixture, likely from the absence of strong physical barriers to interspecific breeding. Our data show that while hybridization can occur naturally, the presence of physical, even if leaky, barriers to hybridization is important for maintaining species genetic integrity. Thus, we suggest further study of hybridization under different contexts to set well informed conservation guidelines for hybrid populations that often fit somewhere between "natural" and "man-made."

Animal hybridization is well documented, but evolutionary outcomes and conservation priorities often differ for natural and anthropogenic hybrids. Among primates, an order with many endangered species, the two contexts can be hard to disentangle from one another, which carries important conservation implications. Callithrix marmosets give us a unique glimpse of genetic hybridization effects under distinct natural and human-induced contexts. Here, we use a 44 autosomal microsatellite marker panel to examine genome-wide admixture levels and introgression at a natural C. jacchus and C. penicillata species border along the São Francisco River in NE Brazil and in an area of Rio de Janeiro state where humans introduced these species exotically. Additionally, we describe for the first time autosomal genetic diversity in wild C. penicillata and expand previous C. jacchus genetic data. We characterize admixture within the natural zone as bimodal where hybrid ancestry is biased toward one parental species or the other. We also show evidence that São Francisco River islands are gateways for bidirectional gene flow across the species border. In the anthropogenic zone, marmosets essentially form a hybrid swarm with intermediate levels of admixture, likely from the absence of strong physical barriers to interspecific breeding. Our data show that while hybridization can occur naturally, the presence of physical, even if leaky, barriers to hybridization is important for maintaining species genetic integrity. Thus, we suggest further study of hybridization under different contexts to set well informed conservation guidelines for hybrid populations that often fit somewhere between "natural" and "man-made."

We investigated the effect of tree cover, forest patch and disturbances on tree species richness in a highly diverse conservation area of northeast Bangladesh. A systematic sampling protocol was adopted and 80 sub-plots from twenty five 1 ha plots were used for the vegetation survey. Linear regression analysis was performed to understand the effect of patch area, disturbances and tree cover on tree species richness. Ordination using Redundancy analysis (RDA) and Non-metric Multi Dimensional Scaling (NMDS) were also performed to explore the tree species compositional similarities along the stand characteristics gradient and locations of the sample plots. Our study revealed that, forest patch size has greater influence on species richness. Areas with medium level of disturbances have shown greater species richness. In constrained ordination the selected explanatory variables regulated the richness of common species. Our findings can be useful for better forest management and restoratio...

This study is an attempt to find the impact of disturbances on tree species richness, population structure and regeneration status in the tropical forest of Sikkim. On the basis of Disturbance indices forest were categorised into Highly Disturbed (HD), Moderately Disturbed (MD) and Least Disturbed (LD). While, number of species was considered as species richness in different disturbance gradient, population structure was determined using density diameter relation. Similarly, regeneration status was seen based on the density of seedling, sapling and adult tree species along the disturbance gradient. Species richness was highest (29) at LD sites and lowest in HD (24) and 25 in MD. Population structure of the forest across the sites were normal with densities of seedling>sapling>adult, but densities in all growth form were higher in LD followed by MD and HD. Seedlings of Shorea robusta, Schima wallichi and Tectona grandis dominated the forest floor, comprising of 85% of all the seedling density. Although most of the species regenerated better in LD sites, species like Schima wallichii, Tectona grandis, Terminalia bellirica and Lagerstroemia parviflora had better seedling densities in MD sites. LD sites showed highest percentage of good (31 %), fair (17 %) and new (20 %) regeneration. Highest percentage of poor regeneration was observed in HD (27) sites followed by MD (23) and LD (11) while 29 % of the species were not regenerating and MD sites followed by HD (27) and LD (20). This study concludes that the anthropogenic disturbance is detrimental for species richness, population structure and regeneration of tree species yet moderate disturbances may be beneficial for regeneration of few selected species.

SINGH, L. A. K. (2024). Traditional discoveries on tiger status in Similipal and global colour variations both of which got technological confirmation after three decades. Talk delivered to Engineering students at Aryan Institute of Engineering and Technology, Bhubaneswar. Date 18 April 2024.

