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Scientific Transactions in Environment and Technovation

Research

Scientific Transactions in Environment and Technovation, | 0
Year : 2016 | Volume: 5 | Issue: 4 | Pages : 167-173

Food habits of Leopard (Panthera pardus) in Tropical forest of Southern India.

Abstract :

Importance of shade trees to elephants was studied from December to March 2012 in dry deciduous, moist deciduous, and thorn forest areas of Mudumalai Tiger Reserve. The objectives included time activity budget of elephants and assessment of shade trees used by elephants. Resting was the major diurnal activity of elephants recorded under shade trees. Evidences of dung piles, feeding signs and sleeping signs concluded that the shade trees were more extensively used by elephants mainly for resting especially during the dry season. Shade trees were more extensively used by female led family groups than solitary ones. Signs of mud bath by elephants were commonly noticed in dry deciduous forest as a function of thermoregulation. A total of seventy two shade trees were recorded in all three habitats together. Density of shade trees was more in thorn forest due to unavailability of regeneration and recruitments of plants. Number of shade tree species and their dominance varied among habitat types. A total of 33 tree species were found to be utilized for resting activity by elephants. Plant species namely Mangifera indica, Anogeissus latifolia, Acacia intia, Tectona grandis, and Butea monosperma were heavily used by elephants for shade. The present study concluded that shade trees are important for elephants especially during dry season in order to get thermoregulation and also nurse their calves from extreme temperature.

Keywords:

Asian elephant, Mud bath, Shade trees, Thermoregulation

Citation: *,

( 2016), Food habits of Leopard (Panthera pardus) in Tropical forest of Southern India.. Scientific Transactions in Environment and Technovation, 5(4): 167-173

Mr.Veerapathiran K

Correspondence: C.Arivazhagan


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