studies on the food and feeding habits of swamp deer...

Hindawi Publishing CorporationISRN ZoologyVolume 2013 Article ID 278213 6 pageshttpdxdoiorg1011552013278213

Research ArticleStudies on the Food and Feeding Habits of Swamp Deer(Rucervus duvaucelii duvaucelii) in Jhilmil Jheel ConservationReserve Haridwar Uttarakhand India

R Tewari1 and G S Rawat12

1 Wildlife Institute of India PO Box 18 Chandrabani Dehradun 248001 India2 International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) Khumaltar Lalitpur PO Box 3226 Kathmandu Nepal

Correspondence should be addressed to R Tewari rachna friyahoocoin

Received 11 June 2013 Accepted 18 July 2013

Academic Editors J Gautrais D Park and K E Ruckstuhl

Copyright copy 2013 R Tewari and G S Rawat This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons AttributionLicense which permits unrestricted use distribution and reproduction in any medium provided the original work is properlycited

Food habits of the swamp deer (Rucervus duvaucelii duvaucelii) were studied in and around Jhilmil Jheel Conservation Reserve(JJCR) Uttarakhand for two years This population (320 in number) was recently rediscovered in the state (2005) and warrantedan ecological study because the habitat around this study area is heavily fragmented due to expansion of agriculture habitationand various other land use practices Therefore this study was initiated by the major objective of studying seasonal variation infood habits of swamp deer Proportionate food consumption was studied using feeding quadrat methodThe study reveals that theoverall diet of swamp deer consisted mainly of graminoids (grasses and sedges) and herbs (terrestrial and aquatic) In the protectedareas studied earlier the swamp deer habitat was dominated by grasses and hence they were reported to be predominantly a grazerwho occasionally fed on aquatic plants (Schaller 1967 and others) In contrast at Jhilmil the area also has equal presence of otherplant types namely sedges and terrestrial herbs This resulted in polyphagous feeding habit of animal here

1 Introduction

Swamp deer (Rucervus duvaucelii duvaucelii) also known asthe Barasingha lives in the swampy grasslands and flood-plains of Indian subcontinent [1] It is currently found inisolated localities in north and central India and southwesternNepal [2] It eats mainly grasses and remains close to water allthe time [1] Barasingha is listed as Vulnerable C1 because theestimated population lies between 3500 and 5100 animals(not all of which will be mature individuals) and outsideseveral key populations the protection status is not secureThe species range is now highly fragmented and the totalarea of occupancy (AOO) possibly falls below 2000 km2Thisspecies is reliant upon hands-on management in protectedareas and changes in management style could see a resump-tion of very rapid declines echoing those of themid-twentiethcentury [3]

Studies on the food habits of swamp deer have beencarried out in different habitats by a number of researchers

The earliest account available about forage species of swampdeer in Dudhwa was given by Schaller [1] Later on Singh [4]Qureshi et al [5] and Khan and Ahmed [6] also studied thefeeding habits of swamp deer inDudhwa forest Observationson food habits of barasingha in Kanha were made by Martin[7] Swamp deer of Nepal were studied by Schaaf [8] Moe[9] Pokharel [10] Bhatta [11] and Wegge et al [12] JhilmilJheel happens to be the last refuge of swamp deer in westernmost portion of its distribution range [13] The present studywas undertaken with an aim to identify the plant speciesconsumed by swamp deer and their feeding habits in differentseasons

2 Materials and Methods

21 Study Area Jhilmil Jheel is a saucer shaped wetlandlocated betweenHaridwar-Najimabad highway and the RiverGanges in Chidiyapur Range of Haridwar Division Uttarak-hand covering an area of 3783 km2 of Reserve Forest and