It was a brief presentation before the faculty and students of an ‘A’ accredited engineering college. As a wildlife researcher I have used simple engineering tools that have helped me in field research of wildlife. Basic SLR Camera, binocular, a calculator, the radio-tracking equipment for gharial in Chambal are included in the list; but I am a user of traditional grass root field methods of forest people. From 16 years at Similipal, I refined and elaborated on pugmark tracking till 2004, and could develop the 14-colour model (1993-1999) for tiger (Panthera tigris). The warnings and concerns from these two studies with traditional field sources, got technological confirmation after nearly thirty years. Confirmations came from Camera trap technology (2006) for the stagnant and dwindling tiger population in Similipal. The tiger population showed southward movement to peripheral areas and corridors. Concerning Kuldiha Sanctuary which is in the south of Similipal, we saw track evidences in 1990s. Camera traps have now photographed and confirmed their continued presence from the past. The melanistic tiger population recorded in Similipal from 1993 and the development of 14-colour model have gained strength for more studies with camera trapped photographs and biotechnological tools. Photographs of pallid or golden tiger in Kaziranga, Assam from 2000 also support for statements made about the natural occurrence of 14-colours in tiger. Thus, the modern tools have confirmed our decades old observation through traditional field science. Every engineering student has a scope to offer tools and solutions for better conservation management of wildlife. For that, the students need to be vivid nature observers first for understanding the issues requiring to be addressed through their skill and training.

The phenomena of colour aberration (albinism, leucism, piebaldism, melanism, hypomelanism, and blue-eyed colour morph) is reported in various mammalian species throughout the world including India.  A total of 239 such instances in Indian mammals was tabulated in this study along with maps showing locations of the records.  The records from 1886 to 2017 (till July) were gathered from published scientific literature, magazines, and images uploaded on various websites.  The records were reviewed along with their order-wise and family-wise representation and were analyzed.  Appropriate identification of colour aberration was attempted on the basis of any presented evidence.  Altogether, 56 (out of 421) mammalian species belonging to eight orders and 19 families were reported to exhibit various types of colour aberrations, amounting to 13.3% of the total mammalian species found in India.  Of these, albinos constituted 21.8%, leucistic 14.2%, piebald 5.4%, melanistic 25.5%, hypomelanisti...

This is an abstract of talk delivered about the development of 14-colour model for tiger (Panthera tigris), the concerns expressed during 1993-2023 in the context of tiger population in Similipal Tiger Reserve because of increasing melanistic tigers. The concerns were confirmed through camera-trap population assessments (2006-2023) and molecular studies (2021). The proposed Melanistic tiger Safari (2024) is considered a skillful solution through cascade tourism, for round the year benefit to local people and visitors.

Singh, L. A. K. (2024): Historical stages in developing the 14-colour model for tiger (Panthera pardus), survival warnings for population in Similipal, confirmation from camera-trap and molecular studies, and the option of tiger-safari in cascade tourism. Abstract in Souvenir, National Seminar on Recent Innovations in Animal Science Research. Organised by Department of Zoology, U.N. (Auto) College of Sc. & Tech., Adaspur, Cuttack and Zool. Soc. of Orissa, Bhubaneswar. 22-23 March 2023. Pages 12-14.

Cascade Tourism is a concept to facilitate step-by-step development of tourism outside sanctuaries. The idea got developed in 2002-2015 in the context of Similipal, which remains closed to tourism from June to October in compliance with management prescriptions. Cascade approach can provide round-the-year engagement to people of Mayurbhanj. 'Closed-Similipal' will not result as 'closed-Mayurbhanj' for visitors. From 2002, the concept for 'cascade tourism' was conceived to ease pressure on Similipal. In 2024 the state of Odisha has announced to set up melanistic tiger safari in the periphery of Similipal biosphere/tiger reserve, Odisha, India.

The diversity-productivity relationship has received considerable attention during the past two decades, largely because of the continuous loss of biodiversity. The positive relationship between species diversity and productivity is significant as a credible argument for the conservation of biodiversity. This research was conducted in the central region of Bangladesh to exemplify the relationship between tree species diversity and stand productivity at four mixed plantations. In total 112 sample plots (size-0.09 ha/plot) of four different mixed species plantations were systematically selected for data collection. After that, regression analysis explained a significantly positive relationship between tree species diversity and productivity at four mixed plantations. This research suggests that having more tree species generally raises plantation productivity. Therefore, this result indicates that mixed species plantations could be the better choice in the degraded and fallow forest lands of Bangladesh.

The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.

