ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First of all, On behalf of the Institute of Hotel Management, Pusa, New Delhi, we wish toextend our heartfelt gratitude to Shri Sujit Banerjee, Secretary, Shri Sanjay Kothari,Additional Secretary (T) and Shri Devesh Chaturvedi, ADG (T) Ministry of Tourism,Government of India for giving the opportunity to the institute to conduct the audit/ survey ofhotels, lodges, resorts, camps and guest houses in and around Corbett National Park,Uttarakhand. We take this opportunity to convey our sincere thanks to Shri Rajiv Bhartari, AdditionalSecretary, Tourism, Government of Uttarakhand for...

BACKGROUND The following is a report on the findings of a study conducted by Mahseer Conservancy in collaboration with the Wildlife Institute of India on the status of Golden Mahseer populations in the Ramganga River and investigations into possible reasons for their apparent decline. The research was conducted during a 6 week period in March and April 2010. The golden mahseer occurs across the Himalayas and inhabits the streams and rivers that drain the lower Himalayan terrain. The large surface area of its fins, cylindrical body and muscular tail are adapted to suit the montane water environments...

MINING AND DYNAMITING, CAN THE MIGHTY MAHSEER SURVIVE?  The Ramganga River that runs alongside the Jim Corbett National Park is pristine. Casually peering into the river you will inevitably see swarms of golden mahseer darting around in the clear water hunting for small Chilwa. Look along the bank and you may see an Otter swimming in the shallows or a Gharial basking in the sun, point your head skywards and you’ll likely see a flock of Cormorants and perhaps a fish eagle soaring overhead. It is a complete river ecosystem. However, this reality is in stark contrast to the same river just 20km...

Joining Hands to Save Himalayan Aquatic Resources.’ A seminar to raise awareness about Nepal’s aquatic biodiversity.   Save Himalayan Aquatic Resources (SAHAR) kicked off its awareness campaign with a half-day seminar on Friday, 11 June 2010 at the DECC, United World Trade Center, Tripureshwor. It was the intention of SAHAR to use this occasion to raise awareness about the state of Nepal’s aquatic biodiversity, the challenges Nepal faces in protecting this resource so essential to the development of the country, and options to mitigate the loss of our natural heritage. To this end, SAHAR...

Coming from New Zealand, my experience of snakes is pretty limited as we have no snakes back home. So, when we got the call to say that someone had found the carcass of a 20 foot long King Cobra (or Hamadryad, Ophiophagus hannah), I jumped at the chance to go and witness this phenomenon.  A snake that has earned a reputation for its aggressiveness and courage, and is the largest venomous snake in the world, is definitely worth a look!   Myself, Sumantha Ghosh, and Frederique Lacraz all piled into the jeep early on the morning of the 1st May 2010 to head towards Kaladhungi, Nainital District,...

  Tiger (Panthera tigris corbetti) hair analysis from Uttarakhand, by S.K. Gupta, Scientist from Wildlife Institute of India, Wildlife Forensic Lab, Dehradun 2010. A report on similarity test of two hair samples of Tiger (Panthera tigris)     Abstract: Two tiger hair samples were sent by Frederique Lacraz, Society for Mahseer Conservancy, Ramnagar, Uttarakhand to Wildlife Institute of India. Those two tiger hair samples were collected in the same area (Tera village) where there has been two attacks on ladies by tigers. The reason for a DNA analysis was to identify, whether both the sample...

White-Rumped Shama (Copsychus malabaricus) We all at some point in our life are fascinated with birds. During our childhood days, our adulthood or old age. Birds are found in different shape, size and colour. Birds are in true sense a gift of Mother Nature to us. Birds are a very special life form on earth as these winged creatures are capable of flying, running and even some can swim. Not all birds can fly like kiwi, ostrich. In many birds male and female birds of same species are of different colour this is called sexual dimorphism. Usually males are more beautiful and females are little dull...

Emanating from Dudhatoli, some 140 km north of Corbett Tiger Reserve (CTR) in the Himalayan foothills, the Western Ramganga is also known as the Corbett Ramganga or just Ramganga. Since Ramganga is not a snow-fed river, fishing is a throughout the year attraction. Fishing is permitted on the 100 km stretch from Nagteley to Masi in the Upper Ramganga reaches from 15th of June till the 30th of September. You can enjoy the thrill of sport fishing in the exclusive beats around Vanghat from the 1st of October till the 15th of June, each season. The upper Ramganga is a typical Himalayan river with deep...

Chilwa is the most common fish of the Ramganga. They run usually about six inches in length, the biggest specimens growing up to a feet in length. It has a long more or less compressed body with a small head and upturned mouth. A bright silvery fish, covered with minute silver scales which come off very easily when handled. It usually keeps to the surface of the water. When freshly caught in running water, its coloring is most beautiful. The brilliant silver of its scales contrasts with the pale greenish sheen of its back, giving a fleeting radiance. Chilwa has a habit of continually throwing itself...

Belonging to the baril family, there are 14 varieties resident in India. Most of these take a fly with great interest. Despite being sporting fish, barils don’t grow to more than ten inches, except one variety—Barilius bola or the Indian trout, which tilts the scales at 5 lbs. The Indian trout can be found in any of the streams of Northen India and Assam. It prefers slow moving water above a rapid with fairly large boulders, to the actual rapid itself. It is silvery in color and has two or more rows of bluish blotches along the sides. Its caudal fin is orange stained with grey and black, while...