Journal articles on the topic 'Bhutan Himalayas'
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Gurung, Mer Man, Cheten Dorji, Dhan B. Gurung, and Harry Smit. "Checklist of water mites (Acari: Hydrachnidia) of the Himalayan and Tien Shan Mountains." Ecologica Montenegrina 57 (October 2, 2022): 8–23. http://dx.doi.org/10.37828/em.2022.57.2.
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We present an annotated checklist of 238 species of water mites found in the Himalayan and Tien Shan Mountain ranges. The checklist is based on published records and the available data collected from bibliography on water mites of the two mountain regions covering eight countries i.e., Bhutan, China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Nepal, and Tajikistan. Moreover, recent new material has been collected in Kyrgyzstan and Bhutan. Atractides species are more dominant in the Himalayas than in the Tien Shan Mountain. In contrast, Lebertia and Sperchon species are predominant in the Tien Shan Mountain but not in the Himalayas. Interestingly Torrenticola and Monatractides are very scanty in the Tien Shan Mountains but common in the Himalayan streams.
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Kohli, Manorama. "Bhutan's Strategic Environment: Changing Perceptions." India Quarterly: A Journal of International Affairs 42, no. 2 (January 1986): 142–53. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/097492848604200203.
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For about a decade now one has been noticing some changes and shifts in the land-locked dragon kingdom of Bhutan's perceptions of its strategic neighbourhood—India and China. The two Asian giants situated in the south and north of Bhutan are so vital in geo-political terms that their attitudes towards this buffer state as also their relative capability distribution in the Himalayan region and in South Asia will always determine practically all foreign policy considerations of Bhutan. It need hardly be stressed that Bhutan is strategically important for both its big neighbours because of its location. This is the most compelling reason for both India and China to strive for special and friendly relationships with this Buddhist theocratic state. The tri-junction of the Chumbi Valley (Tibet), Sikkim (India) and Bhutan in the eastern Himalayas is of key importance for the security of the sprawling continental mass of India as well as that of China Being only about six miles from the Chumbi Valley, the passes in Bhutan. as also Nathu La are perceived by the Chinese as likely routes for invasion from the south. Evidently a very friendly, and if possible, a dependent Bhutan will give additional security to Tibet and hence to the Chinese mainland.1
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Mahmudur, Mahmudur. "India-Bhutan Relations: A Small State’s Quest for Freedom." Research in Economics and Management 7, no. 2 (June 18, 2022): p29. http://dx.doi.org/10.22158/rem.v7n2p29.
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Bhutan is located on the eastern ridges of the Himalayas between the Assam-Bengal Plain of India to the south and the Plateau of Tibet of southwestern China to the north. In British India the colonial administration established a classical hegemonic relationship with the remote kingdom. In the Treaty of Punakha (1910) the sovereignty of the Bhutanese Royal government was recognized in exchange for submitting control of foreign relations to the British. In independent India, the Himalayan Kingdoms were sandwiched between India and China, facing an uncertain future about their political sovereignty. India concluded a new Treaty with Bhutan (the India-Bhutan Treaty of Peace and Friendship) in 1949, which was designed to remain in force “in perpetuity,” consolidating the essence of the British hegemonic policy of controlling smaller neighbors, with India being the new imperial power. Bhutan became a member state of the UN in 1971 after India finally agreed to sponsor its application, but the small state has limited authority to conduct foreign relations without prior consent from India, and it does not even enjoy formal diplomatic relationship with any of the five permanent members in the United Nations. Bhutan’s quest to wield control over its own affairs free of the influence of India remains unfulfilled.
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Yoshida, Toshio, Rinchen Yangzom, and David Long. "Dancing Butterflies of the East Himalayas." Sibbaldia: the International Journal of Botanic Garden Horticulture, no. 14 (January 17, 2017): 69–96. http://dx.doi.org/10.24823/sibbaldia.2016.193.
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The region from eastern Bhutan to Arunachal Pradesh of India and the adjacent south-eastern Tibet and northern Myanmar seems to be one of the last frontiers not only for Meconopsis hunting but also for other botanical exploration. Although there remain political difficulties for foreigners to approach the unsettled border between India and China, including the famous Tsari valley with its prominently rich flora, which was visited by Frank Ludlow, George Sherriff, Frank Kingdon-Ward and a few other plant hunters before 1950, some botanical and horticultural treasures in this region have gradually been revealed to recent travellers. As a result of examining the photographs taken by these travellers and our own botanical field research in eastern Bhutan in 2014, accompaniedby subsequent herbarium studies, two species new to science are described. The first, from eastern Bhutan and adjacent Arunachal Pradesh and Tibet, has long been cultivated under the names M. grandis or M. grandis GS600, and has recently been described as M. grandis subsp. orientalis (Grey-Wilson, 2010). It is the national flower of Bhutan. However, the type of M. grandis from Sikkim belongs to a species quite distinct from the eastern populations and the latter is now described as a new species, Meconopsis gakyidiana. The second novelty, Meconopsis merakensis,is newly described from eastern Bhutan and adjacent Arunachal Pradesh. In the past this species was confused with the closely allied M. prainiana. The two species are isolated geographically, M.prainiana being found only much further to the north-east, in south-eastern Tibet, including theTsari valley. The title of this article is based on a comparison made by Frank Kingdon-Ward of Meconopsis flowers with butterflies in Tibet (see below).
