Complete information on the Management of Protected Areas

The basic objectives of management of protected areas are it a national park or a sanctuary or a nature reserve or a biosphere reserve is to ensure that:

1. The viable populations of species present in the system co-exist, grow and multiply without any interference from outside factors.

2. Free play of chance variations in the environment, like floods, drought, hailstorms, various pathogens, fires etc. are permitted to enable the organisms within the system to adjust and adopt to the chance variations in the conditions of the environment. These changes should not be so extensive as to wipe out the entire population. In brief the process of natural selection and evolution should be allowed to continue uninterruptedly.

The very objectives of the management of protected areas suggest that the managerial interference in the affairs of wildlife should be as little as possible. However, excluding detrimental human influence is a big task in itself and so is the elimination of detrimental biotic influence both of which call for an intensive monitoring of protected areas and an expert human attention. The management practices generally adopted for a protected habitat may, therefore, be grouped into following:

1. Excluding detrimental human interference.

2 Excluding the exotic species or the detrimental biotic interference.

3. Using limited corrective measures.

4. Intensive monitoring of protected areas.

1. Excluding Detrimental Human Interference:

Probably there is no place left on this planet uninfluenced by human activity. Protected area often surrounded by human establishments and many of them have these establishments within their boundaries. Man uses the forest around for collection of fire wood, timber, fruits and nuts, hunting game animals etc. These regular encroachments by man are injurious to the wild life which has move to other parts of the protected areas where crowding and other undesirable changes may occur.

A gradual thinning of the margins of protected areas takes place and in cases where human establishments are situated within the confines of the protected area this thinning occurs in gradually enlarging circles around the human establishments. Indigenous tribes living in the locality have been using the resources of forests since times immemorial. Establishment of protected area snatches away their traditional resource base, which is strongly resented. It becomes very difficult to excluded detrimental human encroachments in the face of hostile people living around and within the confines of the protected area.

Many inhabitants of these establishments trade in wild life products which is an important subsidiary source of their livelihood. As lucrative markets are available in many countries for various wild life products illegal poaching activity continues in many protected areas. Skin, fur, feather, leather, rhino horns, tusks, ivory etc. are in great demand in many countries of the world and the trade in products of wild life has assumed an international character with well organized, armed gangs engaged in its operations. It is often every difficult to deal with such people and at times wail encounters are required to check the merciless killing of the prized animals.

Complete elimination of human influence from natural ecosystems is often questioned. Mai is just another species in the biosphere and organisms have been evolving in his presence ever since he appeared on earth’s surface. Wild life has to co-exist with man in future as well. Though man’s influence has been more on the detrimental side, a number of organisms have adopted themselves to his presence and have thus been benefited. Some scientists believe that complete elimination of man’s influences may not be as wise as we assume. Man and wild life can co-exist if we eliminate the detrimental human interference from a protected area.

The problem of checking pollution of air and water is more severe today. Human establishments, industries, waste disposal sites situated near the protected area pollute the air with harmful gaseous effluents and streams flowing through the area may carry polluted waters. Sulphur dioxide emitted by smelters may cause acid rains over large areas. Too much of shoot, ashes and smoke emitted by power plants may cause problems of toxicity when brought down to the area by precipitation. All this is injurious to wild life in general.

2. Excluding Exotic Species or Detrimental Biotic Interference:

With rapid strides in communication and transportation technology extensive migrations have occurred during the past few centuries. Wherever man migrated he carried with him, his pets and plants and introduced them to new localities. This has resulted in homogenization of the biotic spectrum in many parts of the world. Original flora and fauna of the locality had to bear the onslaught of invading species and compete with them. A number of forms which failed to do so could not survive. Those which survived had to adapt to life in presence of alien organisms. This brought about changes in the entire biotic spectrum and could also affect the course of future evolution of the life forms of the locality.

The case of Hawaiian Parks, Hawaii islands, in the middle of Pacific Ocean, illustrates the true dimension of the problem of exotic species. Due to its position in the middle of Pacific Ocean and distance from any of the mainlands around the Pacific, Hawain Islands had a unique flora and fauna which had evolved in virtual isolation from the biotic communities at other places. When Polynesians arrived on these islands about 1,760 species of plants existed out of which 95-99% was endemic and unique (Kepler and Scott 1985).

Polynesian colonists introduced about 30 species (Nagata 1985). The advent of distant people from diverse cultural backgrounds which followed from 18th century onwards, each of which introduced their own distinctive food, medicinal and ornamental plants, has caused the addition of about 4,600 species of vascular plants alone.

