Finding changes within protected habitats: an assessment of landscape characteristics using geospatial techniques in the lower Shivalik landscape of the Western Himalayas

Tamali Mondal, Dinesh Chandra Bhatt and Ramesh Krishnamurthy

Landscape Research, 2024, vol. 49, issue 5, 668-684

Abstract: A GIS-based approach was used in this study to assess 10 years of land-use change in the lower Shivalik landscape of the Western Himalayas, India. The landscape encompasses two major protected areas which are home to a thriving population of large mammals. The main objective was to identify the changes in the land use pattern, specifically after forming a new tiger reserve in the landscape. Landsat 8 and 4 imagery were used for the time series analysis for the years 2018, 2013, and 2008, respectively. The change was calculated using nine land use classes, with mixed forest showing the highest change value, followed by agriculture, grassland, and scrub. The dense forest area increased immensely after the formation of the new tiger reserve. The results for dense and mixed forest classes also identified less fragmentation in the number of patches during the same time. Even though most of the landscape is within the boundaries of a protected area, the change in land use forms is noticeable. As development activities continue to expand, this region will face increased strain, which will impact the area’s natural biodiversity. To protect that, a long-term conservation management effort is required.

Date: 2024
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://hdl.handle.net/10.1080/01426397.2024.2323604 (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:taf:clarxx:v:49:y:2024:i:5:p:668-684

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.tandfonline.com/pricing/journal/clar20

DOI: 10.1080/01426397.2024.2323604

Access Statistics for this article

Landscape Research is currently edited by Dr Anna Jorgensen

More articles in Landscape Research from Taylor & Francis Journals
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Chris Longhurst ().