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Research Partnership with Developing Countries
A Programme funded by Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) and Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC)

Biodiversity and Livelihood development in Land-use gradients in an Era of Climate Change

The effects of climate change in mountain regions are expected to be more intense and detectable than in many other regions of the world since climatic conditions vary sharply with elevation. The climatic impacts on fragile ecosystems of Nepal's Himalaya are no exception. It is increasingly being observed that biological systems are disrupted, migrations are starting earlier and species' geographic ranges are shifting. The overall goal of this research collaboration is to identify and analyze threats and opportunities related to climate change. In mountain regions, climate warming is generally considered to be correlated with a change in seasonal precipitation. Both changes will influence the way and intensity of human land use. In our project we therefore propose to study how different levels of land-use intensity (from primeval forests to arable fields) do affect biodiversity. We will investigate replicated land-use gradients at various altitudes in three regions with a different regional climate, and in particular, different levels of seasonal precipitation. Our core study region will be the Manasalu Conservation Area characterized by an oceanic climate and this region will be compared to a hyper-oceanic region in Annapurna Conservation Area and a semi-oceanic region of the Sagarmatha (Everest) region. By using a quasi-experimental landscape approach organisms will be investigated in six valleys covering different precipitation regimes, altitudinal gradients of 1600 m representing different temperatures, and four land use types ranging from closed forests to open landscapes. These organisms will include plants, lichens, mushrooms, butterflies and birds.

Contacts

Prof. Christoph Scheidegger
Eidg. Forschungsanstalt für Wald,
Schnee und Landschaft WSL
Zürcherstrasse 111
CH-8903 Birmensdorf ZH
christoph.scheidegger(at)wsl.ch

Krishna Shrestha
Tribhuvan University
26429
NP- Kirtipur, Kathmandu
kk.shresta(at)cdbtu.edu.np


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		Home > Projects > Rpdc

		Research Partnership with Developing Countries A Programme funded by Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) and Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) Biodiversity and Livelihood development in Land-use gradients in an Era of Climate Change The effects of climate change in mountain regions are expected to be more intense and detectable than in many other regions of the world since climatic conditions vary sharply with elevation. The climatic impacts on fragile ecosystems of Nepal's Himalaya are no exception. It is increasingly being observed that biological systems are disrupted, migrations are starting earlier and species' geographic ranges are shifting. The overall goal of this research collaboration is to identify and analyze threats and opportunities related to climate change. In mountain regions, climate warming is generally considered to be correlated with a change in seasonal precipitation. Both changes will influence the way and intensity of human land use. In our project we therefore propose to study how different levels of land-use intensity (from primeval forests to arable fields) do affect biodiversity. We will investigate replicated land-use gradients at various altitudes in three regions with a different regional climate, and in particular, different levels of seasonal precipitation. Our core study region will be the Manasalu Conservation Area characterized by an oceanic climate and this region will be compared to a hyper-oceanic region in Annapurna Conservation Area and a semi-oceanic region of the Sagarmatha (Everest) region. By using a quasi-experimental landscape approach organisms will be investigated in six valleys covering different precipitation regimes, altitudinal gradients of 1600 m representing different temperatures, and four land use types ranging from closed forests to open landscapes. These organisms will include plants, lichens, mushrooms, butterflies and birds. Contacts Prof. Christoph Scheidegger Eidg. Forschungsanstalt für Wald, Schnee und Landschaft WSL Zürcherstrasse 111 CH-8903 Birmensdorf ZH christoph.scheidegger(at)wsl.ch Krishna Shrestha Tribhuvan University 26429 NP- Kirtipur, Kathmandu kk.shresta(at)cdbtu.edu.np