Irfan Rashid

The alien flora of Kashmir Himalaya.

Compilation of alien flora from phytogeographically distinct regions is of immediate relevance not only for better understanding the patterns of plant invasion but also for explicating the processes promoting invasion at local, regional or global scales. Despite being at higher risk of invasion by plants because of its European colonial past, south Asia has received very little attention in respect of characterization of its alien flora. This paucity of baseline data necessitated compilation of the first catalogue of alien flora from the Kashmir Himalaya—a phytogeographically distinct south Asian region nestled in the northwestern folds of Himalayan biodiversity hotspot. Total alien flora of the region is represented by 571 plant species, belonging to 352 genera and 104 families. It constitutes a relatively higher (29%) proportion of the total flora of the region. Families with largest number of alien representatives are Poaceae (60 species), Asteraceae (54 species), and Brassicaceae (30 species). However, families such as Amaranthaceae (83%) and Chenopodiacae (71%) show higher percentage of aliens relative to their total number of plant species in the region. Most of the alien plant species (38%) trace their origin to Europe, followed by Asia (27%) and Africa (15%). Present study also reports, for the first time, occurrence of seven plant species in this region. Each alien plant species is provided with information on the origin, habit, mode/purpose of introduction, current invasion status, altitudinal range and the primary published source.

Implications of Shrinking Cryosphere Under Changing Climate on the Streamflows in the Lidder Catchment in the Upper Indus Basin, India

Abstract Lidder tributary in the Upper Indus Basin (UIB) of the Himalayas, an important source of surface and ground water, is experiencing clear indications of climate change. In the basin, minimum, maximum, and average temperatures are showing a significant increasing trend in all the four seasons. Precipitation is showing insignificant decrease over time in the basin. However, the proportion of snow is decreasing and correspondingly, the proportion of rains is increasing. The temperature projections also show increasing trends for the end of this century. The time-series analysis of the Normalized Difference Snow Index (NDSI) shows a depletion of the snow-cover in the region. Furthermore, during the past 51 years, the glacier area in the basin has decreased from 46.09 km2 in 1962 to 33.43 km2 in 2013, a depletion of 27.47%. As a result of glacier recession in the basin, the streamflow fed predominantly by snowmelt and glacier melt, is showing a statistically significant decline since the mid-1990s. The declining streamflows have potential to adversely affect agriculture, energy production, tourism, and even domestic water supplies. The Snowmelt Runoff Model (SRM) was tested for estimating the runoff from this glaciated basin on an operational basis. The average simulated runoff 11.94 m3 s-1 at the outlet is in concordance with the average measured runoff 13.51 m3 s-1 showing R2 of 0.82. The model could thus be used for snowmelt runoff estimation, on an operational basis, for judicious utilization of the depleting water resources in the region.

Sustainability of winter tourism in a changing climate over Kashmir Himalaya

Mountain areas are sensitive to climate change. Implications of climate change can be seen in less snow, receding glaciers, increasing temperatures, and decreasing precipitation. Climate change is also a severe threat to snow-related winter sports such as skiing, snowboarding, and cross-country skiing. The change in climate will put further pressure on the sensitive environment of high mountains. Therefore, in this study, an attempt has been made to know the impact of climate change on the snow precipitation, water resources, and winter tourism in the two famous tourist resorts of the Kashmir Valley. Our findings show that winters are getting prolonged with little snow falls on account of climate change. The average minimum and maximum temperatures are showing statistically significant increasing trends for winter months. The precipitation is showing decreasing trends in both the regions. A considerable area in these regions remains under the snow and glacier cover throughout the year especially during the winter and spring seasons. However, time series analysis of LandSat MODIS images using Normalized Difference Snow Index shows a decreasing trend in snow cover in both the regions from past few years. Similarly, the stream discharge, comprising predominantly of snow- and glacier-melt, is showing a statistically significant declining trend despite the melting of these glaciers. The predicted futuristic trends of temperature from Predicting Regional Climates for Impact Studies regional climate model are showing an increase which may enhance snow-melting in the near future posing a serious threat to the sustainability of winter tourism in the region. Hence, it becomes essential to monitor the changes in temperature and snow cover depletion in these basins in order to evaluate their effect on the winter tourism and water resources in the region.

