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Dryad

Presence locations (direct and indirect) of blue sheep and livestock in Johar Valley, Uttarakhand, India from years 2015-2017

Cite this dataset

Bhattacharya, Ankita; Chatterjee, Nilanjan; Rawat, Gopal; Habib, Bilal (2021). Presence locations (direct and indirect) of blue sheep and livestock in Johar Valley, Uttarakhand, India from years 2015-2017 [Dataset]. Dryad. https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.nk98sf7qm

Abstract

In-depth knowledge of distribution and their factors are important for species conservation and management. Many forms of such data have led to development of new analytical techniques for better interpretation. For mountainous terrains with certain limitations, species data is obtained in presence-only form. Point process model is one of the recent approaches for modelling such data, taking care of pseudo-absences and spatial independence. For conservation of regions with limited resources and species with similar ecological requirements, it is important to properly assess competition extent between wild and domestic species. We attempted to use point process framework to estimate resource selection function of blue sheep (Pseudois nayaur) in pastoralism influenced areas of a western Himalayan landscape. Our study is a first attempt to use this framework to estimate resource selection on a dataset not collected using radio-telemetry. Spatial locations of presence points of blue sheep and livestock and a background sample of random points along with six topographic covariates were used for modelling resource selection probability via intensity function. Blue sheep showed its predicted presence in areas with open vegetation coinciding with alpine meadows, influenced by southern aspect keeping a threshold distance of 600m-1000m from cliffs (escape terrain). Livestock, also showed presence probability in open vegetation but at lower altitudes mainly on valley floors. Our results suggest that though blue sheep continued to use the same habitat type after livestock arrival, they selected different resources based on topographic factors. Livestock were in areas convenient for pastoralists for establishing their campsites and feasibility of grazing along with presence of nutritious grasses. Thus, we assume that probable shift of habitat for blue sheep from optimal areas occurs due to livestock presence, which might disturb their nutritional balance. Our study provides helpful insights for management of rangelands, which when tied with dietary patterns will give wholesome idea for proper conservation measures in future.