In this article we will discuss about the in-situ and ex-situ conservation strategies adopted in India.
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1. In-Situ Conservation Strategies:
In situ conservation means ‘on-site conservation’. Here, the plant or animal species are protected in their natural habitat.
This is carried on by two methods:
(i) Either by protecting or cleaning up the habitat itself.
(ii) By defending the species from predators. Here stress is laid upon protection of total ecosystem. This leads to declaration of ‘Protected Areas’. For protecting such areas, legal or other effective strategies are used.
Protected Areas in India:
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These include:
I. National Parks,
II. Sanctuaries, and
III. Biosphere Reserves.
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I. National Parks:
A national park is an area which is strictly reserved for the betterment of the wildlife and where activities like forestry, grazing or cultivation are not permitted.
In these parks, even private ownership rights are not allowed.
There are about 66 national parks (in 1988) in India spread over an area of 33, 988, 14 square kilometres or nearly 1 per cent of the country’s geographical area.
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Some National Parks of India:
1. Kaziranga National Park, District Sibsagar (Assam) – Rhinoceros, elephant, wild buffalo, bison, tiger, leopard, sloth, bear, sambhar, swamp deer, barking deer, wild boar, gibbon, python and birds like pelican, stork and ring tailed fishing eagles. This is a famous National Park of famous one-horned rhinoceros of India.
2. Sundarbans (Tiger Reserve) 24 Pargana (West Bengal) – Tiger, wild boar, deer, dolphin, eustuarine, crocodile.
3. Hazaribagh National Park, Hazaribagh (Bihar) – Tiger, leopard, hyaena, wild boar, gaur, sambhar, nilgai, chital, sloth, bear, peafowl.
4. Corbett National Park, Nanital (Uttarkhand) – Tiger, elephant, panther, sloth, bear, wild boar, nilgai, sambhar, chital, crocodile, python, king cobra, peafowl, partridge. This is the first National Park of India which is famous for tigers.
5. Gir National Park, District Junagarh (Gujrat) – Asiatic lion, panther, striped hyaena, sambhar, nilgai, chital, 4-horned antelope, chinkara, wild boar, langur, python, crocodile, green pigeon, partridge. This National Park is famous for Asiatic lions.
6. Kanha National Park, Mandla and Balaghat (Madhya Pradesh) – Tiger, panther, chital, chinkara, barking deer, blue bull, deer, langur, wild boar, black buck, nilgai, wild dog, sloth bear, sambhar, crocodile, grey horn bill, egret, peafowl.
7. Tandoba National Park, Chandrapur (Maharashtra) – Tiger, sambhar, sloth bear, bison, chital, chinkara, barking deer, blue bull, four-horned deer, langur, pea-fowl, crocodile.
8. Bandipur National Park, District Mysore (Karnataka) – Elephant, tiger, leopard, sloth bear, wild dog, chital, panther, barking deer, langur, porcupine, gaur, sambhar, malabar squirrel, green pigeon.
9. Desert National Park, Jaisalmer (Rajasthan) – Great Indian Bustard, black buck, chinkara.
II. Sanctuaries:
A sanctuary is a protected area which is reserved for the conservation of only animals and human activities like harvesting of timber, collection of minor forest products and private ownership rights are allowed so long as they do not interfere with the well- being of animals. There are about 392 (As on October, 1992) and 421 (As in 1993) sanctuaries in India (368 sanctuaries in 1988) which cover about 107,310 square kilometres or 3.2 per cent of country’s geographical area.
Some important sanctuaries of India are listed below:
1. Annamalai Sanctuary, Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu) – Elephant, tiger, panther, gaur, sambhar, spotted deer, sloth bear, wild dog, barking deer.
2. Jaldapara Sanctuary, Madarihat (West Bengal) – Rhino, elephant, tiger, leopard, gaur, deer, sambhar, different kinds of birds.
3. Keoladeo Ghana Bird Sanctuary, Bharatpur (Rajasthan) – Siberian crane, storks, egrets, herons, spoon bill, etc. Drier parts of this marshy sanctuary have spotted deer, black buck, sambhar, wild boar, blue bull, python. This sanctuary is famous for birds.
4. Sultanpur Lake Bird Sanctuary, Gurgaon (Haryana) – Crane, saras, spotbill, duck, drake, green pigeon, wild bear, crocodile, phython.
5. Bir Moti Bagh Wildlife Sanctuary, Patiala (Punjab) – Nilgai, wild boar, hog deer, black buck, blue bull, jackal, pea-fowl, partridge, sparrow, myna, pigeon, dove.
6. Shikari Devi Sanctuary, Mandi (Himachal Pradesh) – Black bear, snow leopard, flying fox, barking deer, musk deer, chakor, partridge.
7. Dachigam Sanctuary, Srinagar (Jammu & Kashmir) – Hangul or Kashmir stag, musk deer, snow leopard, black bear, brown bear.
8. Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary, Nilgiri (Tamil Nadu) – Elephant, gaur, sambhar, chital, bar-king deer, mouse deer, four horned antelope, langur, giant squirrel, flying squirrel, wild dog, wild cat, civet, sloth bear, porcupine, phython, rat snake, monitor lizard, flying lizard.
9. Nagarjuna Sagar Sanctuary, Guntur, Kamool and Nalgonda (Andhra Pradesh) – Tiger, panther, wild bear, chital, nilgai, sambhar, blackbuck, foz, jackal, wolf, crocodile.
10. Periyar Sanctuary (Kerela) – Elephants, gaur, leopard, sloth, bear, sambhar, bison, black langur, hornbill, egret. It is famous for animals.