Of these, nearly 700 are reproducing successfully and maintaining themselves as conspicuous populations. This has caused the extinction of nearly 200 endemic species (recorded cases) and another 1,000 or so are endangered (Smith 1985, Moulton and Pimm 1986, Vitousek 1989). This has completely altered the indigenous flora and fauna of Hawaii group of islands. Exotic species are usually rough, hardy and tenacious forms which are widely distributed and as such are of little conservation interest. What we are interested in is the indigenous flora and fauna which suffers at the hands of exotic species.

Therefore, if we have to protect original habitats along with their indigenous biotic spectrum in a protected area, we shall have to identify the problem species or the exotic species and concentrate our efforts to exclude them from the protected habitats.

3. Using Limited Corrective Measures:

Chance variations in the conditions of environment, such as drought, floods, fires, pathogens etc. often effect the wild life in a protected area adversely. These trying situations or rough times are useful for the development of populations which become better adapted to their environments and thus have greater chances of survival in future.

However, these adverse changes may at times be so severe, as to decimate the entire population – leaving us nothing to conserve. Under such circumstances it becomes necessary to apply limited corrective steps to ensure that viable populations of as many species as possible survive through these rough and trying situations.

These steps vary from area to area and depend largely on the nature of adversities faced by the biotic community. They may include provision of space, food and water, treatment of diseased animals, elimination or removal of exotic species, elimination of diseased individuals if they are likely to infect others in the population, displacement of threatened populations to safer places, etc.

No doubt, the corrective steps stated above cannot be resorted to in the case of every individual or every population within the biotic community because of inadequacy of our means. Only a few selected species or group of species can be helped in this way.

These methods tend to interfere in the vital process of natural selection which is undesirable. Therefore, such methods should be applied only under conditions of dire necessity – when the entire population is likely to vanish, it is better to save at least some of it from which new populations may be generated when the conditions normalize.

4. Intensive Monitoring of the Protected Areas:

Intensive monitoring of the protected area is essential in order to keep a close watch over the biotic spectrum which we want to protect. This monitoring usually involves:

1. Observations on air, water and soil quality:

Food water and air are the basic requirements for all life activity. With human establishments all around, it becomes necessary to keep a close watch on air, water and soil quality of the protected habitat. Adverse changes in these components of the environment may induce changes in the biotic spectrum of the protected area.

Susceptible species shall be suppressed, hardy and resistant forms shall come up and multiply. This may cause both biotic and abiotic environment within the system to change making life difficult for the organisms we wish to protect. Various physical and chemical parameters of air, water and soil quality which are detailed in Chapter 24 should be regularly monitored.

2. Observations on changes in population densities, frequencies, migrations and health of the biotic community within the system:

The physico-chemical parameters of environmental quality provide information about changes in the abiotic component, while observations on changes in the biotic community reveal the effect of these changes. Many changes in environmental quality are so subtle that physical and chemical methods available today are unable to detect them.

However, these changes are perceived by biotic component in the system which regularly adjusts itself in accordance to these changes. Thus, a close observation on the biotic component (Biological monitoring) of the system may reveal changes which are not detected by various physical and chemical methods Biological monitoring also provides early warning system so that preventive or precautionary measures may be taken before the changes appear in its full intensity. Physico-chemical methods are of little use when the system is subjected to some type of biotic stress, such as rise in poaching activity or entry of some exotic organism. For detecting adverse biotic changes a close observation by an expert who could feel the pulse of wild life is required.

3. Observation on behaviour, growth pattern, growth requirements and life cycles of organisms occurring in a protected area:

We know very little about wild life which occurs on this planet. Detailed studies on growth pattern, growth requirements and life cycles have been carried out only in the case of a few selected forms. The vast and heterogenous collection of millions of species which are important to us in one way or other has never been subjected to intensive scientific study.

Collecting naming and listing the species in the flora or fauna of a locality is one thing but to conserve them and help them to survive under the stresses induced by habitat destruction or pollution is another. How can we ensure the species’ survival if we do not know that it requires and under what conditions it grows and multiplies?

The detailed observations which we have on the bamboo eating Pandas or different species of whales, the lions, tigers and different cats, crocodiles, vultures, the hippos and rhinos etc. are relatively recent ones. It is these studies which have helped us to conserve them successfully. Thus research and scientific study of various component species of an ecosystem be it a insect or an algae or a higher plant is must. This knowledge shall be extremely helpful in our future conservation efforts.

Therefore, a primary requirement for any protected habitat is a centre or a laboratory for carrying out studies on the nature, behaviour requirements, growth patterns and life cycles of different species present in the system.