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Kumar, Pranav. "Sino-Bhutanese Relations." China Report 46, no. 3 (August 2010): 243–52. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/000944551104600306.
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Historically the interaction between Bhutan and China was through Tibet. The annexation of Tibet by China and the later uprising in Tibet instilled a sense of fear in Bhutan causing it to close its northern border in 1960. However, Bhutan adopted a more open policy in the 1970s gradually increasing the contacts between the two neighbours. Border talks which started in 1984 resulted in an agreement in 1998 on maintaining peace and tranquility along border areas. While China and Bhutan neither have diplomatic relations nor any legal trade, growing Chinese interests in South Asia encompass Bhutan as well. Bhutan, therefore, faces the dilemma of not hurting the interests and sentiments of its traditional friend India while at the same time needing to respond to Chinese overtures and to solve the border problem peacefully and urgently; in the Sino-Bhutanese relationship, the Indian element remains the most important variable. The dynamics of the Sino-Indian relationship and Indian and Chinese strategic interests and activities in the Himalayas will be crucial in shaping Bhutan’s policies towards China.
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Bhandari, S., and J. H. Speer. "Growth-climate relationship of Pinus wallichiana in three different parts of the Himalayas." Banko Janakari 30, no. 1 (May 29, 2020): 12–20. http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/banko.v30i1.29177.
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We have used six tree-ring width chronologies of Pinus wallichiana from the Himalayan region, which are available in the International Tree-Ring Data Bank (ITRDB), to determine their growth trends through time and the growth-climate relationship. Each of the chronologies downloaded from the ITRDB was detrended using an Age-dependent Cubic Smoothing Spline with a 20-year starting spline stiffness in the RCSigfree Software Program. We broke the six chronologies into three regions based on natural breaks between the sample sites. Altogether, three composite chronologies were made, one each from Bhutan, Nepal, and Pakistan. The average value for common periods was taken from each of those two chronologies to make a composite chronology. Across the three regions, the growth was lowest in the 1810s and has increased since 1980s. The growth showed a significant positive response to the winter temperature (November-February) in the eastern Himalayas in Bhutan. The chronology from Nepal showed that the growth of this species had a significant positive response to the self-calibrated Palmer Drought Severity Index of the previous year’s December and the current year’s January and March. In the western Himalayas of Pakistan, the growth of the same species is positively correlated to the annual self-calibrated Palmer Drought Severity Index. Winter temperature limits the growth of this species in the eastern Himalayas where there is enough moisture whereas the growth of this species is primarily limited by moisture in the western Himalayas
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Khan, Muhammad Rameez, Zia-ur Rehman, Sidra Noreen Nazir, Sangay Tshewang, Suraj Baidya, David Hodson, Muhammad Imtiaz, and Sajid Ali. "Genetic Divergence and Diversity in Himalayan Puccinia striiformis Populations from Bhutan, Nepal, and Pakistan." Phytopathology® 109, no. 10 (October 2019): 1793–800. http://dx.doi.org/10.1094/phyto-01-19-0031-r.
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The western Himalayan region in Pakistan has been shown to be the center of diversity of Puccinia striiformis; however, little is known about its genetic relations with the eastern part of the Himalayas. We studied the genetic structure of P. striiformis from Nepal (35 isolates) and Bhutan (31 isolates) in comparison with 81 Pakistani samples collected during 2015 and 2016, through microsatellite genotyping. Genetic analyses revealed a recombinant and highly diverse population structure in Pakistan, Bhutan, and Nepal. A high level of genotypic diversity (>0.90) was observed for the three countries of Pakistan (0.96), Bhutan (0.96), and Nepal (0.91) with the detection of 108 distinct multilocus genotypes (MLGs) in the overall population; 59 for Pakistan, 27 for Bhutan, and 26 for Nepal. Mean number of alleles per locus and gene diversity were higher in Nepal (3.19 and 0.458, respectively) than Bhutan (3.12 and 0.458, respectively). A nonsignificant difference between the observed and the expected heterozygosity in all populations further confirmed the recombinant structure. A clear population subdivision between the Himalayan region of Nepal, Bhutan, and Pakistan was evident, as revealed by FST values (ranging between 0.111 to 0.198), discriminant analysis of principal components, and resampling of MLGs. Limited gene flow could be present between Nepal and Bhutan, while the population from Pakistan was clearly distinct, and no divergence was present between two populations from Pakistan (Bajaur and Malakand). The overall high diversity and recombination signature suggested the potential role of recombination in the eastern Himalayan region (Nepal and Bhutan), which needs to be considered during host resistance deployment and in the context of aerial dispersal of the pathogen. Further surveillance should be made in the Himalayan region for disease management in the region and in the context of worldwide invasions. [Formula: see text] Copyright © 2019 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY 4.0 International license .
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Allison, Elizabeth. "Deity Citadels: Sacred Sites of Bio-Cultural Resistance and Resilience in Bhutan." Religions 10, no. 4 (April 15, 2019): 268. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rel10040268.