11. Chilka Lake Bird Sanctuary, Balagaon (Orissa) – An oasis of birds like water fowls, ducks, cranes, golden plovers, sand pipers, flamingoes.
12. Manas Wildlife Sanctuary, Kamprup (Assam) – Tiger, panther, rhino, gaur, wild buffalo, sambhar, swamp deer, golden langur, wild dog, wild boar.
III. Biosphere Reserves:
Under MAB (Man and Biosphere) Programme, UNESCO has established a number of biosphere reserves in the world. The concept of Biosphere Reserves was launched by MAB in 1975 for dealing with the conservation of ecosystems and the genetic resources contained therein. Under MAB programme, UNESCO has studied the impact of human interference and pollution on biotic and abiotic environments and conservation strategies for the present as well as future.
Definition:
A biosphere reserve is a specified area iii which multiple use of the land is permitted by dividing it into certain zones, each zone being specified for a particular activity.
Zones of a Biosphere Reserve:
A biosphere reserve is basically divided into three zones:
(a) Core Zone:
It lies at centre where no human activity is allowed. It is legally protected.
(b) Buffer Zone:
In this zone limited human activities are allowed. It surrounds core area.
(c) Manipulative Zone (Transition Zone):
In this zone multiple human activities are allowed but ecology is not permitted to be disturbed. It is the outermost part of biosphere reserve.
Biosphere Reserves in India:
In India, there are 14 biosphere reserves. The first biosphere reserve of the world was established in 1979. Till May 2005, there were 425 Biosphere Reserves located in 95 countries. The number assigned to a biosphere reserve is based on its date of declaration.
The purpose of declaration of biosphere reserve is to conserve bio-diversity in-situ along with its supporting system. Biosphere reserves with human beings as its integral parts are examples of natural biomes. First biosphere reserve established in India, was Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve (1986).
Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve was established in 1988.
Date of notification of Nilgiri Biosphere reserve is 01.8.1986 with area of 5520 km2 and cover the states of Kerala, Kamataka and Tamil Nadu. Dibru-Saikhowa Biosphere reserve is present in Dibrugarh and Tinsukia districts of Assam. Sunderbans Biosphere reserve with an area of 9630 km2 covers part of delta of Ganga and Brahmputra river system in West Bengal.
Panchmarhi covers an area of 4926 km2 and lies in Madhya Pradesh. Kanchanjanga Biosphere reserve with an area of 2619 km is present in Sikkim. Manas Biosphere reserve is in Assam. Nokrek Biosphere reserve is in Meghalaya. Nanda Devi Biosphere reserve with an area of 5860 km2 is present in Uttaranchal Gulf of Mannar Biosphere reserve is in Tamil Nadu.
Significance:
The concept of Biosphere Reserves is of immense value for conserving the gene-pool resources of flora and fauna in the country and to serve as bench-marks for future studies.
The concept of Biosphere Reserve has the following objectives:
(a) To conserve for present and future human race use, the diversity and integrity of biotic communities of plants and animals within natural ecosystems and to safeguard the genetic diversity of species on which their continuing evolution depends.
(b) To provide areas for ecological and environmental research.
(c) To provide facilities for education and training.
(d) To promote economic development.
Sacred Forests and Sacred Lakes:
Some forest patches are being protected by tribals due to religious sanctity are called sacred forests. Such forests have been found to be most undisturbed and they are usually surrounded by most degraded land scapes. Such sacred forests in India are present in states like Karnataka, Maharashtra, Kerela and Meghalaya. In Sikkim, Khecheopalri lake is declared sacred lake by people, thus protecting the aquatic flore and fauna.
2. Ex-Situ Conservation Strategies:
Such strategies include establishment of botanical gardens, zoos, conservation strands and gene, pollen, seed, seedling, tissue culture and DNA banks. These facilities not only provide housing and care for endangered species, but also have educational and recreational values for the society.
Few noteworthy points of ex-situ conservation are:
1. Seed Gene Bank or Germplasm Bank:
This is the easiest way to store the germ plasm of plants at low temperature. The term seed bank also refers to cryogenic laboratory facility in which the seeds of some species can be kept viable for long period. Germplasm can also be preserved by in vitro culturing where cutting of plants and maintained under controlled conditions.
2. Field Gene Bank:
Genetic variability can also be preserved by field gene bank under normal growing conditions. The gene banks are used to store living sperms, eggs or embryos.
3. Cryopreservation:
This type of in vitro conservation is done at very low temperature i.e., -196°C in liquid nitrogen. This may be done with very rapid cooking (in storing seeds) or by gradual cooling and simultaneous dehydration (in tissue culture). Cryopreservation is highly successful in crops like potato.
4. Botanical Gardens:
In more than 1500 botanical gardens and arboreta (botanical gardens where particular shrubs and trees are grum) in world. In such gardens more than 80,000 species are found.
Many botanical gardens have the facilities of seed banks, tissue culture and other latest ex-situ technologies.
5. Zoos:
In world, there are about 800 zoos. Such zoos have about 3000 species of vertebrates. Some zoos have undertaken captive breeding programmes.
Limitations of Ex-Situ Conservation:
(i) It stops the natural evolution and adaptations processes. In cryogenic preservation of specimens, adaptations processes come to halt altogether.
(ii) Ex-situ conservation strategies are highly expensive.
(iii) If fails to recreate the habitat as a whole. A species may adapt to changed environmental conditions due to genetic variation of a species, its symbiotic counter parts or other elements.
(iv) Seed banks are not effective for few plant species with recalcitrant seeds do not show viability for long time.