Gibbon sanctuary census begins under aegis of Cotton College State University

GUWAHATI: In a major step ahead in wildlife conservation in the northeast, the Cotton College State University (CCSU), in collaboration with the Corbett Foundation, has begun the primate census in the Hoollongapar Gibbon Sanctuary in upper Assam's Jorhat district. The sanctuary, covering an area of 20.98 square kilometre, is known to harbour one of the highest primate densities in the world.
The project is the first step in a long-term monitoring process, in which primates and their habitats will be studied.Volunteers from CCSU, Gauhati University, the Nature Conservation Foundation and Environ are conducting the census and roping in local youths from villages on the fringe areas as well as forest staff of the sanctuary.
Over the next week, the survey team will document the population of various primate species of the sanctuary and establish permanent plots in the sanctuary for annual monitoring of its vegetation. The evergreen forest is located 19 km from Jorhat town and is an isolated protected area.
"The census provides trends in population change, helps identify the species which are on the decline and indicates if conservation measures taken by the management are being effective. The permanent plots for annual monitoring of vegetation is a unique initiative, which could unravel the pattern of habitat changes and contribute to our understanding of anthropogenic pressure and climate change," said Narayan Sharma, head (in charge) of the department of environmental biology and wildlife sciences at CCSU.
"Identification of one or more marker individuals, who have distinctive body marks such as a cut nose or ear or an unusual coat can substantially reduce the chances of double counting," he added. It is of utmost importance that double counting of the same primate troop be avoided and the variation in the identification of age-sex of the individuals in a troop be minimized, he explained.
Mayur Bawri of the Corbett Foundation stressed on the need to conduct a census in the sanctuaries on a regular basis since no census has been carried out at the Hollongapar Gibbon Sanctuary since 2008 even though it is believed to be home to as many as six species. Vice-chancellor of CCSU, Dhruba Jyoti Saikia, described the census as one of the major steps taken by Cotton University towards conservation in the northeast.