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Consistent with the pan-Himalayan tendency to see the landscape as lively and animated, protector deities and local spirits are perceived to inhabit various features of the landscape in Bhutan, causing these places to be treated with reverence and respect. Local spiritual beliefs are prized as central to the cultural identity of the Kingdom, making their way into government planning documents, town planning negotiations, and the 2008 Constitution. This elevation of local spiritual belief has been central to the maintenance and preservation of Bhutanese culture in its encounter with globally hegemonic social, economic, and political norms. Spirits and deities are believed to be the original owners of the land predating the introduction of Buddhism from Tibet. According to terma texts—spiritual treasures hidden by great Buddhist teachers to be discovered later—the initial introduction of Buddhism into Bhutan occurred in the seventh century. At that time, the Tibetan king Songtsen Gampo, the 32nd king of the Yarlung dynasty, built two temples in western and central parts of Bhutan as part of a strategy to pin down a demoness who was ravaging the Himalaya. About a century after the construction of the temples, Padmasambhava, known throughout the Himalayas as Guru Rimpoche, or “Precious Teacher,” arrived in Bhutan, subjugated eight classes of local spirits and made them sworn protectors of the Dharma. In this way, local deities and spirits became incorporated into Bhutan’s Vajrayana Buddhism to the extent that images of them are found at Buddhist temples and monasteries. Vajrayana Buddhism and local deities and spirits twine together in Bhutan to shape a cosmology that recognizes a spectrum of sentient beings, only some of whom are visible. The presence of deities and spirits informs local land use. Deity abodes or “citadels” (Dz.: pho brang) are restricted from human use. The presence of a deity citadel is sufficient in some locales to cause the diversion or reconsideration of human construction and resource use. By grounding spiritual beliefs in specific sites of the landscape, the citadels of deities sanctify the landscape, becoming nodes of resistance and resilience that support the Bhutanese in inhabiting their own internally-consistent cosmology, even as the pressures of global integration seek to impose hegemonic Western norms.
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Namgay, Tashi. "Nation’s waste on the scale: The first Bhutan waste inventory report." Statistical Journal of the IAOS 36, no. 4 (November 25, 2020): 915–24. http://dx.doi.org/10.3233/sji-200742.
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Knowing the quantity and the composition of waste is essential to designing and delivering sound waste management policies and waste management systems. Bhutan’s 12th Five-Year Development Plan emphasizes effective waste management as one of its key performance indicators and globally, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development emphasizes the importance of waste in two of its seventeen Sustainable Development Goals. In 2019, the Bhutan National Statistics Bureau undertook its first ever survey of solid waste management. The survey covered waste generating sectors including households, commercial units, institutes, health centers, industries, Government offices and vegetable markets. Results show Bhutan generated more than 170 metric tons of waste daily – equivalent to 170,000 kilograms of sugar. More than 50 percent of solid wastes came from households, almost 50 percent was food waste, and around 50 percent was potentially recyclable. The survey posed many challenges for Bhutan, a land-locked least developed country in the Eastern Himalayas in South Asia, yet provided the opportunity to strengthen stakeholder engagement in the Bhutan National Statistical System and delivered statistics which meet a practical use for Bhutan and its people.
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Baillie, I. C., Kado Tshering, Tshering Dorji, H. B. Tamang, Tsheten Dorji, Chencho Norbu, A. A. Hutcheon, and R. Bäumler. "Regolith and soils in Bhutan, Eastern Himalayas." European Journal of Soil Science 55, no. 1 (December 15, 2003): 9–27. http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2389.2003.00579.x.
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Tariq, Muhammad Atiq Ur Rehman, Kelden Wangchuk, and Nitin Muttil. "A Critical Review of Water Resources and Their Management in Bhutan." Hydrology 8, no. 1 (February 13, 2021): 31. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/hydrology8010031.
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Bhutan is a small yet water-abundant country. The country suffers from frequent flooding and is lately experiencing a growing risk of localized droughts due to inappropriate water resource management and climate change. Such a situation calls for much more efficient use and management of water in Bhutan. This paper undertakes an extensive analysis of the country’s water resources for better planning and management of the available water resources. Bhutan can be divided into three zones, the Southern Foothills, the Central Inner Himalayas, and the Higher Himalayas. The top four leading industries of Bhutan are related to water, either directly or indirectly. The country at present is at a very early stage of development. The government has prioritized water resources management over recent years. Water for hydropower in Bhutan has been in focus as compared to that allocated for irrigation, industries, and environmental demand. The demand for water in Bhutan has also increased in the last decade due to population increase, changes in lifestyle, and economic advancements through tourism and hydropower projects. Climate variation, deteriorating water quality, frequent floods, and increasing urbanization threaten the sustainability of water resources. Water accessibility issues for settlements due to the country’s harsh geographical landscape is leading towards localized water scarcity. Serious attention to rainwater harvesting and groundwater recharge is required to address localized water scarcity issues.
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Dikshit, Abhirup, Raju Sarkar, Biswajeet Pradhan, Saroj Acharya, and Abdullah M. Alamri. "Spatial Landslide Risk Assessment at Phuentsholing, Bhutan." Geosciences 10, no. 4 (April 7, 2020): 131. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/geosciences10040131.
