Ex-Situ Conservation Site at Assam State Zoo cum Botanical Garden

The Government of India, in order to combat the adverse effects of climate change on

the Himalayan states of India, introduced the National Mission on Himalayan Studies

(NMHS). Assam, being one of the 12 Himalayan states, has proposed a NLC which

itself is the first and foremost initiative of its kind in the entire country, aims to

inculcate environmental temperament and nature friendly attitude among people. The

NLC will have the following facilities:

A. Reception: The reception will comprise of the following provisions:

Registration: The registration will help in keeping the records of the visitors.

Distribution of kits: The kit containing notebook, pencil, pen, cap, T-Shirt etc. with

NLC logo will be distributed.

Feedback: To aid in improving the activities of NLC, feedback will be taken.

B. Amphitheatre: The amphitheater will enable the visitors to interact, share and witness

different live activities related to environment. It will include facilities of screening

audio-visual programs like documentary, animated movies, interaction sessions,

competitions, puppet shows, games etc. Distribution of leaflets, pamphlets, guide to

the trails etc. will be carried out at the amphitheater. The construction of the

amphitheater is underway.

C. Creeper House: Two Creeper house are already being built. Creeper house are being

used for growing orchid and cactus species for NLC ex-situ conservation. One of the

creeper house with variety of orchids is a part of the nature walk via which the visitors

can witness a number of local, exotic and endangered species of orchids. The other

creeper house is presently kept as a nursery.

D. The nature Trail: To execute various adventurous activities that have been planned

at the proposed NLC site, the first step was to understand the topography and the

biodiversity of the area. To accomplish it, the NLC team, along with Zoo officials,

visited the proposed site of Zoo multiple times to identify the probable routes of the

nature trails and finally mapped. The entire process was conducted in the following

ways:

Inspection of the area: To have an account on various aspects like the existing species

of the site, presence of various ecosystems, topography of the area etc., the NLC team

explored the entire area. This helped in planning the proposed activities in an

organized manner and come up with a number of new activities. The NLC site has

different ecosystems like forest, grassland, wetland, pond etc. and they hold a vast

species diversity.

Identifying the trails: One of the major goals of exploring the area is to identify the

probable major routes where a number of activities will be set up for the visitors. GPS

devices have been used to record the coordinates of the identified routes and also to

locate the probable activity sites. Apart from it various important and remarkable sites,

patches of trees, objects etc. were also marked with help of GPS. Three routes have

been identified based on specific target age groups and difficulty levels and named as

Trail A, Trail B and Trail C.

Mapping of the Routes: The identified routes were mapped with the help of the

coordinates recorded during the visits to the site. A detail map has been prepared

showing the routes and various spots of importance. The detailed maps of all the three

identified trails are attached.

The different trails with tentative activities are as follows:

Trail A: This is the shortest (around 1 km) and easiest trail targeted especially for the

children under the age group of 10 years. The trail is designed in such a manner that

it encompasses the following:

A water fall

Rock cave

Two bamboo grooves

A fallen tree which is nurturing varieties of mushroom, bryophytes and some

climbers.

A butterfly trail will also be set up at the starting point of the trail

A blue print of the activities of the shortest trail are detailed below.

Trail B: This is the medium trail which will have a route of around 4 km in length.

This trail is designed for the visitors above the age group of 10 years. This trail is set

up in the undulating hillock to have an exciting experience of walking amidst nature

along with various learning activities. This trail will include the features of Trail A

along with the following points:

A marshy land representing the wetland ecosystem

An old building which is the proposed site for the laboratory/exhibition/display unit

set up

Bamboo groves with variety of bamboo species

A proposed site for wild endemic fruit bearing plants

A trail of orchids in the wild

A patch of tea plants

A lake with diversified aquatic flora and fauna

Trail C: This is the difficult route extending up to the peak of the hill. The entire

stretch measures around 5 km in length. This will provide the visitors an opportunity

to explore the hilly terrains by climbing the steep hilly slopes and rocks. In addition to

the adventure of Trail A and B (up to the lake), this trail will include the following

features:

A site for viewing different tree canopies along the hill slope

Brahmaputra view point

City view point

Rocks with different surface textures

Study of soil profile in hilly areas

Mountain climbing point

E. Butterfly trail: The butterfly trail has been designed to attract the various butterfly

species. To attract butterfly, host and nectar plants are identified. Some of the

identified host plants are: Murraya koenigii, Citrus sp., Polyalthia longifolia,

Calotropis sp., Cassia sp., Nerium oleander. The nectar plants identified are Lantana

camara (a common weed), Asclepias sp. (Milk weed), Catharanthus roseus

(Periwinkle), Heliotropium indicum, Castor plant.

The site for the butterfly trail has been finalized and collection of saplings the

mentioned plants are underway.

F. Conservation patches: Areas for setting up the conservation patches are identified

which initially would include the following species:

Bamboo species: Different areas have been identified for conservation and display of

the variety and variability of the bamboo sp. of Assam. Already 10 bamboo species

are available in the Assam State Zoo and Botanical Garden campus.

Fruit bearing plants: The listings of the species which need attention have been started.

Medicinal plants: A brief list of the indigenous medicinal plants of Assam has been

created. Different Ocimum spp., Jatropha spp. will be initially collected for planting

in the identified spots.

Insectivorous plant: Conservation patch has been identified for plantation of pitcher

plant (Nepenthes khasiana).

Fern patch: As the topography of the NLC site is undulating and have water channels,

display patch of different fern species are being planned.

Trail map of all the three routes

Trail map of the longest route

Trail map of the medium route

Proposed activities of the shortest route

Pictures of Amphitheater (under construction)

Creeper house 1

Display of Cactus varieties

Creeper house II