The Manas Wildlife Sanctuary

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Table of Contents

Diversity of Life within the Sanctuary
The ecosystem within the Manas Sanctuary
Human Intrusions That Threaten the Area
Protection and Conservation Management Efforts/ Actions
Individual Contributions to the Preservation of the Manas Sanctuary
Other Measures to Ensure the Preservation of the Sanctuary
Effects of Long-Term Harmful Human Intrusion
References

Diversity of Life within the Sanctuary

A home to a great variety of wildlife and endangered species, the Manas Sanctuary is located in the Himalayan foothills, in the far eastern state of Assam. Designated as a wildlife sanctuary in 1928, as a “World Heritage in Danger” site in 1985, and finally as a National Park in 1990, Manas is considered to be one of the best-kept national parks in India. (Manas Wildlife Sanctuary, 2008) Manas has a very assorted animal population.

Being the only tiger reserve in Assam, it accommodates India’s second-largest tiger population. Aside from this, it is also popular for the rare golden langur and red panda, and other highly endangered species of birds and animals. In addition to tigers, other potentially aggressive animals in Manas are the elephants, rhinoceros, wild buffaloes, leopards, clouded leopards, and the black panthers. Other creatures include swamp deer, gaur, golden cat, pangolin, fishing cat, capped langurs, Assamese macaques, slow loris, hoolock gibbons, smooth Indian otters, sloth bears, barking deer, hog deer, sambar, and chital. (Manas Wildlife Sanctuary)

Not only does Manas accommodate the Fauna, but it also contains more than 450 species of birds. Among the most popular are the great pied hornbill and the Bengal florican. Both resident and migratory species such as giant hornbills, jungle fowls, bulbuls, brahmin ducks, Khaleej pheasants, egrets, pelicans, fishing eagles, serpent eagles, falcons, scarlet minivets, bee-eaters, magpie robins, pied hornbills, gray hornbills, mergansers, harriers, ospreys, and herons reside within the area. Of course, a large variety of reptiles and butterflies can also be seen in the sanctuary. (Manas Wildlife Sanctuary)

All of these can be seen by visitors through rides on boats and elephants. Elephant rides are best for visitors who would want to see wild animals, while the boat rides are for spotting animals and birds that come to the rivers to drink. Although there are no available department jeeps or guides, the tourists could hire private jeeps that will be used during the tour. (Manas Wildlife Sanctuary)

The ecosystem within the Manas Sanctuary

Animals and plants of different species interact with each other all the time. Interactions could be in the form of eating together, living together, mating together, and even preying on each other. (What Is an Ecosystem?)

The Manas Wildlife Sanctuary is a home of ecosystems where both biotic and abiotic components are linked and interrelated. It is said to represent one of the most unique and best examples of the Eastern Himalayan ecosystem because 92% of the park is still under forest cover. (Management of Royal Manas National Park, 2008)

The interrelationships among the life forms within the sanctuary start with the input of energy from the sun. This energy is captured and transformed into chemical energy by cellular processes such as photosynthesis and respiration, which are then released to the environment in the form of heat. The continuous input of solar energy is a requisite for the survival of all biological systems on earth. (The Concept of the Ecosystem, 2006)

Energy moves within the ecosystem through the food web, which is basically composed of interlocking food chains. This process begins with the absorption of energy and other elements from water, atmosphere, and soil by plants, which are considered to be the primary producers in the ecosystem. Herbivores, which are considered as the primary consumers, obtain energy by consuming the plants. Secondary consumers, which are the carnivores, then eat the herbivores; detritivores, scavengers, and decomposers, in turn, consume the droppings and carcasses of the aforementioned creatures. It is important to note that during the process of decomposition, elements are not destroyed or lost; thus, it can be seen that there is endless cycling of elements within ecosystems. (The Concept of the Ecosystem, 2006)

Controls within the ecosystem are a delicate balance, which intrusions and unnecessary disturbances can easily upset. The following discussion focuses on the human intrusions and activities that are threatening the biological interrelationships within the Manas Sanctuary.

Human Intrusions That Threaten the Area

Although the wildlife sanctuary was established to protect and conserve threatened animals, there are still unwanted interactions between humans and animals that produce adverse consequences. Worthy to note is the unspecified number of infringements in several buffer zones that were set up in the sanctuary. Of particular concern is a village named Amtika, which is located in the area occupied by the golden langur.

The village communities that reside on the periphery of Manas are using the park to collect grasses, fuel, wood, fodder timber, and even for grazing of their livestock. In addition to these are the unsustainable burning activities during the dry season, hunting and extraction of timber and firewood in the buffer zone. (Protected Areas Programme, 1997)

Also, in February 1989, members of the local Bodo Students Union, who form about one-third of Assam’s population, occupied the park while campaigning for the autonomy of its people. The consequence of this were acts of arson, sabotage, and the massacre of more than a dozen wildlife guards by terrorists, which further caused the forced evacuation of the park staff. These gave the opportunity to professional thieves, lumber smugglers, and intruding villagers to harm and kill a number of animals including rhinoceros, elephants, and deer. These further caused substantial damages to infrastructure and guard posts in 12 areas of the part. (Protected Areas Programme, 1997)