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Landslides are one of the most destructive and most recurring natural calamities in the Himalayan region. Their occurrence leads to immense damage to infrastructure and loss of land, human lives, and livestock. One of the most affected regions is the Bhutan Himalayas, where the majority of the landslides are rainfall-induced. The present study aims to determine the hazard and risk associated with rainfall-induced landslides for the Phuentsholing region located in the southwestern part of the Bhutan Himalayas. The work involves developing a landslide risk map using hazard and vulnerability maps utilizing landslide records from 2004 to 2014. The landslide hazard map was generated by determining spatial and temporal probabilities for the study region. The spatial probability was computed by analyzing the landslide contributing factors like geology, slope, elevation, rainfall, and vegetation based on comprehensive field study and expertise about the area. The contributing factors were divided into various classes and the percentage of landslide occurrence under each class was calculated to understand its contributing significance. Thereafter, a weighted linear combination approach was used in a GIS environment to develop the spatial probability map which was multiplied with temporal probabilities based on regional rainfall thresholds already determined for the region. Consequently, vulnerability assessment was conducted using key elements at risk (population, land use/land cover, proximity to road, proximity to stream) and the weights were provided based on expert judgment and comprehensive field study. Finally, risk was determined and the various regions in the study area were categorized as high, medium, and low risk. Such a study is necessary for low-economic countries like Bhutan which suffers from unavailability of extensive data and research. The study is conducted for a specific region but can be extended to other areas around the investigated area. The tool can serve as an indicator for the civil authorities to analyze the risk posed by landslides due to the rapid infrastructure development in the region.
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Jiménez-Mejías, P., and H. J. Noltie. "CAREX DRUKYULENSIS (CYPERACEAE), A ‘NEW’ SPECIES FROM THE HIMALAYAS (BHUTAN)." Edinburgh Journal of Botany 74, no. 1 (December 20, 2016): 95–101. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0960428616000263.
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On the basis of previously published molecular data, and morphological observations, Carex nigra subsp. drukyulensis from the eastern Himalayas (Bhutan) is raised to specific rank as Carex drukyulensis.
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Tolangay, Darshana, and Saurav Moktan. "Trend of studies on carbon sequestration dynamics in the Himalaya hotspot region: A review." Journal of Applied and Natural Science 12, no. 4 (December 13, 2020): 647–60. http://dx.doi.org/10.31018/jans.v12i4.2426.
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The present communication deals with the carbon dynamics in the Himalaya hotspot region. The Himalaya, a mountain range shared by Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar, is one of the biologically richest regions in the world that play an important role as source and sink in global carbon cycle. The purpose of this paper was to review and provide available studies related to carbon sequestration in the Himalayas. The carbon in forest is stored in five different pools viz. above-ground biomass, below-ground biomass, litter, deadwood and soil organic carbon. Estimates of biomass, carbon stock and soil organic carbon contents by almost all forest types including agroforestry systems and plantations in the Himalaya hotspot have been documented in this communication. The net rate of carbon sequestrated by forest was reported to be 2.4 ±0.4 Pg C yr-1 on a global scale. The Indian Himalayan Region constitutes about 5.4 billion tonnes of C and sequesters about 65 million tonnes of C yr-1. We analysed more than 135 peer-reviewed journal articles related to biomass and carbon sequestration. The review identifies that the studies estimated 3697.05, 3898.10 and 4235.05 tonnes carbon per hectare for Western, Central and Eastern Himalayan region respectively. The research on the biomass/carbon estimation received attention as early as 1980s, but increased gradually after 2001. These findings would contribute to policy-makers with useful information for mitigation of CO2 emissions.
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Sultan, Hameeda, Jinyan Zhan, Wajid Rashid, Xi Chu, and Eve Bohnett. "Systematic Review of Multi-Dimensional Vulnerabilities in the Himalayas." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 19, no. 19 (September 26, 2022): 12177. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191912177.
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The Himalayan region is a fragile high mountain landscape where the population experiences acute vulnerability within a complex coupled human–natural system due to environmental, social, and economic linkages. The lack of significant regional and spatial knowledge of multi-faceted vulnerabilities hinders any potential recommendations to address these vulnerabilities. We systematically reviewed the literature to recommend mitigation interventions based on the region’s socio-economic and ecological vulnerability research to date. We applied the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting of Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis) criteria to search for results from four comprehensive databases. For our assessment, we compiled a final sample (n = 59) of vulnerability research papers to examine the vulnerability types, spatial variation, assessment methodology, and significant drivers of change. Our study represented all Himalayan countries, namely, India, Nepal, Pakistan, China, and Bhutan. More than half of the vulnerability studies were conducted in the central Himalayan region, a quarter in the western Himalayas, and a few in the eastern Himalayas. Our review revealed that the primary drivers of change were climate change, land use/land cover, and glacial lake formation. The vulnerability assessments in the Himalayan region primarily used social science methods as compared to natural science methods. While the vulnerability studies seldom assessed mitigation interventions, our analysis identified fourteen recommendations. The recommended interventions mainly included policy interventions, livelihood improvement, and adaptation measures. This study emphasized that sustainable development requires cross-sectoral interventions to manage existing resources and mitigate the confronting vulnerabilities of the region.
