Factors determining occupancy of Ganges River dolphin (Platanista gangetica gangetica) during differing river discharges in the upper Ganges, India
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Tawqir Bashir
,
Afifullah Khan
Abstract
Habitat selection by a species during scarcity and varying resource availability can give important insights into the requirements crucial to its survival. We conducted a study in a stretch of the upper Ganges River to assess the status and distribution of endangered Ganges River dolphins (Platanista gangetica gangetica) and fishing activities. We also evaluated the resource selection criteria of the species using an occupancy-based approach to determine the influence of different habitat covariates on dolphin detection and occupancy across varying river discharge conditions. Occupancy modeling indicated that water depth, fish relative abundance, and fishing intensity were the best predictors of dolphin occupancy. Increase in fishing activities was identified as the most significant threat to dolphin conservation in this stretch of river. We suggest strengthening awareness and capacity building of fishermen communities and programs for improving their livelihoods. Our study extends the applicability of occupancy-based surveys to elusive aquatic mammal species and recommends its scope throughout the entire distribution range of the species so that it can help to identify priorities for its conservation and management.
©2012 by Walter de Gruyter Berlin Boston
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- Masthead
- Masthead
- Editorial
- On the history of European mammalogy
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- The contribution of Edouard-Louis Trouessart to mammalogy
- Gerrit Smith Miller: his influence on the enduring legacy of natural history collections
- Sergey Ivanovitch Ognev and the formation of theriology in Russia
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- Factors determining occupancy of Ganges River dolphin (Platanista gangetica gangetica) during differing river discharges in the upper Ganges, India
- Altitudinal effects on habitat selection in two sympatric pipistrelle species
- C-banding and Ag-NOR distribution patterns in Euphrates jerboa, Allactaga euphratica (Mammalia: Rodentia), from Turkey
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- Book reviews
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Artikel in diesem Heft
- Masthead
- Masthead
- Editorial
- On the history of European mammalogy
- Reviews
- The contribution of Edouard-Louis Trouessart to mammalogy
- Gerrit Smith Miller: his influence on the enduring legacy of natural history collections
- Sergey Ivanovitch Ognev and the formation of theriology in Russia
- Original Studies
- Breeding periods of Gerbillus cheesmani (Rodentia, Muridae) in Saudi Arabia
- Fruit diet of frugivorous bats (Cynopterus brachyotis and Cynopterus horsfieldii) in tropical hill forests of Peninsular Malaysia
- Seasonal variations in small mammal-landscape associations in temperate agroecosystems: a study case in Buenos Aires province, central Argentina
- Carnivores in burned and adjacent unburned areas in a Mediterranean ecosystem
- Factors determining occupancy of Ganges River dolphin (Platanista gangetica gangetica) during differing river discharges in the upper Ganges, India
- Altitudinal effects on habitat selection in two sympatric pipistrelle species
- C-banding and Ag-NOR distribution patterns in Euphrates jerboa, Allactaga euphratica (Mammalia: Rodentia), from Turkey
- Short Notes
- Expansion of the known range of Marmosops incanus (Mammalia, Didelphimorphia, Didelphinae) to the right bank of the São Francisco River in north-east Brazil
- Diurnal capture reduces the colony size of Hipposideros armiger (Chiroptera: Hipposideridae)
- First record of the pale-winged dog-like bat Peropteryx pallidoptera (Chiroptera: Emballonuridae) for Brazil
- The Quaternary record of Reithrodon auritus (Rodentia: Cricetidae) in northwestern Argentina and its paleoenvironmental meaning
- Book reviews
- Book reviews