Geoinformatics approach is increasingly used to monitor land use change as well as forest fragmentation due to availability of Landsat satellite data. In Bangladesh many initiatives have been taken to prepare land use maps but forest fragmentation modelling is quite new. In this research, geoinformatics approach is thoroughly used to determine land use changes of Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary from 2005 to 2015. Three time frame data sets i.e. 2005, 2010 and 2015 were used for assessing forest fragmentation. Forest intactness is measured by the proportion of four spatial patterns i.e. core, perforated, edge and patches. Previously tree cover and density was considered as the yardstick to measure forest health and ecosystem but recent studies regarding forest fragmentation have uncovered many harmful impacts of it. However, in this research authors observed 26.44% decrease in forest cover, 37.56% decrease in water bodies and 56.05% increase in cropland, 42.52% increase in barren lands, 69.01% increase in afforested area in between 2005 and 2010. Overall condition was leading to substantial forest fragmentation. Due to initiation of restoration activities positive results have come out which are 18.86% and 38.01% decrease in cropland and barren land respectively accompanied by 58.92% increase in forest between 2010 and 2015. As forest fragmentation is highly correlated with conversion of forest into non forest uses, core areas and perforated areas signifi cantly reduced to 503 hectares and 1212 hectares respectively in between 2005 and 2010, associated with a slight increase of 343 hectare edged area forest whereas overall forest cover reduced signifi cantly. Later, positive changes result 503 hectare increase in core areas along with 762 hectares decrease in patched forest from 2010 to 2015 which is surely a good sign.

Land use changes generally affect the integrity of an ecosystem. The effect of this change can be very severe if the conversion disrupts a crucial habitat of major plants and animals. The degraded Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary is one such area of Bangladesh which is facing a serious problem of rapid land use change. In this study, the future trend of land use change of the area was modelled using Artificial Neural Network. Several driver variables were also incorporated to determine their effect on land use change. Binary logistic regression was used to assess the significance of the drivers of land use change for this region. The analysis shows that nearly 76% of the total land area (8258 ha) was covered by vegetation during 2005. After 2005, that was reduced to 61% (6637 ha) in 2015, a 15% decline from 2005. On the other hand, the coverage of vacant land increased from nearly 10% in 2005 to 22% in 2015. This is indeed a matter of real concern. The critical analysis suggests that Cellular Automata is not a good fit to simulate the future land uses as it misdirects the analysis both spatially and numerically. The incorporation of driver variables gives strength to the Artificial Neural Network to predict the future. The chisquare value for the prediction of land use of the area found from the neural network was 7.815 which was greater than the critical value (3.316). The neural network was found to be a good fit for future land use prediction. The kappa index of variation shows that the overall accuracy of the prediction using neural network was above 90%. Elevation, slope, and distance to the road were the three driver variables which were found statistically significant while predicting the probability of forest land use change. The accuracy of the binary logistic regression was about 61% which was quite satisfactory. The simulation result shows that almost 5732 ha of the total land will be in the forest category of land use during 2020 and it will be further decreased to 5128 ha in 2025. The vacant area will increase from 24% to 31% from 2020 to 2025. Based on the findings and simulated land use map of 2020-2025, the study will help the management authority of this critical habitat to take proper action before further degradation occurs.

This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the addition of a cover page and metadata, and formatting for readability, but it is not yet the definitive version of record. This version will undergo additional copyediting, typesetting and review before it is published in its final form, but we are providing this version to give early visibility of the article. Please note that, during the production process, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.

This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the addition of a cover page and metadata, and formatting for readability, but it is not yet the definitive version of record. This version will undergo additional copyediting, typesetting and review before it is published in its final form, but we are providing this version to give early visibility of the article. Please note that, during the production process, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.