2 ISRN Zoology

elevation ranging from 200 to 250 meters above MSL [14]The spectacular terai landscape of the study area is a mosaicof short and tall grasslands tropical mixed moist deciduousforests and secondary scrub (Figure 1) Throughout thelandscape shifting of river channels over time has left behindmany old channels where numerous seasonal and perennialswamps (ldquotalsrdquo) or wetlands occur The central swamp zonerepresents one of the above swamps such-oxbow-lake formedalong the eastern bank of River Ganges Surrounding areasget submerged during the monsoon A number of smallrivulets (total 32 in number) emerge from the woodlandand discharge into Jhilmil Jheel which finally drain into theGanges Most of them provide water throughout the yearwhile some dry up for about 6-7 months The reserve areaalso receives water from the Shivaliks formations of Chidiya-pur and the adjacent ranges such as underground streamslocally called ldquoChoyasrdquo The area experiences subtropicalclimate Annual rainfall averages about 1300mm (recordedbetween 1997 and 2007) and is most prominent during JunendashSeptember (monsoon) Temperature soars up to 44∘C inMay and drops to 2∘C in January The texture of the soilvaries from fine sand to clay loam The area is rich in faunaland floral diversity including spotted deer elephant bluebull wild boar monkey langur mongoose hare commonleopard and occasionally tiger jungle cat otter porcupinesambar barking deer and hog deer that are also seen inthe area The dominant vegetation types include Typhaelephantina Phragmites karka Imperata cylindrica Vetiveriazizanioides Ziziphus mauritiana and Salix tetrasperma Thelocal inhabitants of TantwalaVillage adjacent to Jhilmil Jheelconsist of 146 householdsThey are of different communitiesnamely Punjabis Sainis Garhwalis and Gujjars who settledhere in the early 1950s Before the enforcement of Wildlife(Protection) Act of 1972 limited wildlife shooting was per-mitted here The working plans in the initial 70ndash80 years ofthe management history (1896ndash1973) aimed only at obtainingmore revenue out of the forest wealth Later 1973 onward fromthere was a shift with the inclusion of wildlife conservationinitiatives in theworking plans (BKP Sinha plan of 1973ndash89)On August 5 2005 the government of Uttarakhand declaredthe area as a Conservation Reserve Before this declarationpeople (villagers and illegally settled nomads ldquogujjarsrdquo) werefreely grazing their livestock in the grasslands of Jhilmil Jheelarea Later gujjars were rehabilitated outside ConservationReserve area (in adjoining forest divisions) along RawasanRiver (Figure 1)

22 Methods Sampling sites in different habitats coveringmoist deciduous secondary scrub dry grassland swamp andcropland habitats an area of 6 km2 were selected for thepresent study Observation was done on foot A year-roundstudy was carried out for two years Three methods wereemployed for studying food habits (i) direct observation (ii)quantification of feeding and (iii) faecal analysis

221 Direct Observation To study the food habits of swampdeer a scan sampling method [15] was employed Observa-tions were made from selected vantage points in the area

using a pair of 8 times 40 binoculars and 15 times 45 spotting scopeSince the animals were observed in groups a scan was takenonce in 15 minutes Study time was for two years and wasdivided into four-month period corresponding to summermonsoon and winter A total of 100 hours of observationper season were compared The diurnal cycle was dividedinto 5 periods (1) 0700ndash0900 (2) 0900ndash1100 (3) 1100ndash1300(4) 1300ndash1500 and (5) 1500ndash1700 hours The number ofindividuals and age-sex composition of groups of swampdeerwere also recorded Individuals in the group were classifiedinto different age and sex classes following Martin [7] withappropriate modifications Over 250 detections of swampdeer groups weremade Chi-square test was performed to seethe variation in frequency distribution of different food plantsselected among different age and sex categories and amongseasons within categories

222 Quantification of Feeding The feeding sites were exam-ined after the animal left the location for plants with freshfeeding signs Identification of plants in the field was donewith the help of floras research papers and reports (eg [16ndash21]) Proportionate food consumptionwas estimated throughfeeding quadrat method [22 23] The plots (1 times 1m for grassand herbs and 5 times 5m for shrubs) were laid at random andthe number varied depending upon the size of the area usedby the animal at the time of observation The numbers offood species the percentage cover of each species and thephenology of available and utilized species were recordedThe principal food was worked out for grass herb and sedgeseparately

