Browsing by Author "Karanth, Krithi K"
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Item Open Access Examining conservation attitudes, perspectives, and challenges in India(Biological Conservation, 2008-09-01) Karanth, Krithi K; Kramer, Randall A; Qian, Song S; Christensen, Norman LBiodiversity conservation issues are often contentious and complex. Polarized debates on the effectiveness of protected areas and role of people inside them, charismatic species as conservation foci, and on specific policy initiatives are common among Indian and global conservationists. We surveyed Indian conservationists about the conservation effectiveness of protected areas and charismatic species, as well as status of conservation and research efforts. We expected differences among people based on professional affiliation, and educational background. We examined participants' opinions on conservation policies like Project Tiger and Elephant, the Forest Rights Act, and the Tiger Task Force Report. Participants ranked Indian research efforts as average, and identified a bias towards terrestrial species and ecosystems. Ninety-percent of participants considered reserves to be effective, many (61%) participants felt that the situation of people living inside reserves is unsustainable, and many (76%) felt the use of force to protect reserves from illegal human activities is acceptable. Classification and regression tree models for these questions suggested that non-academics were more likely than academics to agree with these positions. On the success of Project Tiger and Elephant, older participants were more likely to think these initiatives were a success. Many (63%) participants felt the Forest Rights Act needed revision, particularly if they had doctoral degrees. Sixty-two percent of participants did not think Tiger Task Force was effective. Overall, participants' professional affiliation, age, and academic degree were important predictors of participants attitudes towards conservation initiatives. © 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.Item Open Access Mammal Diversity, Persistence, and Conservation in India(2008-12-03) Karanth, Krithi KBiodiversity conservation issues are complex and contentious. In this dissertation, I focus on Indian mammal conservation science, management, as well as policy issues that shape these factors. I am particularly interested in, where and which mammals are extinction prone, and what factors promote species persistence in human-dominated landscapes. I examine patterns of extinction, range contraction and current distribution of 25 species of large mammals in India in Chapters 2 and 3. I apply occupancy models to data from a sub-continental scale expert opinion survey. I model species occurrence in relation to ecological and social covariates based on a priori hypotheses about the determinants of mammalian distribution patterns.
I find that all 25 large mammal species are extinction prone. I find time affects extinction, and conservation initiatives of the last four decades have allowed some species to re-colonize some areas. I find protected wildlife reserves are critically important for persistence of species. Many species with much of their habitat outside existing protected areas will require new protected areas to persist. I find that human population density negatively influences survival probability for species, and human cultural tolerance positively affected persistence of species. Most large-bodied animals, habitat specialists, and rare species had higher extinction probabilities. I find that in addition to protected areas, land use, and human population densities, regionally rooted cultural and religious factors have allowed some species to survive. Conservation strategies must integrate all these factors to ensure the survival of India's large mammals in the future.
Conservation efforts to protect wildlife in human-dominated landscapes, often requires relocation of people. This policy has rarely been examined in detail. In Chapter 4, I focus on a reserve in India's Western Ghats of India to assess resettlement experiences of people during and after implementation of a relocation project.
Lastly, the success or failure of conservation policies and management interventions be they for protecting wildlife or addressing needs of local communities, depends substantially on the attitudes of conservation practitioners. In Chapter 5, I examine the attitudes, perspectives and opinions of Indian conservationists towards conservation issues and policies in India.
Item Open Access Protected areas and biodiversity conservation in India(Biological Conservation, 2019-09-01) Ghosh-Harihar, Mousumi; An, Ruby; Athreya, Ramana; Borthakur, Udayan; Chanchani, Pranav; Chetry, Dilip; Datta, Aparajita; Harihar, Abishek; Karanth, Krithi K; Mariyam, Dincy; Mohan, Dhananjai; Onial, Malvika; Ramakrishnan, Uma; Robin, VV; Saxena, Ajai; Shahabuddin, Ghazala; Thatte, Prachi; Vijay, Varsha; Wacker, Kristen; Mathur, Vinod B; Pimm, Stuart L; Price, Trevor DThree well-supported generalizations in conservation biology are that developing tropical countries will experience the greatest biodiversity declines in the near future, they are some of the least studied areas in the world, and in these regions especially, protection requires local community support. We assess these generalizations in an evaluation of protected areas in India. The 5% of India officially protected covers most ecoregions and protected areas have been an important reason why India has suffered no documented species extinctions in the past 70 years. India has strong legislation favouring conservation, government investment focused on 50 Tiger Reserves, and government compensation schemes that facilitate local support, all of which brighten future prospects. However, many protected areas are too small to maintain a full complement of species, making connectivity and species use of buffer zones a crucial issue. Conservation success and challenges vary across regions according to their development status. In less developed areas, notably the biodiverse northeast Himalaya, protected areas maintaining the highest biodiversity result from locally-focused efforts by dedicated individuals. Across India, we demonstrate considerable opportunities to increase local income through ecotourism. Our evaluation confirms a lack of data, increasing threats, and the importance of local support. Research on biodiversity in buffer zones, development of long-term monitoring schemes, and assessment of cash and conservation benefits from tourism are in particular need. For policy makers, two main goals should be the development of monitoring plans for ‘eco-sensitive zones’ around protected areas, and a strong emphasis on preserving established protected areas.