Land use changes generally affect the integrity of an ecosystem. The effect of this change can be very severe if the conversion disrupts a crucial habitat of major plants and animals. The degraded Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary is one such area of Bangladesh which is facing a serious problem of rapid land use change. In this study, the future trend of land use change of the area was modelled using Artificial Neural Network. Several driver variables were also incorporated to determine their effect on land use change. Binary logistic regression was used to assess the significance of the drivers of land use change for this region. The analysis shows that nearly 76% of the total land area (8258 ha) was covered by vegetation during 2005. After 2005, that was reduced to 61% (6637 ha) in 2015, a 15% decline from 2005. On the other hand, the coverage of vacant land increased from nearly 10% in 2005 to 22% in 2015. This is indeed a matter of real concern. The critical analysis suggests that Cellular Automata is not a good fit to simulate the future land uses as it misdirects the analysis both spatially and numerically. The incorporation of driver variables gives strength to the Artificial Neural Network to predict the future. The chisquare value for the prediction of land use of the area found from the neural network was 7.815 which was greater than the critical value (3.316). The neural network was found to be a good fit for future land use prediction. The kappa index of variation shows that the overall accuracy of the prediction using neural network was above 90%. Elevation, slope, and distance to the road were the three driver variables which were found statistically significant while predicting the probability of forest land use change. The accuracy of the binary logistic regression was about 61% which was quite satisfactory. The simulation result shows that almost 5732 ha of the total land will be in the forest category of land use during 2020 and it will be further decreased to 5128 ha in 2025. The vacant area will increase from 24% to 31% from 2020 to 2025. Based on the findings and simulated land use map of 2020-2025, the study will help the management authority of this critical habitat to take proper action before further degradation occurs.

Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHTs) in Bangladesh covers about 50% of the country's natural forest resources, providing sources of food, fuel-wood, medicinal plants, timber and water supply to the ethnic communities living in the area. The ethnic communities in CHTs have been managing a small patch of forest known as a village common forest (VCF) adjacent to their village following a community based forest management approach. Taking a case study of Komolchori VCF, this study examined dependency of community people on VCF resources, their conservation-related attitudes and awareness, indigenous management, and forest phyto-sociological structure. A survey and focus group discussions were conducted among the settlers and non-settlers in Thana Chandra para and Jaduram para villages of the Komolchori VCF. Key informant interviews were conducted with two non-government organizations (NGOs) and the headman in the study area. To assess phyto-sociological structure of vegetation, 25 quadrats (10 m × 10 m) were laid out randomly. Results revealed that non-settlers were more inclined towards VCF conservation and women played a crucial role as they were directly involved in forest products and water collection. Soil erosion caused by shifting cultivation has made community people more aware of forest degradation. Training program provided by NGOs on different horticultural techniques and a "Saving-Credit program" improved livelihood conditions and reduced pressures on VCF resources. Locally devised traditional rules guide the community people to manage the VCF sustainably. The vegetation survey showed that the density of Komolchori VCF was 1420 trees/ha with a basal area of 27.98 m 2 /ha. The Shannon-Weiner index, species diversity index and index of dominance in the study area were 2.91, 0.62, 0.09, respectively.

Geoinformatics approach is increasingly used to monitor land use change as well as forest fragmentation due to availability of Landsat satellite data. In Bangladesh many initiatives have been taken to prepare land use maps but forest fragmentation modelling is quite new. In this research, geoinformatics approach is thoroughly used to determine land use changes of Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary from 2005 to 2015. Three time frame data sets i.e. 2005, 2010 and 2015 were used for assessing forest fragmentation. Forest intactness is measured by the proportion of four spatial patterns i.e. core, perforated, edge and patches. Previously tree cover and density was considered as the yardstick to measure forest health and ecosystem but recent studies regarding forest fragmentation have uncovered many harmful impacts of it. However, in this research authors observed 26.44% decrease in forest cover, 37.56% decrease in water bodies and 56.05% increase in cropland, 42.52% increase in barren lands, 69.01% increase in afforested area in between 2005 and 2010. Overall condition was leading to substantial forest fragmentation. Due to initiation of restoration activities positive results have come out which are 18.86% and 38.01% decrease in cropland and barren land respectively accompanied by 58.92% increase in forest between 2010 and 2015. As forest fragmentation is highly correlated with conversion of forest into non forest uses, core areas and perforated areas signifi cantly reduced to 503 hectares and 1212 hectares respectively in between 2005 and 2010, associated with a slight increase of 343 hectare edged area forest whereas overall forest cover reduced signifi cantly. Later, positive changes result 503 hectare increase in core areas along with 762 hectares decrease in patched forest from 2010 to 2015 which is surely a good sign.