223 Faecal Analysis Themethod involves two major stepsfirst the preparation of reference material of the food plantspecies second the microhistological examination of faecalmaterial to estimate the frequency of fragments of variousplant species [24] Identification of plant fragments was basedon keys given by Satakopan [25] and Johnson et al [26] Theresults were compared with field observations

3 Results

Age and sex categories as a whole and across seasons showedno significant variation in feeding habits Yearling and fawnshowed significant differences in feeding habits across sea-sons (1205942 = 14646 119875 = 0023 and 1205942 = 1190 119875 = 0551 resp)Swamp deer in Jhilmil was observed to feed on 42 species ofplants belonging to 15 families More than 75 of the foodspecies were of the families Poaceae (16 species) Cyperaceae(5 species) Fabaceae (5 species) Asteraceae (4 species) andTyphaceae (2 species) (Table 1 Figure 2) Aerial parts chieflycomprising leaves were fed Root stock of Typha spp was fedthroughout monsoon while its fresh sprout was fed in winterand new leaves in summer Percentage contribution of thefood types namely grasses aquatic flora sedges and herbsto the overall diet and in individual seasons is presentedin Figure 3 A lesser number of food plant species wereidentified by faecal analysis when compared to the directobservations The reason was that monocot faecal fragments

ISRN Zoology 3

China

Nepal

Uttar Pradesh

Haryana

Himachal Pradesh

Bhogpur

Tilakpur

Thekawala

Naurangabad

Raw

asan

Rawasan

SabalgarhRF

Pili river

Jhilmil Jheel

Reserve

Khatta

Conservation

Jhilmil lake

Forest blocks

Reserved landRiversubmergence Compartment boundary

Agricultural land Tantwala

Scale 1 50000Ri

ver

Haridwar-Najibabad NH

To Nazim

abad

29∘30998400

30∘30998400

78∘10998400 78∘15998400

Figure 1 Location map of Jhilmil Jheel Conservation Reserve Source anonymous 2005 [14]

4 ISRN Zoology

Table 1 The principal food plant species in which habitat it occurs and major categories of food plants of swamp deer in Jhilmil JheelConservation Reserve

Food plant species Family Type of food plant Habitat categoryCoix lachryma-jobi Poaceae Grass SwampCynodon dactylon Poaceae Grass Dry grasslandCyrtococcum accrescens Poaceae Grass SwampEchinochloa colona Poaceae Grass CroplandImperata cylindrica Poaceae Grass Dry grasslandOplismenus compositus Poaceae Grass Moist deciduous forestOryza sativa Poaceae Grass CroplandPaspalidium flavidum Poaceae Grass Moist deciduous forestPaspalum conjugatum Poaceae Grass CroplandPaspalum scrobiculatum Poaceae Grass SwampPhragmites karka Poaceae Grass SwampPolypogon fugax Poaceae Grass CroplandSaccharum officinarum Poaceae Grass CroplandSaccharum spontaneum Poaceae Grass Secondary scrubSetaria glauca Poaceae Grass Dry grasslandVetiveria zizanioides Poaceae Grass Dry grasslandCarex myosurus Cyperaceae Sedge SwampCyperus brevifolius Cyperaceae Sedge SwampCyperus cyperoides Cyperaceae Sedge SwampFimbristylis dichotoma Cyperaceae Sedge SwampFimbristylis miliacea Cyperaceae Sedge SwampDesmodium triflorum Fabaceae Herb Secondary scrubMedicago lupulina Fabaceae Herb Secondary scrubMelilotus indica Fabaceae Herb CroplandTrifolium alexandrinum Fabaceae Herb CroplandTrifolium tomentosum Fabaceae Herb CroplandBlainvillea acmella Asteraceae Herb SwampParthenium hysterophorus Asteraceae Herb Moist deciduous forestSilybum marianum Asteraceae Herb Moist deciduous forestXanthium strumarium Asteraceae Herb SwampTypha angustifolia Typhaceae Aquatic flora SwampTypha elephantina Typhaceae Aquatic flora Swamp

could not be differentiated to species level thatrsquos why namedas similar species While 13 plant species were identified fromfaecal fragments in summer 8 in monsoon and 12 in winter