In 1993, still due to human encroachments, almost one-third of Manas’ rhinoceros were stolen and at least 4 tigers and 2 elephants were killed. A significant number of trees fell and the habitat of the golden langur, hispid hare, and pygmy hog has been put at great risk. (Protected Areas Programme, 1997)

Stealing, which is usually done by heavily armed gangs, is still one of the greatest concerns in the park. In 1996, a boatman of the sanctuary has been shot by poachers, and the rhinoceros population decreased significantly due to these illegal activities. Action plans and conservation management strategies are continuously being proposed and implemented so as to curb, if not totally eliminate the number of activities and happenings that harm the diverse life forms in the area. (Protected Areas Programme, 1997)

Protection and Conservation Management Efforts/ Actions

Management plans for the wildlife sanctuary are continuously being crafted and revised. One of the activities that are being practiced so as to maintain the composition of different habitats is the controlled burning process. Other regular conservation works include the provision of staff accommodations and the development of roads and wireless network so as to improve the efficiency of anti-poaching operations and administration of the entire sanctuary. Rhino Action plans are also in place so as to address the adverse effects of poaching on the rhinoceros population. (Protected Areas Programme, 1997)

The WWF (World Wildlife Fund), a global conservation organization is likewise working on a project that contributes to the conservation management of Manas. The main components of the project are conservation research, institutional and capacity development, anti-poaching, transboundary dialogues, and ecosystem protection. Its objectives include 1.) conservation of the biodiversity; 2.) strengthening of park management and local community capacities via education, training, and infrastructure development; and 3.) provision of rural development activities for residents by integrating conservation and development efforts. (Management of Royal Manas National Park, 2008)

Due to substantial numbers of Indian insurgencies, the project’s current focus is on anti-poaching patrolling activities and strengthening staff capacity, while research and integrated conservation and development programs are minimal and limited to the northern part of the park.(Management of Royal Manas National Park, 2008)

Individual Contributions to the Preservation of the Manas Sanctuary

By simply not participating in activities that may cause harm to the biodiversity, (i.e. stealing animals/ killing plants and other creatures, etc.) an individual can significantly contribute to the preservation of the Manas Sanctuary. In addition to this are the initiative of the individual to actually report any illegal activities and harmful encroachments that may come to his knowledge to the appropriate authority.

Conscious effort to educate oneself about biodiversity and ecosystem and passing on to others his knowledge about such are also great contributors to the conservation and preservation efforts. Of course, giving financial aids and/or volunteering to be a member to organizations (if not pioneering an organization) whose objectives are to conserve and protect the life forms within the sanctuary contribute substantially to the efforts. Simply put, an individual’s contribution can be in terms of initiating conservation efforts or making the existing efforts effective and sustainable. The concept of sustainability with regards to sanctuary conservation is further discussed below.

Other Measures to Ensure the Preservation of the Sanctuary

The current measures and efforts to preserve the sanctuary are seen to be more than enough to achieve the preservation and conservation objectives. What is to be strengthened are the measures of making the efforts sustainable, because a project whose objectives end with the end of the project itself does not achieve its objectives at all. One way of making the efforts sustainable is by strengthening public support for biodiversity conservation. This could be accomplished by launching education and informative campaigns to the public, particularly to the local communities and village residents. These campaigns should be with high public recognition so as to ensure their effectiveness.

Strengthening public support is not an easy task which is why it is to be suggested that India, as a country, should adopt the “principle of sectoral responsibility” to provide the foundation of ensuring the sustainability of each conservation effort. This principle simply means that each sector would be taking responsibility to reduce its harmful impacts on the environment. (Weissenberg, 2007) Sectors could include the different stakeholder groups, government agencies and departments, non-profit organizations, scientific community, local authorities, private sectors, and many others more.

The implementation of this principle could be made possible by having legislation, both local and national, that would engage the various communities to actually take part in preserving biodiversity, particularly of the national parks and wildlife sanctuaries such as the Manas. The internal communities of Manas and the organizations that support its cause can help in the start of the implementation of this principle by practicing it among themselves, and by disseminating it to all local communities that they can reach.

Effects of Long-Term Harmful Human Intrusion

If unwanted human intrusions remain unaddressed, not only will the sanctuary cease to exist, but looking at the bigger picture, these encroachments could lead to a significant decline in the world’s biodiversity and to the alteration of the ecological balance.

The results of these would be the loss of sustainable development and the proliferation of unexpected shocks, such as water shortages, burgeoning and spread of diseases, extreme weather conditions, and vulnerability of crops and livestock, which would further lead to the lack, if not the absence of food for the human population. (Srivastava) To put these simply, harmful human intrusions to the sanctuary would primarily endanger the life forms within it and the park per se, but, in the long run, the harm would ultimately fire back to the human beings.

References

Management of Royal Manas National Park. (2008). WWF. Web.

Manas Wildlife Sanctuary. (2008). Journeymart. Web.

Manas Wildlife Sanctuary. Wild India. Web.

Protected Areas Programme. (1997). World Heritage Sites. Web.

Srivastava, Paritosh. Hanging in the Balance: Conserving Biodiversity. UN Chronicle Online Edition. Web.

The Concept of the Ecosystem. (2006). Regents of the University of Michigan. Web.

Weissenberg, Marina von. (2007). Sectoral and cross-sectoral integration of biodiversity considerations. Web.

What is an Ecosystem? Alberta Online Encyclopedia. Web.

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