Support Kaziranga's Flood-Hit Wildlife in India

Knowledge Management Cell – GIS Cell

The Geographic Information System (GIS) cell is conducting different spatial analysis whose results are used for wildlife conservation, corridor securement, rehabilitation, habitat suitability modelling, lulc classification and other mapping works. GIS is a science and technology that can provide geospatial data, geospatial results for decision support system.

Markhor Project: Critical Markhor Habitat (CMH) mapping

In the Markhor Project in Jammu & Kashmir, GIS technology was used to delineate Critical Markhor Habitat (CMH) by integrating speciespresence records with environmental layers (such as slope, aspect, elevation, distance to water, and land use/land cover) to model potential habitat patches suitable for survival and reproduction. Habitat Suitability Modelling (for example, using MaxEnt or similar algorithms) helped identify areas with highsuitability conditions while also highlighting humaninduced threats and competing landuse patterns.

Central India Wild Buffalo Project: Habitat Suitability and LULC

In the Central India Wild Buffalo Project, a Habitat Suitability Model was developed at the beat level to identify suitable patches for buffalo rehabilitation and range expansion. The model combined inputs such as Land Use Land Cover (LULC), elevation, slope, proximity to water, and settlements, typically using GISbased MultiCriteria Evaluation (MCE) or Weighted Overlay methods.

The LULC classification was carried out using satellite imagery (e.g., Sentinel, Landsat) to identify vegetation types, water bodies, and humanmodified land uses, enabling managers to understand areas ecologically similar to existing buffalo habitats and to plan their management accordingly. By mapping these classes at administrative or beat scale, the project could target specific beats for habitat improvement, grazing control, or bufferzone management aimed at supporting buffalo recovery.

For the preparation of the Forest Management Plan for six Forest Divisions in Odisha, a comprehensive GISbased database was developed to support spatial planning and decisionmaking. A Land Use Land Cover (LULC) map was prepared using multitemporal satellite data, and a threedecade change analysis (typically spanning the 1995s–2024s) was carried out to quantify shifts in forest cover, agriculture, settlements, and other landuse categories, providing a baseline for longterm forest and landscape management.

Elephantrelated spatial layers

In parallel, several elephantsfocused GIS layers were generated for conservation and conflictmitigation planning:

• Elephant movement patterns and tracks were mapped using patrol records, GPS telemetry, and groundbased observations to identify frequently used routes and core areas.
• Human–Wildlife Conflict (HWC) maps were prepared by geotagging incidents of cropraiding, property damage, and human casualties, enabling the identification of highpressure zones around settlements and croplands.

Use in forest management planning

These GIS layers—including LULC change, elephant corridors, movement patterns, and HWC hotspots—were integrated into the Forest Management Plan to inform compartmentwise prescriptions, bufferzone management, habitat restoration, and mitigation measures such as earlywarning systems, barrier fencing, and community engagement in the six divisions.

Fig: LULC of 6 FD of Odisha with linear infra and human-elephant death

Fig: LULC of Udanti-Sitanadi Tiger Reserve 2024