4 Discussion

Thevariation in feeding habits of yearling and fawn categoriesacross seasons was probably an outcome of low samplingintensity (fewer sightings) We have observed that swampdeer have proportionally more of grasses and aquatic plantsin their diet These observations are in agreement with thereports of Schaller 1967 Martin 1977 Schaff 1978 Singh1984 Moe 1994 Qureshi et al 1995 Pokharel 1996 Khanet al 2004 and Bhatta 2004 who reported that swampdeer is primarily a grazer who largely fed on grasses andaquatic plants In contrast a study on dry-season diet ofswamp deer in Nepal [12] showed that swamp deer diethad a proportion of woody plants as well (125) However

dominance of forage species and its distribution pattern in acertain locality have a great deal to do with its proportionateconsumption [7] At Jhilmil the area also has equal presenceof other plant types namely sedges and terrestrial herbsThis resulted in polyphagous feeding habit of the animalsthere (Table 2) Higher consumption for a particular foodtype showed seasonal variation Swamp deer (mixed feedersthough) commonly concentrated on grasses during high-rainfall periods and high rate of grass growthThe proportionof terrestrial and aquatic herbs in diet increased gradually inwinter and summer

Swamp deer showed shifts in their diet to specific part(root stock) of Typha spp in monsoon for physiologicalrequirement This is presumed to be a way to supplementcalcium intake [27] In summer there is an equal choicefor both new leaves of Typha spp and sedges This can beattributed to their almost equal availability and palatabilityIn this study site the overall principal diet of swamp deer

ISRN Zoology 5

Table 2 Food plants of swamp deer reported in previous and present study

Present study Schaller 1967 [1]Qureshi et al 2004 [2] Singh 1984 [4]

Khan andAhmed 2004

[6]

Martin 1977[7]

Schaaf 1978 [8]Moe 1994 [9]

Pokharel 1996 [10]Bhatta 2004 [11]

Wegge et al 2006[12]

Typha spp Hydrilla spp Arundo donax I cylindrica Grasses Brachiaria spp A donax

Grasses Hygroryza spp I cylindrica Corchorus capsularis Colebrookiaoppositifolia

Sedges Imperata cylindrica N porphyrocoma Cynodon dactylon Cymbopogon sppNarenga

porphyrocoma S spontaneum Cyperus rotundus Dalbergia sissoo

Oryza rufipogon Themeda spp Desmostachyabipinnata I cylindrica

Phragmites karka Ziziphusmauritiana Grewia sapida N porphyrocoma

Saccharumspontaneum I cylindrica P karka

P karka Phoenix humilisSaccharum munja SspontaneumS spontaneum Themeda spp

Vetiveriazizanoides

Z mauritiana

Other families24

Typhaceae5

Cyperaceae9

Asteraceae12

Fabaceae12

Poaceae38

Figure 2 Percentage relationships among the principal families ofthe food species of swamp deer in JJCR

consists of Typha spp in contrast to Imperata cylindricareported by all the authors in past The reason is Typharsquosavailability (in prime swamp deer habitat) and proportionarea covered in comparison to those of Imperata grasslands

5 Conclusion

The swamp deer is a mixed feeder consuming a wide varietyof food types and diet composition may vary according toseason and food availability They are selective only in mon-soon the time of abundant food supply and are nonselective

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

56

46

19

31

19

36

11

33

102 2

35

MonsoonWinterSummer

HerbSedgeGrass Aquatic flora

Figure 3 Percentage contribution of the food types to the overalldiet of swamp deer and their seasonal ranking

or opportunistic feeders in summer when food is limitedLong-term survival and conservation of herbivores dependon the availability of suitable habitats hence protection ofthe plant species utilized by herbivores is a significant factorin conservation biology

