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| m. d. madhusudan |
| publications |
| projects |
| view projects by m. d. madhusudan |
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| 1. fostering coexistence |
In the 19th century, human activity impacted less than a fifth of the planet’s land area; a mere two hundred years later, we have brought more than 95% of earth’s landmass under our dominion. Trapped between shrunken, degraded habitats and human-occupied landscapes, wide-ranging animals like the Asian elephant have been pushed into conflict with people. Persecution by affected people and the decline of suitable habitats threaten the long-term survival of elephants. Understanding the ecological and behavioural adaptations of elephants to altered landscapes and the relationships between elephant activity, spatial configuration of human settlements along movement routes, and the effects of people on elephant behaviour are crucial for resolving conflicts and fostering coexistence. |
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| 2. going into gravy? |
Through the ages, hunting of wild animals by humans has caused the extinction of several species of wildlife. In India too, hunting has been recognised as a major factor in past declines of wildlife and has prompted the enactment of a strong legislation—the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. Yet, hunting is, even today, of widespread occurrence. Despite the serious threat it poses to wildlife, its very existence is often denied, and there have been few attempts at to understand the impact of hunting on wildlife populations. |
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| 3. being the biggest bovid |
Once plentiful in south-east Asia, gaur have significantly declined in numbers this century and are now confined to small scattered populations, primarily in India, and to a lesser degree in other neighboring south-east Asian countries. Today the gaur is classified as “Vulnerable”, but still remains a poorly studied animal. There have been many short-term studies of this species; however it has managed to elude a long-term study of its fundamental biology. It’s this very gap in our understanding that this study plans to address by studying the foraging, population and community ecology of the gaur. |
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| 4. fodder and the forest |
India is home to the world’s largest livestock population, estimated at 540 million. Over the last three decades, livestock populations have risen by 31% while the extent of permanent pastureland available for grazing has declined by 26%. Over two-thirds of India’s wildlife reserves are grazed by livestock, with recent studies showing that even within the reserves, livestock sometimes outnumber large wild herbivores. |
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| 5. uneasy neighbours |
An elephant in a crop-field, or a tiger in a cattle-pen, presents a situation that is doubly perturbing: not only are crops and cattle at risk from hungry wildlife, but so are the elephant and the tiger from angry humans. Throughout the world, conflicts between wildlife and humans undermine their mutual well-being and increasingly threaten the conservation of many wildlife species involved. |
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| 6. unlikely links |
Hangala, a dusty village of 5000 people and 3000 cattle, is on the periphery of Bandipur National Park. Traditionally, the villagers were agro-pastoral relying on rainfed mixed cropping for their subsistence. The economy was heavily dependent on the vagaries of rain and plagued by lossed due to crop-raiding elephants and wild pigs. Cattle, owned by the landed and grazed for grain by the landless, provided manure and served as draught animals. Looking at this village in the past, one could have thought that the outer world of global market economy was remote and hardly capable of touching the lives of the people. |
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| 7. turf battles |
Livestock graze in over two-thirds of India's wildlife reserves, even outnumbering native wild herbivores at places. This ongoing study seeks to examine and answer how the intense use of wildlife reserves by livestock affects native wild herbivores. |
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| 8. animal contours |
For their livelihood, millions of people across India depend on natural resources sourced from wildlife habitats. Depending on the location, such resource use assumes forms such as livestock grazing, fuelwood gathering, collection of forest produce such as fruits, bark and leaves, as well as hunting. Over the last decade, we at NCF have pioneered a growing body of literature from across India examining how these forms of resource extraction affect wildlife and their habitats. These and other studies have mostly described how wildlife populations (i.e., their numbers) change in response to varying levels of resource use by humans. But, resource use by humans may affect, not only the numbers of wildlife species, but also their distribution over a given area. For instance, areas that are more intensively used by people, say for collection of firewood, may be avoided by wildlife. As a result, even where wildlife numbers may remain unchanged, the impact of humans could result in a significant redistribution of wildlife over space. |
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| 9. of cows and aliens |
Wild herbivores appear to avoid areas where grazing is intense. While this could be an avoidance of the livestock themselves, it could also be an effect mediated through plants which both livestock and wild herbivores depend on for food. This study is aimed at determining whether the latter is true and to what extent. |
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| 10. exploring wild arunachal |
The eastern Himalayan Arunachal Pradesh is India's biological frontier, where much remains to be explored and described.During our biological expeditions in the high altitudes of western Arunachal Pradesh, we stumbled upon an amazing diversity of life, including the Arunachal macaque, a monkey whose existence was thus far unknown to science. |
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| 11. protecting with the state |
Arunachal Pradesh is arguably the richest biodiversity region of India. After discovering a unique diversity of wildlife in western Arunachal's high altitudes, we have worked with the local government to establish the first high altitude wildlife reserve of the state. |
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| 12. conserving with communities |
Trans-Himalaya is home to unique wildlife and fascinating peoples, who eke out a living from a harsh landscape. Livestock play a vital role for people's survival, but are often detrimental to wildlife. All available pastures are grazed. In a unique experiment in participatory conservation, we worked with the village council of Kibber to set up a village wildlife reserve on common land that is protected from grazing and other landuse. |
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| 13. hunting in a hotspot |
Hunting patterns and practices among four tribes (Miju Mishmi, Meyor, Nishi and Monpa) in three districts of Arunachal Pradesh were documented during a five-month survey by Ambika Aiyaduraii. |
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| 14. turf wars: turtles and fishers in agatti |
| Page under construction |
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| 15. the 2004 tsunami: disaster and beyond |
| Page under construction |
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| 16. macaques of northeast india |
We have recently developed a research programme to investigate the demography, behavioural ecology and conservation status of a highly-endangered primate community, consisting of four macaque species in Assam. |
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| 17. hornbills in arunachal pradesh |
Arunachal Pradesh harbors some of the largest tracts of evergreen forests in north-east India. These virgin forests are home to five species of hornbills. Various body parts like the casque, tail and primary feathers and meat especially of the Great Hornbill form an important part of the local traditions of tribes. The impact of hunting on these hornbills is still poorly known in the state. |
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