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Khandu, Yeshey, Anan Polthanee, and Supat Isarangkool Na Ayutthaya. "Dendroclimatic Reconstruction of Mean Annual Temperatures over Treeline Regions of Northern Bhutan Himalayas." Forests 13, no. 11 (October 28, 2022): 1794. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/f13111794.
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The Himalayan region is likely particularly exposed to climate change indicated by the high regional rate of change. The number of high-resolution, well-calibrated, and long-term paleoclimate reconstructions are however regrettably few, to set this change in a longer-term context. The dendroclimatic reconstructions over Himalaya that do exist have only reconstructed summer season temperatures, and rarely or never attempted to reconstruct mean annual temperatures. The paucity of long meteorological records is a matter of concern when developing chronologies of climate sensitive tree-ring data in Bhutan, but the chronologies would theoretically be of high potential for extending short meteorological records back in time using trees in high-elevation ecotones. The objectives of this study were to explore dendroclimatic signals in tree-ring width chronologies of Abies densa growing in these extreme ecotones and to reconstruct, if possible, annual temperatures over Northern Bhutan. A point-by-point regression analysis revealed that the regional composite chronology was significantly and positively correlated with temperatures of all months of the current year, i.e., January to December. The chronology was highly correlated with annual temperatures (calibration period R = 0.67 and validation period R = 0.50; p < 0.001) allowing a reconstruction of temperature over Northern Bhutan (NB-TEMR). The NB-TEMR reveals some common variations with summer temperature reconstructions of the Northern Hemisphere as well as the Himalayan region, particularly w.r.t to the recent warming trend. The reconstruction covers the period of 1765 to 2017. This reconstruction reveals a warming trend since 1850 with higher rates of warming 1935 to 2017, but with a pause around 1940–1970. The warming is consistent with reduced volcanic activity and increase of greenhouse gases. We anticipate that our new reconstruction of annual mean temperature could be an important contribution for future climate change studies and assessments of climate models.
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Komori, Jiro. "Recent expansions of glacial lakes in the Bhutan Himalayas." Quaternary International 184, no. 1 (June 2008): 177–86. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2007.09.012.
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Li, Jin-Yu, Lei Xie, and Liang-Qian Li. "A new species of Thalictrum (Ranunculaceae) from southern Tibet (Xizang), China." Phytotaxa 207, no. 3 (May 11, 2015): 281. http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/phytotaxa.207.3.6.
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The new species Thalictrum austrotibeticum (Ranunculaceae) from southern Tibet (Xizang), China, is here described and illustrated. It occurs in forest margin and grassy slopes of several valleys of southern Xizang along the central Himalayas. This species is morphologically well differentiated from other Thalictrum species from south-west China, Bhutan, Nepal, and Northern India. From its floral characters, this species shows some relationship with Th. finetii. A key of Thalictrum species distributed in southern Xizang and adjacent areas of Bhutan, Nepal, and India is also provided.
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Catlos, Elizabeth J., Chandra S. Dubey, and Thomas M. Etzel. "Imbrication and Erosional Tectonics Recorded by Garnets in the Sikkim Himalayas." Geosciences 12, no. 4 (March 24, 2022): 146. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/geosciences12040146.
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The Sikkim region of the Himalayas (NE India) may form an important microplate between Nepal and Bhutan. Here we report high-resolution pressure-temperature (P-T) paths taken from garnet-bearing rocks across the northern and eastern portion of the region’s Main Central Thrust (MCT) shear zone. The MCT separates units affiliated with the Greater Himalayan Crystallines (GHC) in its hanging wall from the Lesser Himalayan Formation (LHF). Late Miocene monazite ages are reported from the LHF (10–14 Ma), whereas those from the GHC are Miocene (18–20 Ma). Some paths from the LHF and GHC show a P decrease before burial, consistent with erosion before compression. MCT shear zone and GHC rocks show a P increase and then decrease over a short T interval. This hairpin P-T path is consistent with an imbrication model for the Himalayas. LHF P-T path conditions and those obtained using conventional thermobarometry are best in agreement. These paths also are consistent with observed mineral assemblages and garnet zoning. Although we have the most confidence in LHF results, MCT shear zone and GHC P-T path shapes suggest processes to establish imbrication tectonics may have occurred here as early as the Miocene.
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SCHINTLMEISTER, ALEXANDER. "Notodonta dedmazai sp. nov., a new notodontid moth from Bhutan." Zootaxa 3608, no. 4 (January 21, 2013): 283–84. http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.3608.4.8.
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Recently, a small series of an unidentified notodontid moth from Bhutan was presented to me by Pavel Morozov (Moscow). The moth is described below, and represents a hitherto unknown species of the holarctic genus Notodonta Ochsenheimer, 1810 and the first record for the genus in the Himalayas.
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Ojha, Lujendra, Ken L. Ferrier, and Tank Ojha. "Millennial-scale denudation rates in the Himalaya of Far Western Nepal." Earth Surface Dynamics 7, no. 4 (October 11, 2019): 969–87. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/esurf-7-969-2019.