Acknowledgments

The authors are thankful to the Uttarakhand Forest Depart-ment for granting permission to work in the area andproviding financial assistance for this work They are also

6 ISRN Zoology

thankful to their field assistants who spent their sweat andblood with them for the successful completion of this projectThey are grateful to WII staff of computer cell libraryand herbarium The authors acknowledge frontline staff ofHaridwar Division for providing great hospitality and loveduring the stay at Jhilmil Thanks are due to director ofWII dean of Faculty of Wildlife Sciences WII for providinginfrastructural facilities at WII

References

[1] G B SchallerTheDeer and the Tiger Chicago University PressChicago Ill USA 1967

[2] Q Qureshi V B Sawarkar A R Rahmani and P K MathurldquoSwamp deer or barasingha (Cervus duvauceli Cuvier 1823)rdquoin Ungulates of India K Sankar and S P Goyal Eds vol 7 ofEnvis BulletinWildlife and Protected Areas pp 181ndash192WildlifeInstitute of India Dehradun India 2004

[3] J W Duckworth N S Kumar C P Pokharel H S Baral andR J Timmins ldquoRucervus duvauceliirdquo in IUCN 2012 IUCN RedList of Threatened Species 2008

[4] V P Singh Bio-ecological studies on Cervus duvauceli duvauceliswamp deer (barasingha) in Dudhwa forest near Indo-Nepalborder [PhD thesis] D A V College Kanpur University 1984

[5] Q Qureshi V B Sawarkar and P K Mathur ldquoEcology andmanagement of swamp deer (Cervus duvauceli) in DudhwaTiger Reserve UP (India)rdquo Project Report Wildlife Institute ofIndia Dehradun India 1995

[6] J A Khan and K Ahmed ldquoEcology and conservation ofbarasingha (Cervus duvauceli duvauceli) in Northern IndiardquoTech Rep 16 Wildlife Society of India 2004

[7] C Martin ldquoStatus and ecology of the barasingha (Cervusduvauceli branderi) in Kanha National Park (India)rdquo Journal ofthe Bombay Natural History Society vol 74 pp 60ndash132 1977

[8] C D Schaaf Population size and structure and habitat relationof the swamp deer (Cervus duvauceli duvauceli) in SuklaphantaWildlife Reserve Nepal [PhD thesis]Michigan StateUniversityEast Lansing Mich USA 1978

[9] S R Moe ldquoThe importance of aquatic vegetation for themanagement of the barasingha Cervus duvauceli in NepalrdquoBiological Conservation vol 70 no 1 pp 33ndash37 1994

[10] C P Pokharel Food habit and habitat utilization of swamp deer(Cervus duvauceli duvauceli) in Royal Bardia National ParkNepal [MS thesis] Tribhuvan University Kirtipur Nepal 1996

[11] B Bhatta Daily activities distribution and food preference ofswamp deer (Cervus duvauceli duvauceli) [BSc thesis] Tribhu-van University Kirtipur Nepal 2004

[12] P Wegge A K Shrestha and S R Moe ldquoDry season dietsof sympatric ungulates in lowland Nepal competition andfacilitation in alluvial tall grasslandsrdquo Ecological Research vol21 no 5 pp 698ndash706 2006

[13] S P Sinha and S S Chandola ldquoSwamp deer sighting inUttaranchal state Indiardquo Oryx vol 40 no 1 p 14 2006

[14] Anonymous Jhilmil Jheel Conservation Reserve Forest Depart-ment Government of Uttaranchal 2005

[15] J Altmann ldquoObservational study of behavior sampling meth-odsrdquo Behaviour vol 49 no 3-4 pp 227ndash267 1974

[16] D Mason J E Marburger C R A Kumar and V PPrasad Illustrated Flora of Keoladeo National Park BharatpurRajasthan Oxford University Press Mumbai India 1996