Background: African wildlife experienced a reduction in population size and geographical distribution over the last millennium, particularly since the 19 th century as a result of human demographic expansion, wildlife overexploitation, habitat degradation and cattle-borne diseases. In many areas, ungulate populations are now largely confined within a network of loosely connected protected areas. These metapopulations face gene flow restriction and run the risk of genetic diversity erosion. In this context, we assessed the "genetic health" of free ranging southern African Cape buffalo populations (S.c. caffer) and investigated the origins of their current genetic structure. The analyses were based on 264 samples from 6 southern African countries that were genotyped for 14 autosomal and 3 Y-chromosomal microsatellites. Results: The analyses differentiated three significant genetic clusters, hereafter referred to as Northern (N), Central (C) and Southern (S) clusters. The results suggest that splitting of the N and C clusters occurred around 6000 to 8400 years ago. Both N and C clusters displayed high genetic diversity (mean allelic richness (A r) of 7.217, average genetic diversity over loci of 0.594, mean private alleles (P a) of 11), low differentiation, and an absence of an inbreeding depression signal (mean F IS = 0.037). The third (S) cluster, a tiny population enclosed within a small isolated protected area, likely originated from a more recent isolation and experienced genetic drift (F IS = 0.062, mean A r = 6.160, P a = 2). This study also highlighted the impact of translocations between clusters on the genetic structure of several African buffalo populations. Lower differentiation estimates were observed between C and N sampling localities that experienced translocation over the last century. Conclusions: We showed that the current genetic structure of southern African Cape buffalo populations results from both ancient and recent processes. The splitting time of N and C clusters suggests that the current pattern results from human-induced factors and/or from the aridification process that occurred during the Holocene period. The more recent S cluster genetic drift probably results of processes that occurred over the last centuries (habitat fragmentation, diseases). Management practices of African buffalo populations should consider the micro-evolutionary changes highlighted in the present study.

The European ground squirrel is an endangered rodent whose populations are declining throughout its range. Only in Bulgaria, the genetic hotspot of the species, are some abundant populations still present. We employed 12 microsatellite loci in ten Bulgarian populations to look at population structure, gene flow and recent bottlenecks. We found that the populations are in good condition in terms of heterozygosity, where values ranged from 0.55 to 0.78. However, the inbreeding index (FIS) was significant for most populations. A recent bottleneck was detected in only one population. Based on Bayesian clustering methods, the populations in Bulgaria were attributed to two groups, northern and southern, with admixture in the northern one. The AMOVA test between these groups showed no differentiation in genetic diversity. The mean value of FST was 0.184, which shows strong diversification among all populations. Hence, gene flow is probably limited. All these results indicate that Bulgaria ...

Protected areas (PA) have been considered as biodiversity conservation hub across the globe. The conventional “top-down” management approach has been failed to ensure resource sustainability in many PA. Therefore, co-management was introduced to secure the PA of Bangladesh and started with legal framework in 2008 (IPAC Project) until 2018 (CREL Project). Thus, land-use and biodiversity change analysis from a decade before and after 2008 has generated comparison of previous and after scenario of co-management. Hence for evaluating effects of co-management on temporal biodiversity and land-use change in Bangladesh, two PA, Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary (CWS) under IUCN Protected Area Category IV and Lawachara National Park (LNP) under IUCN Protected Area Category II, were selected. Community structure
of both vascular plants and avifauna species was used to determine current biodiversity variations with habitat influence. Land-use change analysis revealed deforestation and settlements expansion in CWS but decrease in LNP. Trend analysis forecasted good future of LNP in terms of forest cover till 2038. Biodiversity analysis revealed that CWS is slightly more diverse and even than LNP. Comparative analysis recognized prominent loss of biodiversity before co-management period. Therefore, co-management system can be employed in the rest of reserve-forest areas of Bangladesh for conservation betterment.

Plantago algarbiensis and Plantago almogravensis are two endangered and endemic species from Portugal. Due to the rarity and endangered nature of these species as well as the lack of molecular data, their genetic variation was evaluated using ISSR and RAPD markers. P. algarbiensis species showed higher genetic variability (73.9% of polymorphism) than P. almogravensis (61.2%). The two species revealed a high level of genetic diversity, with a Nei's genetic diversity of 0.1965 and 0.2309 and a Shannon's diversity index of 0.2975 and 0.3520, for P. almogravensis and P. algarbiensis, respectively. A low level of genetic differentiation was observed (Gst ¼ 0.1873) among the species. However, the cluster and PCA analyses, based on genetic similarity, revealed two main, clearly separate clusters, which directly corresponded to the plants isolated from each species. In situ and ex situ measures should be applied in order to preserve both species but, based on these results, P. almogravensis population should be a priority for conservation.