Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Impact of climate change on human-wildlife-ecosystem interactions in the Trans-Himalaya region of Nepal

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Theoretical and Applied Climatology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The Trans-Himalaya region boasts an immense biodiversity which includes several threatened species and supports the livelihood of local human populations. Our aim in this study was to evaluate the impact of recent climate change on the biodiversity and human inhabitants of the upper Mustang region of the Trans-Himalaya, Nepal. We found that the average annual temperature in the upper Mustang region has increased by 0.13 °C per year over the last 23 years; a higher annual temperature increase than experienced in other parts of Himalaya. A predictive model suggested that the mean annual temperature will double by 2161 to reach 20 °C in the upper Mustang region. The combined effects of increased temperature and diminished snowfall have resulted in a reduction in the area of land suitable for agriculture. Most seriously affected are Samjung village (at 4,100 m altitude) and Dhey village (at 3,800 m) in upper Mustang, where villagers have been forced to relocate to an area with better water availability. Concurrent with the recent change in climate, there have been substantial changes in vegetation communities. Between 1979 and 2009, grasslands and forests in the Mustang district have diminished by 11 and 42 %, respectively, with the tree line having shifted towards higher elevation. Further, grasses and many shrub species are no longer found in abundance at higher elevations and consequently blue sheep (Pseduois nayaur) move to forage at lower elevations where they encounter and raid human crops. The movement of blue sheep attracts snow leopard (Panthera uncia) from their higher-elevation habitats to lower sites, where they encounter and depredate livestock. Increased crop raiding by blue sheep and depredations of livestock by snow leopard have impacted adversely on the livelihoods of local people.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9
Fig. 10
Fig. 11
Fig. 12

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Agapiou A, Hadjimitsis DG, Papoutsa C, Alexakis DD, Papadavid G (2011) The importance of accounting for atmospheric effects in the application of NDVI and interpretation of satellite imagery supporting archaeological research: the case studies of Palaepaphos and Nea Paphos sites in Cyprus. Remote Sens 3:2605–2629

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Aryal A, Gastaur S, Menzel S, Chhetri TB, Hopkins J (2010) Estimation of blue sheep population parameters in the Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve, Nepal. Int J Biodivers Conserv 2:51–56

    Google Scholar 

  • Aryal A, Hipkins J, Ji W, Raubeinhimer D, Brunton D (2012a) Distribution and diet of brown bear in Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal. Ursus 23:231–236

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Aryal A, Raubenheimer D, Ji W, Brunton D (2012b) Blue sheep and snow leopard: prey population density, distribution and habitat use of a principal prey species determines the carrying capacity for the predator. Integr Zool. doi:10.1111/1749-4877.12004

    Google Scholar 

  • Aryal A, Raubenheimer D, Sathyakumar S, Poudel BS, Ji W, Kunwar KJ, Kok J, Kohshima S, Brunton D (2012c) Conservation strategy for brown bear and its habitat in Nepal. Diversity 4:301–317

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Xiros C, Topakas E, Christakopoulos P (2012) Hydrolysis and fermentation for cellulosic ethanol production. Wiley Interdiscip Rev Energ Env. doi:10.1002/wene.49

    Google Scholar 

  • Bagchi S, Mishra C, Bhatnagar YV (2004) Conflicts between traditional pastoralism and conservation of Himalayan ibex (Capra sibirica) in the Trans-Himalayan mountains. Anim Conserv 7:121–128

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bates BC, Kundzewicz ZW, Wu S, Palutikof JP (2008) Climate change and water. Technical paper VI. Intergovernmental Pannel on Climate Change, Geneva, Switzerland, p 210

    Google Scholar 

  • Beniston M (2003) Climate change in mountain regions: a review of possible impacts. Clim Chang 59:5–31

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Berkes F (1999) Indigenous knowledge systems and resource management systems in the Canadian subarctic. In: Berkes F, Folke C (eds) Linking social and ecological systems. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, pp 98–128

    Google Scholar 

  • Bhandari S, Phinn S, Gill T (2012) Preparing Landsat Image Time Series (LITS) for monitoring changes in vegetation phenology in Queensland Australia. Remote Sens 4:1856–1886

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bhattarai S, Chaudhary RP, Quave SL, Taylor RSL (2010) The use of medicinal plants in the Trans-Himalayan arid zone of Mustang district, Nepal. J Ethnobiol Ethnomed 6:14. doi:10.1186/1746-4269-6-14

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chaudhary P, Bawa KS (2011) Local perceptions of climate change validated by scientific evidence in the Himalayas. Biol Lett. doi:10.1098/rsbl.2011.0269