[17] C R Babu Herbaceous Flora of Dehradun CSIR PublicationNew Delhi India 1997

[18] R D Gaur Flora of the District Garhwal North West HimalayaWith Ethnobotanical Notes TransMedia 1999

[19] A A Khan Floristic studies on Bijnor district (Bijnor tehsil)[PhD thesis] AMU Aligarh Aligarh India 1987

[20] A A Khan ldquoThe grasses of Bijnor district Uttar PradeshrdquoJournal of Economic and Taxonomic Botany vol 26 pp 42ndash482002

[21] A A Khan ldquoAsteraceous flora of Bijnor district Uttar PradeshrdquoJournal of Economic and Taxonomic Botany vol 27 pp 1130ndash1136 2003

[22] J H Grobler ldquoFeeding behaviour of sable Hippotragus niger(Harris 1838) in the Rhodes Matopos National Park Zim-babwerdquo SouthAfrican Journal of Zoology vol 16 pp 50ndash58 1981

[23] J H Grobler ldquoFeeding habits of the Capemountain zebra Equuszebra zebra Linn 1758rdquo Koedoe vol 26 no 1 pp 159ndash168 1983

[24] D R Sparks and J C Malechek ldquoEstimating percentage dietweight in diets using a microscope techniquerdquo Journal of RangeManagement vol 21 no 4 pp 264ndash265 1968

[25] S Satakopan ldquoKeys to the identification of plant remainsin animal droppingsrdquo Journal of the Bombay Natural HistorySociety vol 69 no 1 pp 139ndash150 1972

[26] M K Johnson H W Pearson and A Henry ldquoMicro histolog-ical rechniques for food habits analysisrdquo Research Papers SO-199 Department of Agriculture Forest Service Southern ForestExperiment Station New Orleans La USA 1983

[27] C E Boyd ldquoProduction mineral accumulation and pigmenta-tion concentrations in Typha latifolia and Scirpus americanusrdquoEcology vol 51 no 2 pp 285ndash290 1969

Submit your manuscripts athttpwwwhindawicom

Hindawi Publishing Corporationhttpwwwhindawicom Volume 2014

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Zoology


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GenomicsInternational Journal of

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Volume 2014

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Enzyme Research



Microbiology

2 ISRN Zoology

elevation ranging from 200 to 250 meters above MSL [14]The spectacular terai landscape of the study area is a mosaicof short and tall grasslands tropical mixed moist deciduousforests and secondary scrub (Figure 1) Throughout thelandscape shifting of river channels over time has left behindmany old channels where numerous seasonal and perennialswamps (ldquotalsrdquo) or wetlands occur The central swamp zonerepresents one of the above swamps such-oxbow-lake formedalong the eastern bank of River Ganges Surrounding areasget submerged during the monsoon A number of smallrivulets (total 32 in number) emerge from the woodlandand discharge into Jhilmil Jheel which finally drain into theGanges Most of them provide water throughout the yearwhile some dry up for about 6-7 months The reserve areaalso receives water from the Shivaliks formations of Chidiya-pur and the adjacent ranges such as underground streamslocally called ldquoChoyasrdquo The area experiences subtropicalclimate Annual rainfall averages about 1300mm (recordedbetween 1997 and 2007) and is most prominent during JunendashSeptember (monsoon) Temperature soars up to 44∘C inMay and drops to 2∘C in January The texture of the soilvaries from fine sand to clay loam The area is rich in faunaland floral diversity including spotted deer elephant bluebull wild boar monkey langur mongoose hare commonleopard and occasionally tiger jungle cat otter porcupinesambar barking deer and hog deer that are also seen inthe area The dominant vegetation types include Typhaelephantina Phragmites karka Imperata cylindrica Vetiveriazizanioides Ziziphus mauritiana and Salix tetrasperma Thelocal inhabitants of TantwalaVillage adjacent to Jhilmil Jheelconsist of 146 householdsThey are of different communitiesnamely Punjabis Sainis Garhwalis and Gujjars who settledhere in the early 1950s Before the enforcement of Wildlife(Protection) Act of 1972 limited wildlife shooting was per-mitted here The working plans in the initial 70ndash80 years ofthe management history (1896ndash1973) aimed only at obtainingmore revenue out of the forest wealth Later 1973 onward fromthere was a shift with the inclusion of wildlife conservationinitiatives in theworking plans (BKP Sinha plan of 1973ndash89)On August 5 2005 the government of Uttarakhand declaredthe area as a Conservation Reserve Before this declarationpeople (villagers and illegally settled nomads ldquogujjarsrdquo) werefreely grazing their livestock in the grasslands of Jhilmil Jheelarea Later gujjars were rehabilitated outside ConservationReserve area (in adjoining forest divisions) along RawasanRiver (Figure 1)

