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Biodiversity is measured at different levels of biological set up together with genes, species and
ecosystems along with their interactions. There are a total of 34 biodiversity hotspots in the world,
among which the Eastern Himalayan (EH) range is one of the richest with nearly 750,000 sq. km
area covering Nepal, Bhutan, and the Indian states of W...
Citations
... Water bodies, represented by an increase from 120.80 Km sq. in 1930 to 233.54 Km sq. in 2020, suggest changes in hydrological features over the years (refer table 2). The fluctuations in water bodies might be influenced by factors such as climate variations, land-use changes, or water management practices [18]. On the other hand, snow cover shows a fluctuating trend, with peaks at 4728.70 Km sq. in 2005 and a subsequent decline to 1852.95 Km sq. in 2020. ...
... Both water bodies and snow cover data are essential for understanding the broader environmental context, influencing ecological processes, and informing water resource management strategies. These insights are crucial for sustainable land-use planning, climate adaptation, and preserving vital water resources [18]. ...
The land is a fundamental component of Bhutan's geographical makeup, characterized by natural features and human activities. Bhutan's land can be divided into land use and land cover (LULC), where human activities contribute to land use, and natural elements define land cover. This paper analyzes Bhutan's LULC patterns, emphasizing the evolving trends in major LULC types, strengths and challenges of sustainable land use management, and envisioning its future trajectory. In recent years, Bhutan's land-use pattern has displayed a predominant forest cover, encompassing a significant portion of the total land area. Similarly, the built-up area in Bhutan is gradually increasing, reflecting the country's ongoing urbanization and development activities. A long-term analysis reveals dynamic shifts in agricultural land in Bhutan. While there has been a historical expansion of agricultural areas, recent trends may suggest a potential slowdown or decline, influenced by factors such as urban growth and changing economic landscapes. Like community forestry practices in Bhutan, successful conservation efforts may also influence land-use changes. In the eastern Himalayas, Bhutan faces challenges related to snow/glacial cover impacted by climate change. Increasing temperatures in the region contribute to alterations in snow/glacial patterns, necessitating a focus on environmental conservation and sustainable practices to preserve these vital resources. The land tenure system and land use policies in Bhutan have evolved and been shaped by socioeconomic and political dynamics. Bhutan needs to adapt and formulate effective policies to address contemporary challenges and promote sustainable LULC management. Implementing specific LULC zones, as outlined in Bhutan's land use policies, is crucial for ensuring sustainable land management practices.
... Bhutan is one of the 10 global hotspots for biodiversity [81]. The large number of WEPs species (120 from 63 families) reported ( Table 1) is reflective of this, due mainly to the favourable subtropical conditions suitable for a diverse range of plant species. ...
Definition
Wild edible plants (WEPs) grow naturally in self-maintaining ecosystems. WEPs are harvested for consumption, sale, and medicinal uses. We hypothesize that WEPs play a major role in supplying food and generating income for the rural people in a world that is increasingly recognising its emerging conservation issues. We tested this hypothesis by identifying the reasons for harvest, consumption, and conservation of WEPs using focus group discussion, field observations and questionnaire surveys in south eastern Bhutan in late 2019.
Methods
Focused group discussions were held with the local people to identify reasons for harvest and consumption of WEPs. Data on the identified reasons for harvest, consumption, and conserving WEPs were determined using a questionnaire survey with ranking scales for a set of 76 randomly selected households. Representative field-observations and questionnaire surveys were carried out in villages close to forests. Parts of the plant used, how these were consumed, harvest season, and plant (life form) were recorded. The data was subjected to a Kruskal-Wallis rank sum test and weighted averages calculated.
Result and conclusion
A total of 120 WEPs belonging to 63 families (including Agaricaceae) were reported. Most of the WEPs recorded were trees (45.0%) then herbs (25.8%), vines (13.3%) and shrubs (10.8%). The commonly consumed plant parts were the fruit (43.3%), shoots (28.3%) and leaves (20.8%).
