New evidence suggests the Western Ghats are a suitable landscape to support the co-existence of humans and dholes, but that the stability of this relationship depends on the extent of agriculture, tourism, and infrastructure development in the region.

A study by researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the National Centre for Biological Sciences sought to understand how dholes, also known as Asiatic wild dogs, share space with humans in the tea dominated agroforests of the Western Ghats. Dholes are listed as endangered species by the IUCN, and have lost 60% of their habitat range in India over the last century. However, they continue to be found in the Western Ghats, as well as the forests of Central and Northeast India.

Dholes were chosen as the subject of the study because despite being top predators, “funding and management efforts are often limited almost exclusively to protected areas (PAs), and remain heavily biased toward certain charismatic species,” the study said. Understanding how large carnivores like dholes interact with human-dominated landscapes “is vital for both human safety and carnivore conservation.”

Only about 1,000-2,000 adult dhole individuals remain in India, having been impacted by habitat fragmentation and deforestation. Dholes are social and known to travel in packs of two to 24 individuals, but prefer to live away from human habitations. Previous research has shown that demographic and geographic isolation have played a role in sustaining dhole populations in India.

The WCS study found that in the Valparai district of the Western Ghats, in Tamil Nadu, even though dholes could be found in areas where livestock was present, they preferred to prey on wild ungulates. Valparai has large swathes of agroforests sustaining coffee, tea, cardamom, and other crop plantations that are interspersed with forest patches.

By analysing scat samples from latrine sites visited between April and May 2023, the research revealed sambar deer to be the most consumed biomass by dholes, followed by wild gaur. Through satellite imagery, camera trap surveys, and ground-based surveys, the study also found that dhole packs appeared to “favor areas with higher direct visibility, which likely helps them guard the pack from human-induced disturbances.”

“We also found that space use was relatively higher in flatter areas away from human settlements,” says the study, adding, “Higher probabilities of use in flatter terrain may be attributed to their (coursing) hunting strategy. However, future land-use changes in Valparai driven by proliferating tourism and the subsequent infrastructure development, or the intensification of agriculture could negatively impact this stability.”

Banner image: Representative image of a dhole. Image by Vinoth Chandar via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0).

A team of researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur has warned that India’s forests and farmlands are facing a surge in what they call “ecological droughts”, long-term moisture stress that damages entire ecosystems.

Their paper looks at how ecological droughts are increasing in India with the changing summer monsoon and human interventions. Published in Communications Earth & Environment, the paper is authored by Rahul Kashyap, Jayanarayanan Kuttippurath, and Vikas Kumar Patel from IIT Kharagpur’s CORAL laboratory.

“This study investigates the complex non-linear interactions among the atmosphere, land, and ocean systems in relation to ecological droughts in India during the Indian Summer Monsoon,” said corresponding author Kuttippurath. “It reveals a rise in ecological droughts across sensitive regions such as the Himalaya, Northeast India, eastern Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP), Central India, and southern semi-arid India. These regions also show increasing meteorological, land evaporative, and atmospheric aridity.” The paper adds that these are “regions with ample moisture and optimum warmth to support vegetation, yet they are subjected to ecological droughts now.”

“Ecological droughts are increasing in the ecologically fragile pristine forests and croplands that decline vegetation health in India,” write the authors in the paper. Using machine-learning and remote sensing data from 2000–2019, they found that meteorological aridity contributed about 23% and ocean warming contributed about 18% in driving ecological droughts.

“Our analysis identifies meteorological aridity and ocean warming as the main drivers of ecological droughts, with ocean warming indirectly influencing droughts through changes in moisture and thermal conditions,” Kuttippurath told Mongabay-India. “The westward shift of the monsoon system has intensified droughts in eastern and southern India, in addition to anthropogenic pressures.”

According to the paper, “the rising ecological droughts in India are driving browning of pristine forests and intensive croplands during the moisture rich monsoon season,” leading to weakened forest carbon sinks and reduced crop yields.

“These changes endanger agriculture, forests, and socio-economic stability by altering ecohydrological balance and land–atmosphere feedbacks that also affect regional climate,” Kuttippurath said. “The study underscores the need for improved monitoring of carbon–water cycles, sustainable land management, and adaptive policies to ensure environmental sustainability and food security under climate change.”

The authors conclude, “It is high time to integrate ecological droughts in the climate policies and give due respect in various climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies.”

Banner image: Monsoon in a village in Odisha. Image by Santosh.mbahrm via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0).

A new study by Nagaland University has raised concerns over the health of Manipur’s Loktak lake, one of India’s most important freshwater ecosystems and the only floating national park in the world. The research confirms that land use changes in the catchment are directly deteriorating the water quality of rivers feeding the lake, threatening its biodiversity and the livelihoods of thousands who depend on it.

