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TOPIC : CROCODILE
CONSERVATION PROJECT
SUBMITTED TO: DR.
DIVYA RAWAT
SUBMITTED BY :JYOTI
SINGH
Y22265011
M.Sc. III SEM
Introduction
Crocodilians were threatened in India due to indiscriminate commercial killing and severe habitat loss
until the Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972.
By the 1970s, all three crocodile species (Gharial, Mugger crocodile, and Saltwater crocodile) in
Odisha's river systems were on the verge of extinction.
Crocodiles were scarce due to increased human activity in rivers and other traditional habitats,
resulting in a reduction in the extent of habitable stretches. In addition, predation reduces the survival
rate of crocodile hatchlings in the wild.
From the 1960s onward, piecemeal efforts were made to save the crocodile.
Dr. H.R.Bustard, an FAO expert hired by UNDP/FAO and the Government of India, studied the
prospects of crocodile rehabilitation, and a Crocodile Conservation Project was launched in
1975 in various states based on his report and guidance.
TYPES OF CROCODILE SPECIES
GHARIAL Click icon to add picture
Description
GHARIALS , sometimes called gavials, are a type of Asia crocodilian
•distinguished by their long, thin snouts which resembles a pot
• (ghara in Hindi).
Gharials are a type of Crocodilians that also includes crocodiles
alligators, caimans, etc.
•The population of Gharials are a good indicator of clean river water.
•The gharial is known to be a relatively harmless, fish-eating species.
•Habitat:
The gharials are mostly found in fresh waters of the himalayan rivers.
•The chambal river in the northern slopes of the Vindhya mountains
( Madhya Pradesh) is known as the primary habitat of gharials.
•Other himalayan rivers like ghagra, gandak river, Girwa river,
• Ramganga river and the Sone river are secondary habitats for gharials.
•Threats:
•Illegal sand mining, poaching, increased river pollution,
•dam construction, massive-scale fishing operations and floods
•Protection Status:
IUCN List of Threatened Species: Critically Endangered
•Wildlife Protection Act, 1972
Mugger or Marsh Crocodile: Click icon to add picture
:
DESCRIPTION
The mugger is an egg-laying and hole-nesting species.
The mugger is also known to be dangerous.
Habitat:
It is mainly restricted to the Indian subcontinent where it may be found in a number
•of freshwater habitat types including rivers, lakes and marshes. However, it can even
be found
in coastal saltwater lagoons and estuaries.
It is already extinct in Bhutan and Myanmar.
Threats
Habitat destruction, fragmentation, and transformation, fishing activities and
use of crocodile parts for medicinal purposes.
• Protection Status:
• IUCN List of Threatened Species: Vulnerable
Wildlife Protection Act, 1972
ESTUARINE OR
SALTWATER CROCODILE Click icon to add picture
Description:
It is considered as the Earth’s largest living crocodile species.
•The estuarine crocodile is infamous globally as a known
•maneater.
•Habitat:
It is found in Odisha’s Bhitarkanika National Park, the sunderbans
•in
•West Bengal and the Andamans and Nicobar Islands.
•It is also found across Southeast Asia and northern Australia.
•Threats:
Illegal hunting, habitat loss, and antipathy toward the species
• because
• of its reputation as a man-eater continue to put pressure on
• the population.
•Protection Status:
IUCN List of Threatened Species: Least Concern
•Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 : Schedule I
What is the Indian Crocodile Conservation Project?
•All three crocodile species have been saved from extinction, and many of their habitats have been added to the state's protected
area network.
•The crocodile project, which has long slowed in the state, has made significant contributions to the development of knowledge and
the spread of awareness.
•Crocodiles' future can be secured by adequately protecting their habitats.
•Aside from producing a large number of crocodiles in a short period of time, the Crocodile Project has made numerous
contributions to the overall approach to wildlife conservation, research, and training.
•Locals have been intimately involved in crocodile management.
•Full-time research personnel have been hired for the wildlife wing to conduct crocodile and other wildlife research.
•Crocodiles have been used as the flagship species in some important wetland sanctuaries.
•Other wetland species were actively managed alongside the crocodilians. Mangrove plants, marine turtles, freshwater turtles,
monitor lizards, Gangetic dolphins, otters, and other reptilian fauna were among them.
•Along with the crocodile project, an intimate international collaboration in wildlife conservation, education, and training began.
Crocodile Conservation Programmes in India
Baula Project in Dangamal
•Gharial eggs were collected at Tikarpara at various times from Nepal's Narayani and Kali rivers, as well as
the Chambal sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh. The eggs taken from Mahanadi
were infertile.
•Gharial hatchlings were obtained from eggs incubated in Nepal's Royal Chitwan National Park and Uttar
Pradesh's Katarniyaghat sanctuary.
•More than 700 Gharials raised at Tikarpara and those produced through captive breeding at Nandankanan
Zoo were released in the Mahanadi River between Boudh and Katrang.
•One assessment of the rear and release operation in respect of Gharials was made between December 1987
and January 1988, when only 25 Gharials were discovered to be surviving in the entire stretch of the river
Mahanadi and down stream of Hirakud Reservoir over a 400-kilometer stretch.
•One male and two female Gharials were sighted and counted in and outside of the sanctuary during the
January 2003 census. A study was conducted to determine the causes of the Gharial's poor survival in
Mahanadi.