The purposes for harvesting and consumption, conservation of WEPs were significantly (P<0.001) different, while the motivations for collecting WEPs were not. The motivation for collecting WEPs were family consumption > sale > medicinal uses > preservation for future use > insufficient food from cultivated source’s. The two most important strategies for conservation were to domesticate the WEPs and cultivate in forests. The findings reveal valuable lessons and insights about the reasons for harvesting, collection, consumption, and conservation of WEPs.
... Tshachus, or hot springs, are widespread throughout Bhutan. These have been used by Bhutanese people since ancient times to cure their ailments [51]. Spring water is sometimes indicated by a tea colour due to its abundance of red iron colouring and metals. ...
Access to safe drinking water and improved sanitation are important fundamental rights of people around the world to maintain good health. However, freshwater resources are threatened by many anthropogenic activities. Therefore, sustainable water supply is a challenge. Limited access to safe drinking water and unimproved sanitation facilities in some of its urban and rural areas are two of the major challenges for Bhutan in the 21st century. The water quality in the natural water systems in the cities and suburbs has significantly decreased while the urban infrastructure is being improved in Bhutan. Therefore, this study presents the state-of-the-art of water resources in Bhutan and the challenges for a sustainable water supply system. The current water status, drinking water sources and accessibility, factors affecting water quality degradation in urban and rural areas, water treatment methods, and implementation of sustainable drinking water accessibility with population growth in Bhutan are discussed in detail. Results of the review revealed that the water quality has deteriorated over the last decade and has a high challenge to provide safe water to some of the areas in Bhutan. Geographic changes, financial difficulties, urban expansion, and climate change are the reasons for the lack of safe drinking water accessibility for people in town areas. It is, therefore, recommended to have a comprehensive integrate water resources management (IWRM) approach while considering all stakeholders to find sustainable solutions for the challenges showcased in this paper.
... Bhutan is located in the biodiverse Himalayan region and is part of both the Palearctic and Indo-Malayan biogeographic realms. It has a variety of climates, ranging from subtropical to temperate to alpine, and houses an array of flora and fauna (Myers et al., 2000;Banerjee and Bandopadhyay, 2016). Much was learned about the botanical landscape during the Flora of Bhutan project which began in 1975, with detailed collections documented by Grierson and Long (1983, 1984, 1987, 1999, 2001 and Noltie (1994Noltie ( , 2000. ...
Discoveries and new records of plants specifically provide a basis for empirical data to enable in-depth studies of the ecology, distribution, conservation, applications, and threats to such plants. However, many unexplored regions of Bhutan exist in which several plants have yet to be described and documented. Several species reported elsewhere in the Himalayan region with similar climatic conditions are likely to occur in Bhutan as well, indicating a need to corroborate their presence. To explore this, an opportunistic survey was employed, and we provide nine new records of plant species for Bhutan. Of the nine species, three belonged to the Lauraceae family, with the rest from the Aristolochiaceae, Asparagaceae, Lamiaceae, Phyllanthaceae, Sapindaceae, and Urticaceae families. This paper adds nine additional species of plants to the flora of Bhutan. We also report here ethnobotanical applications of these species, providing insight into how communities interact with environmental resources and have the potential to integrate traditional knowledge into scientific understanding, ultimately to reinforce sustainable biocultural conservation at the local level.
Can access an article from DOI: https://doi.org/10.11110/kjpt.2023.53.2.170
... Bhutan presents an ideal opportunity to examine these issues. It forms part of the Eastern Himalayan biodiversity hotspot with a high number of threatened and endemic species mainly found in the country's forests (Banerjee & Bandopadhyay, 2016;Brandt et al., 2017). Bhutan is home to 27 globally threatened mammals, including the Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris tigris), snow leopard (Panthera uncia), and the Takin (Budorcas taxicolor), along with 18 threatened birds (Lham et al., 2018). ...