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Abstract. The Himalayas stretch ∼3000 km along the Indo-Eurasian plate boundary. Along-strike variations in the fault geometry of the Main Himalayan Thrust (MHT) have given rise to significant variations in the topographic steepness, exhumation rate, and orographic precipitation along the Himalayan front. Over the past 2 decades, the rates and patterns of Himalayan denudation have been documented through numerous cosmogenic nuclide measurements in central and eastern Nepal, Bhutan, and northern India. To date, however, few denudation rates have been measured in Far Western Nepal, a ∼300 km wide region near the center of the Himalayan arc, which presents a significant gap in our understanding of Himalayan denudation. Here we report new catchment-averaged millennial-scale denudation rates inferred from cosmogenic 10Be in fluvial quartz at seven sites in Far Western Nepal. The inferred denudation rates range from 385±31 t km−2 yr−1 (0.15±0.01 mm yr−1) to 8737±2908 t km−2 yr−1 (3.3±1.1 mm yr−1) and, in combination with our analyses of channel topography, are broadly consistent with previously published relationships between catchment-averaged denudation rates and normalized channel steepness across the Himalaya. These data show that the denudation rate patterns in Far Western Nepal are consistent with those observed in central and eastern Nepal. The denudation rate estimates from Far Western Nepal show a weak correlation with catchment-averaged specific stream power, consistent with a Himalaya-wide compilation of previously published stream power values. Together, these observations are consistent with a dependence of denudation rate on both tectonic and climatic forcings, and they represent a first step toward filling an important gap in denudation rate measurements in Far Western Nepal.
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Naveed, Ayesha, and Damber Kumar Nirola. "Mental health in Bhutan." International Psychiatry 9, no. 1 (February 2012): 11–12. http://dx.doi.org/10.1192/s1749367600002915.
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The Kingdom of Bhutan lies in the folds of the eastern Himalayas, sandwiched between India to the south and China to the north. It has a total area of 38394 km2, which is roughly the size of Switzerland, and a population of a little over 70 0000 (Royal Government of Bhutan, 2002). It is a mountainous country, except for a small flat strip in the southern foothills. The official language is Dzongha, but English is widely spoken. English is the medium of instruction from pre-primary level onwards. In 1999 Bhutan allowed viewing of television and use of the internet, as a step towards modernisation. In the early 20th century, Bhutan came into contact with the British Empire; Bhutan maintains strong bilateral relations with India. Business Week magazine in 2006 rated Bhutan the happiest country in Asia and the eighth happiest in the world, based on a global survey. Bhutan is in fact the only country where happiness is measured in the form of an index, ‘Gross National Happiness’. The main religion practised in the country is Buddhism, with Hinduism as the second most prevalent. The capital and largest city is Thimphu. In 2007, Bhutan made the transition from absolute monarchy to constitutional monarchy, and held its first general election in 2008. Bhutan is a member of the United Nations and of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC); it hosted the 16th SAARC summit in April 2010.
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DORJI, Rinchen, Phuentsho PHUENTSHO, Kencho DORJI, Sangay TSHEWANG, Phuntsho WANGDI, Kezang TOBGAY, Nima GYELTSHEN, and Choki GYELTSHEN. "Nineteen new records of plant species including two new genera recorded from the Bhutan Himalayas." Korean Journal of Plant Taxonomy 52, no. 3 (September 30, 2022): 173–83. http://dx.doi.org/10.11110/kjpt.2022.52.3.173.
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Through the collection of herbarium specimens in Bhutan over the years, new plant species are discovered nearly annually. Thus, this paper reports two new genera and 19 new records of flowering plant species from Bhutan. The new genera include Eurycorymbus of the family Sapindaceae and Homalium of the family Salicaceae. The new records of plant species are Eranthemum erythrochilum (Acanthaceae), Hemidesmus indicus (Apocynaceae), Ilex umbellulata (Aquifoliaceae), Canarium strictum (Burseraceae), Ehretia acuminate (Boraginaceae), Vaccinium sikkimense (Ericaceae), Nothapodytes foetida (Icacinaceae), Machilus edulis (Lauraceae), Grewia asiatica (Malvaceae), Hibiscus fragrans (Malvaceae), Cipadessa baccifera (Meliaceae), Baccaurea javanica (Phyllanthaceae), Canthiumera glabra (Rubiaceae), Homalium napaulense (Salicaceae), Eurycorymbus cavaleriei (Sapindaceae), Acmella radicans (Asteraceae), Silene latifolia (Caryophyllaceae), Cleome rutidosperma (Cleomaceae), and Cuphea carthagenensis (Lythraceae). Morphological determinations of the genera and species were carried out at the National Herbarium (THIM) of the National Biodiversity Centre of Bhutan. Brief descriptions of the species, phenology, and photo plates are provided in this annotated checklist.
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Sargent, Caroline, Orlando Sargent, and Roger Parsell. "The forests of Bhutan: a vital resource for the Himalayas?" Journal of Tropical Ecology 1, no. 3 (August 1985): 265–86. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0266467400000341.
