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Map of an extant distribution of Asian Water Buffalo Bubalus arnee and location of the study area in Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve, Nepal.
Source publication
Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve (KTWR) has the last remaining Nepalese population of the Endangered Asiatic Wild Buffalo (Bubalus arnee Kerr, 1792). Individual animals protected inside KTWR may be of purely wild, domestic or hybrid origin, and the wild population is under potential threat due to habitat loss and genetic introgression from feral backcr...
Contexts in source publication
Context 1
... total of 42 blood and faecal samples (Table 1) were collected mainly from individuals residing in and around KTWR located in the Terai of southeastern Nepal (Figure 1). Animals were provisionally divided into three classes: domestic (D, n=11), hybrid (H, n=11), and wild (W, n=20) based on the consistent phenotypic and behavioural criteria (Dahmer 1978;Heinen & Paudel 2015) and location of herds sampling (domestic buffalo were sampled from the villages nearby KTWR while wild and feral were sampled using a location map of natal herds prepared by the reserve) and behavioural and anatomical phenotypic traits. ...
Context 2
... total of 42 blood and faecal samples (Table 1) were collected mainly from individuals residing in and around KTWR located in the Terai of southeastern Nepal (Figure 1). Animals were provisionally divided into three classes: domestic (D, n=11), hybrid (H, n=11), and wild (W, n=20) based on the consistent phenotypic and behavioural criteria (Dahmer 1978;Heinen & Paudel 2015) and location of herds sampling (domestic buffalo were sampled from the villages nearby KTWR while wild and feral were sampled using a location map of natal herds prepared by the reserve) and behavioural and anatomical phenotypic traits. ...
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Citations
... At present, as the climate becomes drier, they are restricted to small pockets in scattered populations in Nepal, India, Bhutan and Myanmar. The habitat of these animals is shrinking substantially (Khatri et al., 2012;Kandel et al., 2019a). ...
... Wild water buffaloes existed in the Chitwan National Park (CNP) until the early 1960s, and it is assumed that they became extinct due to disease transferred by local livestock and hunting (Seidensticker, 1975). Currently, a population of 498 individuals exists in the Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve (KTWR), which was established solely to protect the remaining population (<60 individuals during establishment) (Kandel et al., 2019a). The KTWR has abundant habitats suitable for wild water buffaloes, such as grassland and swampy areas. ...
... Following three decades of recommendations by various experts, the translocation of 18 wild water buffaloes to the CNP took place in January-February 2017 (Kandel et al., 2019a;Shah et al., 2017). Some of the recently translocated wild water buffaloes died due to parasitic diseases, tiger attacks and the consequences of a severe flood (DNPWC, 2020). ...
Background
The Asiatic wild water buffalo (Bubalus arnee) is an endangered species that is conserved in the Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve (KTWR), Nepal, and was recently translocated to the Chitwan National Park (CNP). Gastrointestinal (GI) parasites are the cause of significant negative health and production impacts on animals worldwide.
Methods
A coprological survey of GI parasites of wild water buffalo was carried out in the CNP in 2020. Fresh dung samples (n = 25) were collected from wild water buffaloes and analysed using sedimentation and flotation techniques for morphological identification of parasite cysts, oocysts and eggs.
Results
Nine different GI parasites were recorded of which Entamoeba spp. (20 samples, 80%) were the most common. The presence of Entamoeba spp. was further validated using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis and DNA sequencing. The PCR results were positive for all of the microscopically positive samples, and the species was identified as Entamoeba bovis. Three samples were sequenced and formed a cluster of E. bovis, which was separated from other Entamoeba spp. in phylogenetic analysis.
Conclusion
This is the first report for molecular detection of E. bovis from wild water buffaloes in Nepal. Future work should focus on the prevalence of such infections in water buffaloes in forest environments.
... , while Endangered mammals include the Bengal tiger(Wikramanayake et al. 2004;Bhattarai and Kindlmann 2013;Karmacharya et al. 2019), wild water buffalo(Flamand et al. 2003;Kandel et al. 2019), Asian elephant(Koirala et al. 2016) and red panda Ailurus fulgens(Williams 2006;Sharma et al. 2019a, b). Vulnerable species comprise the Asiatic black bear Ursus thibetanus(Panthi et al. 2019;Kadariya et al. 2018) and the Eurasian lynx Lynx lynx(Werhahn et al. 2018a). ...