Access to sufficient financial resources is vital for effective biodiversity conservation. Although the importance of biodiversity conservation is widely recognized, lack of funding has been a significant impediment to achieving conservation goals. Yet, information on the allocation of conservation funding remains limited. This study addresses this gap by mapping conservation funding flows in Bhutan over the past four decades. We identified 249 projects totaling US$ 239.4 million allocated for biodiversity conservation in Bhutan from 1980 to 2019. Most of this funding derived from bilateral and multilateral aid agencies, with domestic trust fund and private foundations also contributing. Funding for projects with coupled conservation and development objectives and gender components was relatively high, particularly for funds allocated by multilateral and bilateral organizations. By contrast, domestic funding typically did not include development or gender components. Private foundations and domestic sources emphasized capacity development interventions. Despite relatively limited funding flows, the socio‐political context in Bhutan, which favors environmentally friendly practices, may have been key to the country's widely recognized conservation success. Evidence on trends and patterns in conservation finance, as presented here for Bhutan, can advance conservation science and practice by shedding new light on historical and current conservation priorities and helping inform future allocation. Although billions of dollars are invested for biodiversity conservation, the allocation of such funding remains poorly understood. Our study addresses this gap by mapping conservation funding flows in Bhutan over the past four decades. We identified 249 projects totaling US$ 239.4 million allocated for conservation in Bhutan from 1980 to 2019, most of which was derived from bilateral and multilateral aid agencies.
... The country is divided into three climate zones: alpine in the northern mountains, temperate in the central valleys and inner hills, and subtropical in the southern foothills [37,38]. Summers in the southern foothills are hot and humid and have cool winters. ...
Bhutan is included in the Eastern Himalayan biodiversity hotspot. Because the country's total forest cover surpasses 70%, the exclusive hotspot is a paradise for rich biological diversity. Some of the world's most endangered species can be found in Bhutan's five national parks, four wildlife sanctuaries, one strict nature reserve, a network of biological corridors, and even outside the Protected Areas. The country's documentation of its rich flora and fauna is in the early stage, and to document the biological diversity in Bhutan, more research needs to be carried out. Bhutan's biodiversity faces a major threat from anthropogenic activities and climate change.
... The Indo-Burma hotspot itself is home to 7,000 endemic plants and has 1.9% of the world's complete endemic vertebrates. More than 7,000 plant species, 175 warm-blooded animal species, or more than 500 types of birds have been recorded from the EH, which alone comprises numerous endemic and endangered fauna and flora [4]. In this manner, the EH biodiversity hotspot is novel; however, it is likewise undermined because of deforestation, logging, habitat fragmentation, poaching, mining, streets and dams, contamination due to agrochemicals, climate change, and so on. ...
... Bhutan is home to 5,369 plant species, which is around 47.73 percent of the total species found in the country [35]. The country is home to around 300 medicinal plants, 4 Bhutan has one of the most substantial conservation policies in the world. Because of the policies and conservation efforts, Bhutan is home to some of the rarest animals in the world. ...
Biodiversity is the variety of life on Earth. The Eastern Himalaya biodiversity hotspot (EH) is part of 36 biodiversity hotspots of the world. EH is around 7,50,000 sq km covering Bhutan, Nepal, southeast Tibet (China), northern Myanmar, and the Indian territories of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, West Bengal, and Sikkim. The whole of Bhutan (38,394 sq km) falls in the EH biodiversity hotspot. The exclusive biodiversity is heaven for biodiversity as the country's total forest cover exceeds 70 %. Bhutan's five National Parks, four Wildlife Sanctuaries, one Strict Nature Reserve, and Biological Corridors are home to some of the globally endangered species like Chinese Pangolin (Manis pentadactyla), Great Hornbill (Buceros bicornis), Red Panda (Ailurus fulgens), Black-necked Crane (Grus nigricollis), White-bellied Heron (Ardea insignis), Bhutan Takin (Budorcas taxicolor whitei) and Bengal Tiger (Panthera tigris tigris). The country is home to around 300 medicinal plants, raw materials for the country's traditional medicine. The glaciers in the Bhutanese Himalaya are retreating at a fast rate. The management of Protected Areas, using non-wood products, going green, and waste management at the individual level are essential for biodiversity sustainability.
