Habitat and population ecology of Rhinoceros unicornis in Dudhwa National Park, Uttar pradesh

Abstract

Dudhwa National Park (DNP), located in the foothills of Himalayas in Uttar Pradesh, has become an ideal home to the Great Indian one-horned rhino, Rhinoceros unicornis. The present population of Rhino in DNP restricted to a 28.11 sq km enclosure known as Rhino Rehabilitated Area (RRA). Although, RRA offered the desired diversity of habitats including higher level woodlands, low lying grasslands, swamps, lakes, streams etc., but with the rising of rhino population the fight over food and territory has become intense. Indian Rhinos are habitat specific and prefer alluvial plain grasslands, but are also found in adjacent swamps and forests. These mega herbivores are not very specific in their food choices and chiefly feed on grasses, shrubs and herbs. They also prefer few species of aquatic plants and climbers. Knowledge about the habitat and preferred plant species is important strategic information that should be incorporated into the conservation and management plan for the threatened One-horned Rhinoceros. The present study, conducted between January-December (2011), provides vital information to strengthen the available data and to supplement the gaps in conservation and management plans for the animal.