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ABSTRACTLarge areas of the Himalayas have become severely deforested although little has been published about the extent of this problem in the closed Kingdom of Bhutan. A preliminary survey was undertaken during 1983. Without detailed information or accurate maps, LANDSAT 2 imagery was used to prepare a sampling stratification and to plot the distribution of defined vegetation types after sampling and analysis. Eleven forest noda are described in relation to their habitats, and area and timber volume estimates given. Deforestation pressures are discussed.
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Dikshit, Abhirup, Raju Sarkar, Biswajeet Pradhan, Saroj Acharya, and Kelzang Dorji. "Estimating Rainfall Thresholds for Landslide Occurrence in the Bhutan Himalayas." Water 11, no. 8 (August 5, 2019): 1616. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/w11081616.
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Consistently over the years, particularly during monsoon seasons, landslides and related geohazards in Bhutan are causing enormous damage to human lives, property, and road networks. The determination of thresholds for rainfall triggered landslides is one of the most effective methods to develop an early warning system. Such thresholds are determined using a variety of rainfall parameters and have been successfully calculated for various regions of the world at different scales. Such thresholds can be used to forecast landslide events which could help in issuing an alert to civic authorities. A comprehensive study on the determination of rainfall thresholds characterizing landslide events for Bhutan is lacking. This paper focuses on defining event rainfall–duration thresholds for Chukha Dzongkhag, situated in south-west Bhutan. The study area is chosen due to the increase in frequency of landslides during monsoon along Phuentsholing-Thimphu highway, which passes through it and this highway is a major trade route of the country with the rest of the world. The present threshold method revolves around the use of a power law equation to determine event rainfall–duration thresholds. The thresholds have been established using available rainfall and landslide data for 2004–2014. The calculated threshold relationship is fitted to the lower boundary of the rainfall conditions leading to landslides and plotted in logarithmic coordinates. The results show that a rainfall event of 24 h with a cumulated rainfall of 53 mm can cause landslides. Later on, the outcome of antecedent rainfall varying from 3–30 days was also analysed to understand its effect on landslide incidences based on cumulative event rainfall. It is also observed that a minimum 10-day antecedent rainfall of 88 mm and a 20-day antecedent rainfall of 142 mm is required for landslide occurrence in the area. The thresholds presented can be improved with the availability of hourly rainfall data and the addition of more landslide data. These can also be used as an early warning system especially along the Phuentsholing–Thimphu Highway to prevent any disruptions of trade.
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DORJI, Rinchen, Sangay DEMA, Mani Prasad NIROLA, and Choki GYELTSHEN. "The first record of the rare fern Pteris griffithii (Polypodiales: Pteridaceae: Pteridoideae) in the Bhutan Himalayas." Korean Journal of Plant Taxonomy 52, no. 1 (March 31, 2022): 24–28. http://dx.doi.org/10.11110/kjpt.2022.52.1.24.
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Pteris griffithii Hook., one of the rarest fern species on the Indian subcontinent, is reported from Bhutan for the first time. The identity of this species was confirmed through morphological determination at the National Herbarium (THIM) of the National Biodiversity Centre (NBC) of Bhutan. It was found only in one location, in Gyelpozhing in eastern Bhutan, at an elevation of 521 m a.s.l. on 10 January 2016. Given that a very limited study of this species was conducted, the knowledge baseline with regard to its distribution is poor. It is also reported that this species has not been found for several years. The species is also considered to be very rare or critically endangered in some countries; however, there are no assessments on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List for this particular species. This paper attempts to provide baseline information considering its rarity and data deficiency. This species is also reported from the adjacent neighboring Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh as very rare, and also from Myanmar; however, confirmation of its presence in China is not clear at this time. Therefore, considering its data deficient status, we attempt to document it scientifically to create a knowledgebase pertaining to this particular species. Concurrently, this species merits further research to understand its distribution patterns in Bhutan and any related anthropogenic threats.
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Stapleton, C. M. A. "The bamboos of Nepal and Bhutan. Part II: Arundinaria, Thamnocalamus, Borinda, and Yushania (Gramineae: Poaceae, Bambusoideae)." Edinburgh Journal of Botany 51, no. 2 (July 1994): 275–95. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0960428600000883.
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This paper continues the systematic treatment of the bamboos of Nepal and Bhutan, covering four hardy temperate genera with semelauctant inflorescences and 3 stamens from the subtribe Arundinariinae Bentham. Arundinaria Michaux has leptomorph rhizomes, while Thamnocalamus Munro, Yushania Keng f., and the new genus Borinda have pachymorph rhizomes. The separation of these and related Sino-Himalayan genera is discussed. Sinarundinaria Nakai is treated as a synonym of Fargesia Franchet, a genus that is not known from the Himalayas. A new treatment of Himalayan Thamnocalamus species is given, including the description of two new subspecies of Thamnocalamus spathiflorus (Trin.) Munro, subsp. nepalensis and subsp. occidentalis, and one new variety, bhutanensis. T. aristalus is treated as a synonym of T. spathiflorus subsp. spathiflorus, and Fargesia crassinoda Yi is transferred and given new status as Thamnocalamus spathiflorus (Trin.) Munro var. crassinodus (Yi) Stapleton. Two new species of Borinda are described: B. chigar from West Nepal and B. emeryi from East Nepal. Six species of Fargesia from Tibet are transferred to Borinda, which thus comprises eight species.