Operational characterization of alien invasive flora and its management implications

A continuing lack of consensus on the operational characterisation of alien invasive species (AIS) in invasion biology has hampered the integration of research results generated worldwide. This impedes our progress in devising sound management strategies to stem the tide of biological invasions. In this regard, we here use the neutral terminology model of Colautti and MacIsaac (Divers Distrib 10:135–141, 2004) (CM model) for the characterization of alien invasive flora of the Kashmir Himalaya, India; and more emphatically, expound the utility of such a stage-based operational framework in the management of plant invasions. Out of the total of 436 alien invasive plant species recorded in the region, the number of species belonging to invasion stages II, III, IVa, IVb and V was 119, 107, 56, 77 and 77 species, respectively. In terms of relative proportion of species belonging to the different invasion stages, trees dominated the Stage-V (31.25%), followed by aquatics, subshrubs, biennial herbs, perennial herbs, annual herbs and shrubs, in descending order. Based on the results obtained in the present investigation, and in an attempt to link the characterisation of AIS with the management of plant invasions, we here propose a hierarchical management framework based on prediction, prevention, prescription, and public awareness. While the present study focuses on plants only, the proposed management framework can be operationally used across different taxonomic groups, and within varied ecosystems, with potentially immense management implications.

Mycorrhizosphere mediated Mayweed Chamomile invasion in the Kashmir Himalaya, India

Recent studies have established the controlling influence of rhizospheric biota, especially arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), on colonization and spread of some alien plants in their introduced range. But how AMF from different geographical sources influence traits that contribute to invasiveness, particularly in presence of neighbouring plants of other species, has been rarely investigated. Thus, we compared the influence of some local (Kashmir Himalayan isolates) and non-local (isolates from Rajasthan, India) AMF isolates of Glomus moseae, G. fasciculatum and Gigaspora margarita on vegetative and reproductive attributes of Mayweed Chamomile (Anthemis cotula L.), a highly invasive species in the Kashmir Himalaya, India. We also examined whether or not the neighbouring plant species, namely Daucus carota L. (Apiaceae) alters the mutualistic interaction between the AMF and A. cotula. Pot experiments revealed greater positive impact of the local than the non-local AMF on vegetative as well as reproductive attributes of A. cotula. Experimental field studies showed that the incidence of highly prevalent Arum-type mycorrhizal colonization in natural populations of A. cotula was reduced in presence of D. carota. Besides, the local AMF significantly promoted growth of A. cotula more than D. carota under mixed-culture conditions. These results suggest that the facilitation of some alien plant invasions by AMF needs to be considered together with plant–plant interactions and invasion-induced changes in the soil microbial community.

Geospatial modelling approach for identifying disturbance regimes and biodiversity rich areas in North Western Himalayas, India

The present study is a comprehensive effort for making spatially explicit vegetation type information, one of the basic inputs for species and habitat conservation, readily available to the decision makers, resource managers and nature conservationists. The present study was carried out to understand the vegetation composition and structure in Doda area of Western Himalayas, India. During the study, vegetation types were mapped using on-screen image interpretation technique of multispectral high resolution satellite data. A total of ten types of vegetation were delineated from the satellite data. Phytosociological data was collected for the forest, pasture and scrub classes using nested-quadrat approach to characterize the vegetation. A total of ten phytosociological parameters were analyzed. Pinaceae, Rosaceae and Asteraceae were the dominant plant families with most of the identified plant species having a very high medicinal value. Other important component of the study involved landscape modelling, using the Spatial Landscape Analysis Model for identifying disturbance regimes and biodiversity rich landscapes in the area. The model results indicate that most of the area contains a very rich biodiversity repository with only a few areas showing signs of disturbance where terrain is either complex or where the anthropogenic pressures on forest resources are apparent. The forest and nature conservation managers could use the conservation measures suggested on the basis of these research findings for developing biodiversity conservation strategies in the region.

