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Establishing ecological baselines around a temperate Himalayan peatland

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Abstract

Temperate wetlands provide ecosystem services for Himalayan communities and are important targets for biological conservation. However, over the past decade, management activities around these sites have lagged due, in part, to limited baselines on their historical ecology and hydrologic dynamics. This article advances Himalayan wetland studies by reviewing available data from Khecheopalri, a temperate peatland located in the Sikkim Eastern Himalayas. Formed after the Last Glacial Maximum, Khecheopalri contains distinctive ecological assemblages as well as a central waterbody considered sacred to Indigenous and local groups. Environmental organizations have collaborated with cultural institutions to conserve these natural resources. Nevertheless, significant anthropogenic changes have continued at Khecheopalri since the late 1980s. By reviewing these developments, this article establishes baselines for future management activities at this peatland. It also presents the first collated record of Himalayan peatland biodiversity, which includes 682 species representing 5 kingdoms, 196 families, and 453 genera reported at Khecheopalri. Results emphasize the need for continued, systematic surveys of biodiversity as well as rigorous hydrologic sampling throughout the Eastern Himalayas. Such data will support ongoing efforts to recognize this site as both a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

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Data availability

Geospatial and review data are available either as an Online appendix and/or upon request.

Notes

  1. Search terms were modified to capture anglicized names for the Tibetan mkha spyod dpal ri (Wylie): chhogo, kaychupalri, khachoedpalri, khe-cheod-palri, khecheopalri, khecheodpalri, khecheoperi, khecheodperi, khechepere, khecheperi, khechepuri, khecheoperi, khecheopuri, khecheypery, khechiperi, khechipery, khechoperi, khechupalri, khechuperi, khechupery, tso-shuk-tso, mkha-spyod-dpal-ri, kha-chot-palri. lethang chojo. The Biodiversity Heritage Library and the Global Biodiversity Information Forum were included as additional sources in this review.

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Acknowledgements

We extend our gratitude to the United States India Education Foundation (USIEF) and the United States William J. Fulbright Commission for supporting AR O’Neill’s Fulbright-Nehru Research Fellowship. We also appreciate our colleagues at the G. B. Pant National Institute for Himalayan Environment & Sustainable Development and the Botanical Survey of India, namely HK Badola and DK Agrawala. At Duke University, we thank N Cagle, B Albright, and D Richter, Jr. for their comments on various aspects of this manuscript. Thanks also go to T O’Neill and Z Angel for providing edits on our final draft. Finally, this research was only possible with the support of L & S O’Neill and J & R Tansill.

Funding

This research was funded by a Fulbright-Nehru Research Scholarship granted to AR O’Neill by the United States-India Education Foundation (USIEF) and the Institute for International Education (IIE). Funding agencies did not participate in any aspect of project design, study implementation, data interpretation, or manuscript preparation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA

    Alexander R. O’Neill

  2. G. B. Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment & Sustainable Development, Sikkim Unit, Gangtok, Sikkim, India

    Alexander R. O’Neill

  3. Forest, Environment & Wildlife Management Department, Government of Sikkim, Pakyong, Sikkim, India

    Prem K. Chhetri

  4. Bombay Natural History Society—Mumbai, Dr. Salim Ali Chowk, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Road, Mumbai, India

    Bijoy Chhetri

  5. Key Laboratory for Plant Diversity and Biogeography of East Asia, Kunming Institute of Botany, CAS, Kunming, Yunnan, China

    Santosh K. Rana

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  1. Alexander R. O’Neill
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Correspondence to Santosh K. Rana.

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O’Neill, A.R., Chhetri, P.K., Chhetri, B. et al. Establishing ecological baselines around a temperate Himalayan peatland. Wetlands Ecol Manage 28, 375–388 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11273-020-09710-7

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