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Human-induced mortality an overlooked threat for raptors in Nepal

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 September 2023

Tulsi R. Subedi Open the ORCID record for Tulsi R. Subedi [Opens in a new window] ,
Juan M. Pérez-García Open the ORCID record for Juan M. Pérez-García [Opens in a new window] ,
Sandesh Gurung ,
Hem S. Baral ,
Aishwarya Bhattacharjee ,
José D. Anadón ,
Munir Z. Virani ,
Simon Thomsett  and
Ralph Buij
Tulsi R. Subedi*
Affiliation:
Himalayan Nature, PO Box 10918, Kathmandu, Nepal Nepalese Ornithological Union (NOU), Kathmandu, Nepal
Juan M. Pérez-García
Affiliation:
Ecology Area, Department of Applied Biology, University Miguel Hernández, 03202, Elche, Spain
Sandesh Gurung
Affiliation:
Nepalese Ornithological Union (NOU), Kathmandu, Nepal
Hem S. Baral
Affiliation:
Zoological Society of London – Nepal office, PO Box 5867, Kathmandu, Nepal School of Environmental Sciences, Charles Sturt University, Albury-Woodonga, NSW, Australia
Aishwarya Bhattacharjee
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, Queens College and The Graduate Center, City University of New York, New York, USA
José D. Anadón
Affiliation:
Pyrenean Institute of Ecology (IPE-CSIC), 50059 Zaragoza, Spain
Munir Z. Virani
Affiliation:
Mohamed Bin Zayed Raptor Conservation Fund, 35665 Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Simon Thomsett
Affiliation:
Kenya Bird of Prey Trust, Kilimandege Sanctuary, Naivasha, Rift Valley Province, Kenya 20117
Ralph Buij
Affiliation:
The Peregrine Fund, Boise, ID, USA
*
Corresponding author: Tulsi R. Subedi; Email: Tulsi.biologist@gmail.com
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Summary

Raptors play a unique role in ecosystem services and are regarded as effective indicators of ecosystem health. In recent years, varieties of anthropogenic factors have threatened the majority of raptor species worldwide. Nepal is considered a global hotspot for threatened and declining raptor species, but there is limited information on the direct human threats to the raptor populations living in the country. In this paper, we identify important anthropogenic threats to raptors in Nepal based on raptor mortality data collected by powerline surveys and from monitoring of GPS-tagged raptors, complete various reports, and social media. We found that powerlines, poisoning, and persecution, mainly shooting, are significant threats to raptors in Nepal that were largely overlooked previously. We report 54 electrocuted raptors affecting eight species, 310 poisoned raptors of 11 species, and five persecuted raptors of four species; among them vultures are the most affected (>88%). Based on our findings, to safeguard the future of Nepal’s raptors, we propose the retrofitting of power poles and the use of flight diverters on powerlines in the most affected areas to reduce raptor interactions with powerlines, as well as an effective conservation education programme to prevent the use of unintentional poisoning.

Keywords

collisionelectrocutionscavengerthreatsunintentional poisoningvultures

Information

Type
Review Article
Information
Bird Conservation International , Volume 33 , 2023 , e73
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of BirdLife International

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