The study, led by Eliza Khwairakpam from the university’s Department of Environmental Science, analysed nine major rivers that drain into the lake. It found that agricultural runoff, expanding settlements and shifting (jhum) cultivation are the major factors influencing water pollution. The Nambul and Khuga rivers were identified as the most polluted, while the Iril and Thoubal rivers showed comparatively better water quality because of higher forest cover in their catchments.

The Nambul river recorded the poorest water quality, with dissolved oxygen levels as low as 0.02 milligrams per litre, which is far below the permissible dissolved oxygen limit of 4 milligrams per litre recommended for aquaculture by the Central Pollution Control Board. It also had a high biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) going up to 25 mg/L in the dry and 20 mg/L in the wet season, which indicates that a water body is highly polluted with organic matter. The study attributes this to heavy agricultural activity and settlement areas that together cover nearly 60 percent of the river’s catchment. Runoff carrying pesticides, fertilisers and domestic waste, including plastics from Imphal city, contributes heavily to this pollution.

In contrast, the Khuga river, though surrounded by 34 percent dense forest, also showed low water quality due to extensive jhum cultivation, which occupies about 42 percent of its catchment. The study observed that the traditional jhum cycle has reduced from around ten years to just one or two years, leading to soil erosion, nutrient loss and increased acidity in river water.

According to study author Khwairakpam, “Our study confirms that land use decisions across villages and forest landscapes upstream are directly impacting water quality downstream. This makes community-based land management and stricter control of agricultural runoff and waste discharge crucial for restoring Loktak lake.”

She further added, “Land management is not just an environmental concern but a livelihood protection strategy for the people of Manipur. Catchment-wide land regulation, sustainable agriculture practices and controlled jhum cycles will be vital for protecting India’s only floating national park and the endangered Sangai deer habitat within the lake.”

Loktak Lake covers about 287 square kilometres and supports hydropower, fisheries, transport and tourism. It is home to 132 species of plants and 428 species of animals, including the endangered Sangai deer found only in the Keibul Lamjao National Park within the lake. Despite its ecological importance, the lake has been listed under the Montreux Record, which identifies wetlands undergoing significant ecological changes.

Read more: Manipur’s native fishes in troubled waters

Banner image: Inland water navigation in the Loktak lake. Image by Haoreima via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0).

In a recently released elephant population estimation, scientists have used DNA-based genetic mark-recapture techniques to peg India’s elephant population at 22,446. This is the same method used for estimating the country’s tiger population.

Scientists emphasise that the new figures are not comparable with past estimates given the methodological shift. “The concern around an apparent 18% decline from the 2017 count of 27,312 elephants is not valid, as the earlier estimates were counts based on physical identifiers and an entirely different approach,” says Qamar Qureishi, who led the study with a team of scientists at the Wildlife Institute of India (WII). The new estimate of 22,446, with the true number estimated to be between 18,255 and 26,645, serves as a fresh national baseline for future monitoring and research.

The Synchronous All India Elephant Estimation (SAIEE 2021–25) adopted the tiger estimation framework, dividing India into 100 km² cells (further into 25 km² and 4 km² units) for systematic sampling. The study’s first phase involved ground surveys across forested habitats to record elephant signs, vegetation status, and human disturbance using the M-STrIPES mobile app. Elephant occupancy and abundance were modelled using ecological and anthropogenic covariates such as forest cover, distance to water, human footprint, and nightlight intensity. The Spatially Explicit Capture–Recapture (SECR) model was used to estimate population density and extrapolate to unsampled areas, while genetic mark–recapture was conducted using dung samples.

How reliable are the results this time? “As reliable as any scientific method,” says Qureishi. “This method depicts errors as well as detection probability.” Detection probability is crucial for accurate population estimates as it accounts for the fact that not all individuals are seen. Vishnupriya Kolipakam, who was part of the study, adds that counts based on physical markers come with variables as these markers could change or disappear over time. “Not all individuals can be identified with markers. Population count is also time-consuming,” she says.

Kolipakam and Qureishi were also part of the WII team that studied human-animal conflict and suggested population control of four animal species, including the Asian elephant, that were most in conflict with humans. Speaking about the findings, Kolipakam says population control in elephants was suggested for high-conflict areas. “It was suggested as a way of solving a problem locally by controlling population growth of certain animals in conflict in specific areas. It is still under research and has not been implemented,” she adds.

As per the new report, Karnataka holds the largest share of elephants with 6,013 individuals. The Western Ghats region has 11,934, while Assam leads in the Northeast and Brahmaputra floodplains (6,559) with 4,159 individuals.

The report indicates that while elephant populations in the country remain stable overall, their distribution is a fraction of their historical range, now restricted to fragmented forest tracts. There is an urgent need to strengthen wildlife corridors, mitigate linear infrastructure and power lines, enhance law enforcement, and ensure community participation in elephant conservation.