    Google Scholar 

  • Chaudhary P, Rai S, Wangdi S, Mao A, Rehman N, Chettri S, Bawa KS (2011) Consistency of local perceptions of climate change in the Kangchenjunga Himalayas landscape. Curr Sci 101:504–513

    Google Scholar 

  • Chetri M, Gurung CR. 2004. Vegetation composition, species performance and its relationship among livestock and wildlife in the grassland of Upper Mustang, Nepal. In: Jincheng Z, Xiangdong Z, Jianlin H, Zhihua C, editors. Yak Production in Central Asian Highlands, Proceedings of the Fourth International Congress on Yak. Sichuan, China: Sichuan Publishing Group, Sichuan Publication House of Science and Technology, pp 235–244.

  • Christensen M, Heilmann-Clausen J (2009) Forest biodiversity gradients and the human impact in Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal. Biodivers Conserv 18:2205–2221

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Comiso JC (2003) Warming trends in the Arctic from clear sky satellite observations. J Climate 16:3498–3510

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cruikshank J (2001) Glaciers and climate change: perspectives from oral tradition. Arctic 54:377–393

    Google Scholar 

  • Cruz RV, Harasawa H, Lal M, Wu S, Anokhin Y, Punsalmaa B, Honda Y, Jafari M, Li C, Huu Ninh N (2007) In: Parry ML, Canziani OF, Palutikof JP, van der Linden PJ, Hanson CE (eds) Asia climate change 2007: impacts, adaptation and vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the fourth assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, pp 469–506

    Google Scholar 

  • Dong S, Lassoie J, Shrestha KK, Yan Z, Sharma K, Pariya D (2009) Institutional development for sustainable rangeland resource and ecosystem management in mountainous areas of northern Nepal. J Environ Manag 90:994–1003

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dubey B, Yadav R, Singh J, Chaturvedi R (2003) Upward shift of Himalayan pine in Western Himalaya, India. Curr Sci 85:1135–1136

    Google Scholar 

  • Fox S (2002) These are things that are really happening: Inuit perspectives on the evidence and impacts of climate change in Nunavut. In: Krupnik I, Jolly D (eds) The earth is faster now: indigenous observations of Arctic environmental change. Arctic Research Consortium of the United States, Fairbanks, AK, USA, pp 12–53

    Google Scholar 

  • Government of Nepal (2010) Mustang District profile. District Statistical Office, Government of Nepal, Mustang District, Nepal, p 87

    Google Scholar 

  • Harsch MA, Hulme PE, McGlone MS, Duncan RP (2009) Are treelines advancing? A global meta-analysis of treeline response to climate warming. Ecol Lett 12:1040–1049

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hofer T, Messerli B (2006) Floods in Bangladesh: history, dynamics and rethinking the role of the Himalayas. United Nations University Press, Tokyo, Japan, ISBN 92 808 1121 5, (paperback), pp. xxx + 468 pp

    Google Scholar 

  • IPCC (2001) Climate change 2001: synthesis report. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, pp 1–396

    Google Scholar 

  • Klanderud K, Birks HJB (2003) Recent increases in species richness and shifts in altitudinal distributions of Norwegian mountain plants. Holocene 13:1–6

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Locky H, Mackey B (2009) The nature of climate change: reunite international climate change mitigation efforts with biodiversity conservation and wilderness protection. Int J Wilderness 15(2):7–14

    Google Scholar 

  • Ma X, Xu JC, Luo Y, Aggarwal SP, Li JT (2009) Response of hydrological processes to land cover and climate change in kejie watershed, Southwest china. Hydrol Process. doi:10.1002/hyp.7233

    Google Scholar 

  • Menzel A, Sparks TH, Estrella N, Koch E, Aasa A, Ahas R, Alm-Kübler K, Bissolli P, Braslavská O, Briede A, Chmielewski FM, Crepinsek Z, Curnel Y, Dahl Å, Defila C, Donnelly A, Filella Y, Jatczak K, Måge F, Mestre A, Nordli Ø, Peñuelas J, Pirinen P, Remišová V, Scheifinger H, Striz M, Susnik A, Van Vliet AJH, Wielgolaski FE, Zach S, Zust A (2006) European phenological response to climate change matches the warming pattern. Glob Chang Biol 12:1969–1976

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mishra C, Wierenvan SE, Ketner P, Heitkonig MA, Prins HHT (2004) Competition between domestic livestock and wild bharal Pseudois nayaur in the Indian Trans-Himalaya. J Appl Ecol 41:344–354

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Montgomery DC, Peck EA, Vining GG (2006) Introduction to linear regression analysis, 4th edn. Wiley, Hoboken, NJ, USA, pp 1–152