22 Methods Sampling sites in different habitats coveringmoist deciduous secondary scrub dry grassland swamp andcropland habitats an area of 6 km2 were selected for thepresent study Observation was done on foot A year-roundstudy was carried out for two years Three methods wereemployed for studying food habits (i) direct observation (ii)quantification of feeding and (iii) faecal analysis

221 Direct Observation To study the food habits of swampdeer a scan sampling method [15] was employed Observa-tions were made from selected vantage points in the area

using a pair of 8 times 40 binoculars and 15 times 45 spotting scopeSince the animals were observed in groups a scan was takenonce in 15 minutes Study time was for two years and wasdivided into four-month period corresponding to summermonsoon and winter A total of 100 hours of observationper season were compared The diurnal cycle was dividedinto 5 periods (1) 0700ndash0900 (2) 0900ndash1100 (3) 1100ndash1300(4) 1300ndash1500 and (5) 1500ndash1700 hours The number ofindividuals and age-sex composition of groups of swampdeerwere also recorded Individuals in the group were classifiedinto different age and sex classes following Martin [7] withappropriate modifications Over 250 detections of swampdeer groups weremade Chi-square test was performed to seethe variation in frequency distribution of different food plantsselected among different age and sex categories and amongseasons within categories

222 Quantification of Feeding The feeding sites were exam-ined after the animal left the location for plants with freshfeeding signs Identification of plants in the field was donewith the help of floras research papers and reports (eg [16ndash21]) Proportionate food consumptionwas estimated throughfeeding quadrat method [22 23] The plots (1 times 1m for grassand herbs and 5 times 5m for shrubs) were laid at random andthe number varied depending upon the size of the area usedby the animal at the time of observation The numbers offood species the percentage cover of each species and thephenology of available and utilized species were recordedThe principal food was worked out for grass herb and sedgeseparately

223 Faecal Analysis Themethod involves two major stepsfirst the preparation of reference material of the food plantspecies second the microhistological examination of faecalmaterial to estimate the frequency of fragments of variousplant species [24] Identification of plant fragments was basedon keys given by Satakopan [25] and Johnson et al [26] Theresults were compared with field observations

3 Results

Age and sex categories as a whole and across seasons showedno significant variation in feeding habits Yearling and fawnshowed significant differences in feeding habits across sea-sons (1205942 = 14646 119875 = 0023 and 1205942 = 1190 119875 = 0551 resp)Swamp deer in Jhilmil was observed to feed on 42 species ofplants belonging to 15 families More than 75 of the foodspecies were of the families Poaceae (16 species) Cyperaceae(5 species) Fabaceae (5 species) Asteraceae (4 species) andTyphaceae (2 species) (Table 1 Figure 2) Aerial parts chieflycomprising leaves were fed Root stock of Typha spp was fedthroughout monsoon while its fresh sprout was fed in winterand new leaves in summer Percentage contribution of thefood types namely grasses aquatic flora sedges and herbsto the overall diet and in individual seasons is presentedin Figure 3 A lesser number of food plant species wereidentified by faecal analysis when compared to the directobservations The reason was that monocot faecal fragments