Banner image: The Synchronous All India Elephant Estimation pegs India’s elephant population at 22,446. Image by Drashokk via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).

India is among the countries experiencing worsening extreme heat since the 2015 Paris Agreement that had aimed at limiting global warming, according to a new joint report from non-profit Climate Central and scientist group World Weather Attribution. The analysis finds that global temperatures have increased over the past decade from 1°C in 2015 to 1.3°C in 2025, intensifying hot days and heat waves that threaten lives and livelihoods across South Asia.

The report highlights that heat is the deadliest form of extreme weather, contributing to about 500,000 deaths each year worldwide. It notes that the frequency and intensity of heat depend largely on future carbon emissions, which the Paris Agreement seeks to reduce.

The analysis compares heat conditions at four global warming levels: 1°C in 2015, 1.3°C today, 2.6°C projected by 2100 under current pledges, and 4°C projected before the Paris Agreement. Projected warming has dropped from 4°C in 2015 to 2.6°C if current pledges are met, but even this level would bring dangerously frequent and intense heat.

India’s pre-monsoon heat waves are a clear warning of how climate change is intensifying regional risks. The report’s case study on India and Pakistan shows that the 2022 pre-monsoon high temperatures were around 30 times more likely and 2.1°C hotter due to human-induced warming. Defined by unusually high average maximum daily temperatures from March to April, the 2022 event caused over 90 heat-related deaths, glacial-lake outburst floods, forest fires, reduced wheat yields, and widespread power shortages.

Since 2015, the additional 0.3°C of warming has already caused an average of 11 more hot days per year globally. In a 2.6°C world, that number could rise to 57 extra hot days annually compared with today, and at 4°C, to 114 more hot days.

The report notes that while India has 37 state and city heat action plans, most remain inadequate and neglect vulnerable groups such as informal workers, residents in temporary settlements, and the elderly.

Emmanuel Raju, one of the authors and Director of the Copenhagen Centre for Disaster Research at the University of Copenhagen, said the impacts of heat are deeply unequal. “The majority of the world, primarily in low-resource settings, are barely coping with extreme heat,” he said. “This is a problem of injustice as people are pushed beyond their limits to cope and adapt.”

Raju added that responses must go beyond short-term survival. “We need to move from survival to transformative adaptation. The only way forward is to cut emissions and make better commitments. More financing for adaptation, loss and damage is key to secure lives, livelihoods, and society.”

The report urges stronger and faster emission cuts to meet Paris Agreement goals and warns that limited adaptation finance is leaving vulnerable populations unprepared as the costs of inaction outpace adaptation.

Banner image: Climate experts warn that the heatwave could affect the country’s agricultural production. Image by Zoya Hussain.

The factors fuelling negative human-elephant interactions are actively studied across the country, in light of unabating human and elephant deaths resulting from conflict. But what underlying factors influence the adoption of mitigation measures by communities? A new study by the Centre for Wildlife Studies (CWS) offers some insights.

A survey of 507 rural households in Karnataka and Kerala found that the decision to deploy conflict mitigation strategies like raising fences and digging trenches was influenced by three drivers: rainfall, acreage of land owned, and distance to water bodies. Communities residing in areas with lower rainfall (between 1000–2333 mm), and smaller landholdings, were 68% more likely to adopt conflict mitigation methods, the survey said.

By contrast, households that were close to water bodies, with larger landholdings, and in areas with heavy rainfall (over 2334 mm) were only 7% more likely to adopt mitigation measures. “Proximity to water may be creating challenges, or complicating mitigation deployment,” the paper suggests, adding that in “relatively drier areas with moderate landholdings, there is greater motivation or necessity to actively invest in mitigation measures.”

Around 500 people are killed by elephants in India, and around 100 elephants are estimated to be killed due to electrocutions, poisoning, train accidents, and poaching, according to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF India). The CWS survey included households close to the Bandipur and Nagarahole Tiger Reserves in Karnataka, and the Palakkad and Mannarkkad Territorial Forest Divisions, both of which have high human and elephant densities per kilometer.

Apart from studying the deployment of mitigation measures among communities within these landscapes, the study also looked at the unintended consequences of such measures on elephants. Of 47 elephant deaths observed by the communities interviewed, more than 25% were attributed to solar fences in Karnataka and about 38% were attributed to electric fences in Kerala. Trenches were also observed to be the leading cause of injury to elephants in Karnataka.

“Preventative, non-lethal solutions that engage communities and safeguard elephants are needed. These can involve early warning systems, the use of regenerative farming and sustainable agricultural practices that uplift communities through economic viability, and enrich habitat connectivity for elephants,” said Simran Prasad, lead author of the study.

Banner image: An elephant in Bandipur Tiger Reserve, Karnataka. Image by Yathin S Krishnappa via Wikimedia Commons [CC BY-SA 3.0].