    Google Scholar 

  • Moritz C, Patton JL, Conroy CJ, Parra JL, White GC, Beissinger SR (2008) Impact of a century of climate change on small-mammal communities in Yosemite National Park, USA. Science 322:261–264

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Namgail T (2009) Mountain ungulates of the trans-Himalayan region of Ladakh, India. Int J Wilderness 15:35–40

    Google Scholar 

  • Namgail T, Fox JL, Bhatnagar YV (2007) Habitat shift and time budget of the Tibetan argali: the influence of livestock grazing. Ecol Res 22:25–31

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nuttall M (2001) Indigenous peoples and climate change research in the Arctic. Indigenous Aff 4:26–34

    Google Scholar 

  • Oli MK, Taylor IR, Rogers ME (1993) Diet of the snow leopard (Panthera uncia) in the Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal. J Zool 231:365–370

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parmesan C (2006) Ecological and evolutionary responses to recent climate change. Annu Rev Ecol Evol Syst 37:637–669

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Paudel KP, Andersen P (2010) Assessing rangeland degradation using multi temporal satellite images and grazing pressure surface model in Upper Mustang, Trans Himalaya, Nepal. Remote Sens Environ 114(6):1845–1855

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pounds JA, Bustamente MR, Coloma LA, Consuegra JA, Fogden MPL (2006) Widespread amphibian extinctions from epidemic disease driven by global warming. Nature 439:161–167

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Riedlinger D, Berkes F (2001) Contributions of traditional knowledge to understanding climate change in the Canadian Arctic. Polar Rec 37:315–328

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schaller G (1998) Wildlife of the Tibetan Steppe. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL, USA, pp 1–373

    Google Scholar 

  • Sharma E, Tsering K (2009) Climate change in the Himalayas: the vulnerability of biodiversity. Sustain Mt Dev 55:10–12

    Google Scholar 

  • Sharma E, Chettri N, Tse-ring K, Shrestha AB, Jing F, Mool P, Eriksson M (2009) Climate change impacts and vulnerability in the Eastern Himalayas. ICIMOD, Kathmandu, Nepal, pp 1–27, ISBN 978 92 9115 136 3 (electronic)

    Google Scholar 

  • Shrestha UB, Gautam S, Bawa KS (2012) Widespread climate change in the Himalayas and associated changes in local ecosystems. PLoS One 7:e36741

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • SPSS (2007) SPSS Inc. SPSS for windows, version 16.0. SPSS Inc, Chicago, IL, USA

    Google Scholar 

  • USGS (2011) EarthExplore (satellite images). http://earthexplorer.usgs.gov/. Accessed 8 March 2011

  • Wichmann MC, Groeneveld J, Jeltscha F, Grimm V (2005) Mitigation of climate change impacts on raptors by behavioural adaptation: ecological buffering mechanisms. Glob Planet Chang 47:273–281

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wilkes A (2008) Towards mainstreaming climate change in grassland management: policies and practices on the Tibetan Plateau. Working paper no. 67. World Agroforestry Centre, Nairobi, Kenya, p 43

    Google Scholar 

  • Xu J, Grumbine R, Shrestha A, Eriksson M, Yang X, Wang Y, Wilkes A (2009) The melting Himalayas: cascading effects of climate change on water, biodiversity, and livelihoods. Conserv Biol 23:520–530

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We thank the National Trust for Nature Conservation/Annapurna Conservation Area Project for providing permission to conduct research. We thank Massey University Research Fund for providing financial support for the project. Thanks are extended to Shambhu Paudel, Funjok Gurung, Sonam Gurung, Doma Gurung, and Bikash Adhikari for their support in data collection and Amir Maharjan for his support to data entry. Special thanks to Saroj Koirala and Santosh Bhandari (GIS and remote sensing expert) for their generous assistance and instruction in running the satellite images and classification.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Natural and Mathematical Sciences, Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand

    Achyut Aryal, Dianne Brunton & David Raubenheimer

  2. The Charles Perkins Centre and Faculty of Veterinary Science and School of Biological Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia

    David Raubenheimer

Authors
  1. Achyut Aryal
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Dianne Brunton
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. David Raubenheimer
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Achyut Aryal.

Appendix

Appendix

Table 4

Table 4 Pearson correlation test between temperatures, rainfall, anthropogenic pressure with land cover
Full size table

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Aryal, A., Brunton, D. & Raubenheimer, D. Impact of climate change on human-wildlife-ecosystem interactions in the Trans-Himalaya region of Nepal. Theor Appl Climatol 115, 517–529 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00704-013-0902-4

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00704-013-0902-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation