The Global Importance of the Chitwan-Parsa-Valmiki Tiger Conservation Unit (TCU)
Royal Chitwan National Park (RCNP), the centerpiece of this unit, is located in the central
Terai region of Nepal. The 932 square kilometer park encompasses one of the last remaining large fragments of
grasslands and riverine forests that once dominated the Gangetic and Brahmaputra flood plains. The deposition
of heavy annual silt loads in alluvial grasslands during monsoon floods recharges nutrient levels and maintains
the world's tallest grasslands that grow more than twice the height of an elephant. This habitat complex
supports the highest recorded densities of tigers in Asia. High densities of tigers are in part a response to
the extraordinary biomass of ungulates that constitute the tiger's prey base. There are currently an estimated
100 to 140 tigers living in RCNP, the adjacent Parsa Wildlife Reserve, and India's Valmiki Sanctuary. Equally
important, Chitwan contains the second largest greater one-horned rhinoceros population in the world, and over
524 bird species (270 of which nest in the park). The presence of a large charismatic megafauna and dramatic
landscapes are what make RCNP the premier destination for foreign ecotourists in Asia, with over 80,000
visitors per year.
The Conservation Challenge
Many of the protected areas containing tigers are too small, by themselves, to maintain healthy
populations of tigers and their prey. To guarantee the survival of tigers in the wild, we have to protect
areas outside reserves, such as buffer zones and corridors, where tigers can expand their populations and move
safely between protected areas. To accomplish these conservation goals, we must have the cooperation of other
government agencies and local villagers who live adjacent to reserves and in some cases manage lands that could
serve as effective habitat for tigers.
The villagers who live around Chitwan depend upon the park and adjacent forests for fuelwood,
fodder, and timber. Without providing villagers an alternative to cutting down the park and its buffer zone
forests, important areas for conserving tigers and other endangered species will be severely degraded or lost.
A second major challenge is to offer villagers a viable alternative to meet their needs.
A new project in Chitwan is designed to answer the following questions:
How can we encourage local villagers to become partners in saving tigers and their
jungle habitat?
How can we provide economic incentives designed to improve the quality of life for local
stakeholders so that they become full partners in saving endangered species and wildlands?
Specifically, how can some fraction of the millions of dollars generated each year by
ecotourism be channeled into local development activities?
Finally, how can we provide firewood, timber, and fodder for villagers so that they
don't degrade or destroy tiger habitat?
We are starting to find useful and encouraging answers to these questions.