A standardized response to biological invasions.

The Policy Forum “Will threat of biological invasions unite the European Union?” (P. E. Hulme et al. , 3 April, p. [40][1]) emphasized the major regulatory and political challenges faced by European institutions. However, they are not alone in facing the tremendous threat of biological invasions

Investigation of temporal change in glacial extent of Chitral watershed using Landsat data: a critique.

Himalayan glaciers are showing consistent signs of recession similar to glaciers elsewhere in the world with the exception of slight mass gain or stability in Karakoram. Deficient knowledge regarding the processes controlling the glacier dynamics together with remoteness, rugged terrain, insufficient in situ measurements, unsuitable datasets, and scanty network of meteorological stations has always been a big challenge in projecting future glacier dynamics in the region. Here, we present a number of scientific concerns regarding the appropriateness of data sets and methods adopted by a study carried out by Naeem et al. (2016), published in the journal of Environmental Monitoring and Assessment to investigate and project glacier dynamics in Chitral watershed using Landsat data. The use of predominantly snow and cloud covered satellite images especially for 2006 and 2007 strongly questions the glacier fluctuation estimates put forth by the authors. The inferences from existing scientific literature suggesting robustness of semi-automatic methods for glacier mapping challenge the use of unsupervised classification approach for delineating glacier extents as adopted in Naeem et al. (2016). Considering the scientific concerns and loopholes in the study by Naeem et al. (2016), the glacier fluctuations in Chitral watershed need to be reassessed.

Assessing changes in the above ground biomass and carbon stocks of Lidder valley, Kashmir Himalaya, India

Abstract The changes in the land use and land cover (LULC), above ground biomass (AGB) and the associated above ground carbon (AGC) stocks were assessed in Lidder Valley, Kashmir Himalaya using satellite data (1980–2013), allometric equations and phytosociological data. Change detection analysis of LULC, comprising of eight vegetation and five non-vegetation types, indicated that 6% (74.5 km2) of the dense evergreen forest has degraded. Degraded forest and settlement increased by 20 and 52.8 km2, respectively. Normalized difference vegetation index was assessed and correlated with the field-based biomass estimates to arrive at best-fit models for remotely sensed AGB estimates for 2005 and 2013. Total loss of 1.018 Megatons of AGB and 0.5 Megatons of AGC was estimated from the area during 33-year period which would have an adverse effect on the carbon sequestration potential of the area which is already facing the brunt of climate change.

Estimating Land Surface Temperature and its Lapse Rate over Kashmir Valley Using MODIS Data

The study of the Land Surface Temperature (LST) is very important for its applications in many fields of natural sciences and is oftenused as input data in climate, agro-meteorological or hydrological models for forecasting ecosystem responses. Due to sparse and irregular distribution of meteorological station over Kashmir Himalayas, climate forecasting using interpolation of metrological air temperature data (Tair) is not scientifically robust option. Remotely-sensed LST is, therefore, a good option to supplement the scanty network of the ground-based temperature observations for understanding and modelling a variety of environmental and ecological processes and phenomena. In the present study, an attempt was made to estimate LST and its lapse rate over Kashmir Himalayas using MODIS data and relate it with air temperature (Tair) from Indian Metrological Department. Comparison between LST and Tair shows a very close agreement with MAE of ±20C. The calculated correlation coefficient between Tair and LST is above 0.9. Using ASTER DEM, LST was used to estimate the Lapse rate along various transects across the Kashmir Himalaya, which showed variations in space and time (from 0.30C to 1.20C per 100m change in the altitude). The information and knowledge generated from this research are going to improve the understanding and quantifications of various processes related to climate, hydrology and ecosystem where the use of temperature and lapse rate is an important and critical driving force.