Nepal is a global biodiversity hotspot, supporting 213 mammal species with diverse habitats across various landscape types, from the lowland Terai to the high Himalayas. Studies of Nepal’s mammalian fauna are not evenly distributed and better understanding of past biases towards some species, research themes and locations can provide better strategic direction for future research investments. Therefore, we reviewed 575 scientific articles on mammals in Nepal, published between 2000 and 2019 and compiled these in March 2020, to examine trends, patterns and gaps, and pave future plans for mammalian research in Nepal. A positive increase in the number of publications (β = 0.27 ± 0.02SD, P < 0.00) was observed, with a more than threefold increase between 2010 and 2019 compared to 2000–2009 (t = − 6.26, df = 12.21, P < 0.000). Analysis of these documents revealed that mammalian researches favored large flagship, threatened species of carnivores inside Nepal’s protected area system. Geographically, mammalian research was not uniform in Nepal, as most studies were concentrated in Bagmati Province and in the Terai and Chure region. Baseline surveys and ecological studies were more common types of research, while studies on the impact of climate change and wildlife trade and poaching, are scant, which deserves a future look. While these studies shape current mammalogy in Nepal, studies of small, uncharismatic species, and in areas outside protected areas and other provinces except Bagmati, Lumbini and Province One are severely lacking. The research identified habitat loss, degradation and human-wildlife conflict as the major threats to the survival of mammalian species in Nepal. Therefore, redesigning and strict implementation of policies based on habitat management and human-wildlife co-existence, including other threat mitigation measures, are warranted. To address knowledge gaps, the prioritization of future research and funding should be focused on relatively unexplored research themes and under-researched provinces. This approach will help to re-align the research focus with the current need, and assist to fully understand and effectively conserve the wealth of mammalian diversity that Nepal holds.
... Recognizable proof of hereditarily unadulterated wild individuals is significant for distinguishing creatures for movement to different territories inside their previous reach. Phylogenetic connections inferred through a diminished middle organization and greatest stinginess examinations reconfirmed the hereditary idea of the Wild Water Buffalo [5]. In 2016, 433 Wild Buffaloes were counted in KTWR [6]. ...
... In 2016, 18 individuals of Wild Water Buffaloes were translocated from KTWR to Chitwan National Park. Translocation was carried out by a team of 60 people, including three veterinarians and 12 wildlife technicians led by DNPWC with support from the World Wildlife Fund Nepal, the USAID-supported Hariyo Ban Program, National Trust for Nature Conservation, Biodiversity Conservation Centre (NTNCBCC), and the Zoological Society of London (Nepal) [5]. ...
... National capacity building to conduct advanced molecular studies should be initiated from collecting blood and fecal samples, creating a DNA reference library, and carrying out genetic research on various aspects such as population genetics, breeding behaviors among different buffalo types, disease dynamics, and food habits of buffalo population in the Reserve. Kandel et al. [5] presented DNA sequence variation in the partial but variable cytochrome b gene among purely wild, feral, and domesticated individuals and prospects for advancing genetic research on Wild Buffaloes inhabiting KTWR in eastern Nepal. ...
Asian Wild Water Buffalo with the scientific name Bubalus bubalis arnee is recorded as an imperiled species in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN's) Red List of Threatened Species wetland-subordinate. More number Wild Water Buffalo in Nepal are found at the Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve (KTWR), situated on the floodplain of the Koshi River in Province 1. This species is in danger because of a high anthropogenic pressing factor going from natural surroundings weakening to hybridization with homegrown Buffalo. Various preservation and work mediations have been attempted to shield the biodiversity, especially the wild buffalo populace in the KTWR. The people group-based supportable administration approach profiting both protection and work of neighborhood individuals is important to guarantee the drawn-out preservation of the species. But it is not happening, so the Government of Nepal translocated 18 Wild Water Buffaloes to Chitwan National Park, and the environment is not suitable for them. There is the possibility to translocate Wild Water Buffaloes in the Babai flood plain of Bardia National Park for conservation.
