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Source-This post on Need for new definition of elephant corridors must be carefully planned has been created based on the article “Efforts to reconnect elephant corridors must be carefully planned” published in “Down to Earth” on 5 April 2024.
UPSC Syllabus- GS Paper-3– Conservation, Environmental Pollution and Degradation, Environmental Impact Assessment.
Context-The article highlights the need to develop a national framework that is based on recent scientific methods to secure habitat connectivity and conservation of elephants.
What is an elephant corridor?
Landscape ecology definition – In the 1960s, it defined corridor as an elongated stretch of land joining two reserves. To identify elephant corridor, experts relied on field knowledge and marked a long and narrow passage that can be preserved or restored as a corridor.
What is the significance of the Elephant corridor?
1) Preventing fragmentation of population– Population fragmentation is the splitting of a large single population into smaller and isolated units. This increases the risk of extinction for endangered species. Elephant corridors would allow smooth group movement of elephant.
2) Preserving genetic diversity-Protecting the habitat and ensuring connectivity of the elephants through corridors will help maintain a genetically viable population and conserve biodiversity.
Read more-The Asian Elephant
What are the problems with the expert identification of elephant’s corridors?
1) Inappropriate design– The sensory world and physiological requirements of animals are entirely different from humans and animals decide their movement based on many variables unknown to humans. Thus, corridor designed by experts may not be suitable for animals
2) Lack of comprehensive views– Experts do not have a synoptic or a comprehensive view of larger landscapes.They know some parts of landscapes better than others. This may lead to bias. Further,they may also overlook disruptions, such as a noise barrier that may deter animals from crossing.
3) The Wrong Approach-Animals movement is not accorded great importance by the investigation carried out by the experts. This realization influenced a new era in the early 2000s. Landscape ecology has become more accurate and new frontiers of scientific exploration opened to include aspects of animal behaviour, physiology and evolutionary biology.
What are the current factors of identifying core areas and corridors?
They are based on three factors-
1) Intensive use of field data- It helps in collecting essential knowledge on animal presence, movement records and genetic profile.
2) Improvement in GIS (Geographic Information Systems)- Animal presence is obtained from camera trapping or from georeferenced indices. The movement paths are obtained by radio or satellite telemetry.
3) Availability of geospatial data and adapted algorithms.
What is the significance of Resistance map and Connectivity map?
1) Resistance Map-It talks about resistance to animal movement in two dimensions. It can be compared to a road map with speed limits that is road chosen by the vehicle will depend on the road capacity and speed limit. Similarly, animal movement is modelled on the resistance map through several algorithms known to specialists such as circuit theory, factorial least-cost paths.
2) Connectivity map-In this, regions with highest connectivity start in the core areas, usually within reserves, and extend into the landscape matrix that is guided by the animal’s biology rather than expert knowledge.
Corridor should be defined as a place where connectivity is higher. It should not depend on whether the corridor is inside or outside protected areas.
Question for practice
What is the significance of the elephant corridor. Highlight the issues with the experts engaged in identifying elephant’s corridor?