ISRN Zoology 3

China

Nepal

Uttar Pradesh

Haryana

Himachal Pradesh

Bhogpur

Tilakpur

Thekawala

Naurangabad

Raw

asan

Rawasan

SabalgarhRF

Pili river

Jhilmil Jheel

Reserve

Khatta

Conservation

Jhilmil lake

Forest blocks



Scale 1 50000Ri

ver


To Nazim

abad

29∘30998400

30∘30998400

78∘10998400 78∘15998400


4 ISRN Zoology




4 Discussion




ISRN Zoology 5



Khan andAhmed 2004

[6]

Martin 1977[7]

Schaaf 1978 [8]Moe 1994 [9]











Vetiveriazizanoides

Z mauritiana

Other families24

Typhaceae5

Cyperaceae9

Asteraceae12

Fabaceae12

Poaceae38



5 Conclusion


0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

56

46

19

31

19

36

11

33

102 2

35

MonsoonWinterSummer




Acknowledgments


6 ISRN Zoology


References



































Volume 2014

Zoology





Volume 2014


















Advances in

Virolog y



Volume 2014




Enzyme Research



Microbiology

ISRN Zoology 3

China

Nepal

Uttar Pradesh

Haryana

Himachal Pradesh

Bhogpur

Tilakpur

Thekawala

Naurangabad

Raw

asan

Rawasan

SabalgarhRF

Pili river

Jhilmil Jheel

Reserve

Khatta

Conservation

Jhilmil lake

Forest blocks



Scale 1 50000Ri

ver


To Nazim

abad

29∘30998400

30∘30998400

78∘10998400 78∘15998400


4 ISRN Zoology




4 Discussion




ISRN Zoology 5



Khan andAhmed 2004

[6]

Martin 1977[7]

Schaaf 1978 [8]Moe 1994 [9]











Vetiveriazizanoides

Z mauritiana

Other families24

Typhaceae5

Cyperaceae9

Asteraceae12

Fabaceae12

Poaceae38



5 Conclusion


0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

56

46

19

31

19

36

11

33

102 2

35

MonsoonWinterSummer




Acknowledgments


6 ISRN Zoology


References



































Volume 2014

Zoology





Volume 2014


















Advances in

Virolog y



Volume 2014




Enzyme Research



Microbiology

4 ISRN Zoology




4 Discussion




ISRN Zoology 5



Khan andAhmed 2004

[6]

Martin 1977[7]

Schaaf 1978 [8]Moe 1994 [9]











Vetiveriazizanoides

Z mauritiana

Other families24

Typhaceae5

Cyperaceae9

Asteraceae12

Fabaceae12

Poaceae38



5 Conclusion


0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

56

46

19

31

19

36

11

33

102 2

35

MonsoonWinterSummer




Acknowledgments


6 ISRN Zoology


References



































Volume 2014

Zoology





Volume 2014


















Advances in

Virolog y



Volume 2014




Enzyme Research



Microbiology

ISRN Zoology 5



Khan andAhmed 2004

[6]

Martin 1977[7]

Schaaf 1978 [8]Moe 1994 [9]











Vetiveriazizanoides

Z mauritiana

Other families24

Typhaceae5

Cyperaceae9

Asteraceae12

Fabaceae12

Poaceae38



5 Conclusion


0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

56

46

19

31

19

36

11

33

102 2

35

MonsoonWinterSummer




Acknowledgments


6 ISRN Zoology


References



































Volume 2014

Zoology





Volume 2014


















Advances in

Virolog y



Volume 2014




Enzyme Research



Microbiology

6 ISRN Zoology


References



































Volume 2014

Zoology





Volume 2014


















Advances in

Virolog y



Volume 2014




Enzyme Research



Microbiology








Volume 2014

Zoology





Volume 2014


















Advances in

Virolog y



Volume 2014




Enzyme Research



Microbiology

studies on the food and feeding habits of swamp deer...

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