... In Bhutan, total forest cover is increasing (Gilani et al., 2015), while the forestry's share in GDP (about 2% in 2012 (Feuerbacher et al., 2017)), is on the decline. The forest ecosystem services are vital for the country's dependency on hydropower generation (Nkonya et al., 2014) as well as flora and fauna, which are part of the global biodiversity hotspot with the highest species density (Banerjee and Bandopadhyay, 2016;WWF Bhutan, 2016). Kubiszewski et al. (2013) estimate that the provisioning, cultural and regulating ecosystem services from forests comprise 94% of the total value of ecosystem services in Bhutan. ...
Reconciling economic development with forest conservation is a challenge, particularly for high-forest cover, low-deforestation countries. Using Bhutan as an illustrative case, this study addresses how forest management may be reformed to benefit rural areas with low risk of compromising conservation objectives. Our analytical framework combines an economy-wide model with a spatial forest resource assessment to analyse the effects of three policy scenarios that relax quotas for sustainable fuelwood production. Rural household welfare is found to improve across all three scenarios mainly due to better utilisation of labour in the agricultural off-season, a channel that is considered thanks to a novel model formulation. The share of total forest used increases from 15.4% in the base to 19.9% in the most expansive scenario, still leaving at least 80% of Bhutan’s forest unmanaged. The scenarios also show that incentives for reduced subsistence use of fuelwood and increased consumption of cleaner domestic energy may yield health benefits thanks to reduced indoor air pollution. The findings are of general relevance for countries aiming to bridge the forest transition and reconcile economic and ecological objectives. By incorporating seasonal labour and underemployment into an economy-wide model, the study provides a methodological contribution relevant to analyses of land use policy. It further highlights the need for improved data and further policy research that integrates forest ecosystem services within economy-wide simulation models.
... It is among the biodiversity hotspots in the world and has a substan-tial forest cover of 70.46% of the total land area (LCMP 2010). Bhutan is well known for its rich biodiversity and efficient environmental conservation (Banerjee & Bandopadhyay, 2016). However, less efforts have been applied to the exploration of the splendid biodiversity, especially to the ant fauna of the country. ...
Current knowledge on the ant fauna of Bhutan is poor, 55 species of Formicidae belonging to 20 genera are listed in various online databases. As result from a detailed study along an elevational gradient in the south of the country we report about 51 species and 21 genera new to the species list of Bhutan. In our study in Mendrelgang gewog of Tsirang district, ants were collected for one month during the month of January (2019) using the methods of baiting, Winkler extraction of leaf litter and hand picking aided by aspirator. This work brings the total number of the known ant fauna of Bhutan to 103 species and 39 genera. The number of new discoveries is expected to increase in future, since many of the high biodiversity areas of the country are still unexplored.
... Since the study area falls under subtropical forest (Banerjee and Bandopadhyay, 2016) it receives high rainfall (Corlett and Hughes, 2015) and the canopy layer retains more moisture because of the presence of leaves. So, the epiphytic orchids prefer to grow on the canopy layer in JWS as there is more moisture contained and high humidity which helps in their optimal growth. ...
Orchids are the largest and diverse families of flowering plants. Orchids are found growing mostly in tropical climates affecting various communities socioeconomically. Among many protected areas in Bhutan, Jomotshangkha Wildlife Sanctuary (JWS) is the least explored in terms of flora and fauna. The study was carried out to assess diversity, host tree preferences and to determine the growth zone of epiphytic orchids along the altitudinal gradient in Langchenphu gewog in JWS. Transect technique was used in which three trails transect were laid out with 10 sampling plots in each transect. Plots size of 20 m × 20 m along the altitudinal gradients were established maintaining an altitudinal interval of 100 meters between each sample plot. A total of 42 species of epiphytic orchids from 20 genera was recorded of23 host tree species under 15 families were recorded. A significant correlation between diversity of orchid and altitude was observed (r = .927, p < .05). Myrtaceae and Theaceae were the most preferred host tree families (14%) followed by Bignoniaceae (13%) and others respectively. The Study concludes that 57% of total species encountered prefers higher canopy & on a tree with rough bark, Pearson chi-square test (X 2 (1) = 4.7, p< .05) showed a significant difference between trunk, branches, and canopy. Many epiphytic orchids prefer dense canopy (n = 73, 47%) and living trees (99%). Future studies should be focused more on the flowering season for obtaining better information on orchid diversity in the study area.