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Gul, Chaman, Shichang Kang, Siva Praveen Puppala, Xiaokang Wu, Cenlin He, Yangyang Xu, Inka Koch, Sher Muhammad, Rajesh Kumar, and Getachew Dubache. "Measurement of light-absorbing particles in surface snow of central and western Himalayan glaciers: spatial variability, radiative impacts, and potential source regions." Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 22, no. 13 (July 7, 2022): 8725–37. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-8725-2022.
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Abstract. We collected surface snow samples from three different glaciers – Yala, Thana, and Sachin – in the central and western Himalayas to understand the spatial variability and radiative impacts of light-absorbing particles. The Yala and Thana glaciers in Nepal and Bhutan, respectively, were selected to represent the central Himalayas. The Sachin glacier in Pakistan was selected to represent the western Himalayas. The samples were collected during the pre- and post-monsoon seasons of the year 2016. The samples were analyzed for black carbon (BC) and water-insoluble organic carbon (OC) through the thermal optical method. The average mass concentrations (BC 2381 ng g−1; OC 3896 ng g−1; dust 101 µg g−1) in the western Himalayas (Sachin glacier) were quite high compared to the mass concentrations (BC 358 ng g−1, OC 904 ng g−1, dust 22 µg g−1) in the central Himalayas (Yala glacier). The difference in mass concentration may be due to the difference in elevation, snow age, local pollution sources, and meteorological conditions. BC in surface snow was also estimated through Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model coupled with Chemistry (WRF-Chem) simulations at the three glacier sites during the sampling periods. Simulations reasonably capture the spatial and seasonal patterns of the observed BC in snow but with a relatively smaller magnitude. Absolute snow albedo was estimated through the Snow, Ice, and Aerosol Radiative (SNICAR) model. The absolute snow albedo reduction ranged from 0.48 % (Thana glacier during September) to 24 % (Sachin glacier during May) due to BC and 0.13 % (Yala glacier during September) to 5 % (Sachin glacier during May) due to dust. The instantaneous radiative forcing due to BC and dust was estimated in the range of 0 to 96.48 and 0 to 25 W m−2, respectively. The lowest and highest albedo reduction and radiative forcing were observed in central and western Himalayan glaciers, respectively. The potential source regions of the deposited pollutants were inferred using WRF-Chem tagged-tracer simulations. Selected glaciers in the western Himalayas were mostly affected by long-range transport from the Middle East and central Asia; however, the central Himalayan glaciers were mainly affected by local and south Asia emissions (from Nepal, India, and China) especially during the pre-monsoon season. Overall, south Asia and west Asia were the main contributing source regions of pollutants.
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DORJI, Rinchen, Choki GYELTSHEN, PHUENTSHO, Karma Ugyen WANGMO, and encho DORJI. "Enumeration of edible and useful ferns (Pteridophytes) in the Bhutan Himalayas." Korean Journal of Plant Taxonomy 52, no. 4 (December 31, 2022): 235–45. http://dx.doi.org/10.11110/kjpt.2022.52.4.235.
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Bhutan is endowed with rich biodiversity with several edible and useful fern species. Ferns have been used by local communities for centuries as vegetables, ethnobotanical artifacts, and as medicines. Owing to the limited study of edible and useful pteridophytes in the country, the knowledgebase remains poor. In this study, we attempt to document edible and useful fern species in the country scientifically while also providing an annotated checklist.
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Grujic, Djordje, Isabelle Coutand, Bodo Bookhagen, Stéphane Bonnet, Ann Blythe, and Chris Duncan. "Climatic forcing of erosion, landscape, and tectonics in the Bhutan Himalayas." Geology 34, no. 10 (2006): 801. http://dx.doi.org/10.1130/g22648.1.
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Tamang, Monu, Benu Prasad Dahal, Thinley Dorji, Saran Tenzin Tamang, and Don Eliseo Lucero-Prisno. "Situation of physical activity in the prevention of non-communicable diseases in Bhutan: challenges and the way forward." BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine 8, no. 4 (October 2022): e001448. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjsem-2022-001448.
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Bhutan is a lower-income–middle-income country in the Himalayas, between India and China. Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are the leading cause of death and premature mortality in Bhutan, accounting for 69% and 71% of all deaths in 2014 and 2019, respectively. Although the World Health Organisation (WHO) identified physical activity as a key strategy to reduce the burden of NCDs, with rapid urbanisation, motorised transportation, and rural–urban migration, people are adapting to sedentary lifestyles, inflating the incidence of NCDs in the country. The increasing incidence of NCDs exerts a burden on the human and financial resource constraints in the health system in Bhutan.In this view point, we report evidence-based benefits of physical activity for health promotion, primary prevention of NCDs and health benefits for individuals living with NCDs. We also briefly assess the situation of physical activity in Bhutan. Then, shortcomings of existing NCDs prevention programmes are discussed along with opportunities and ways forward to effectively implementing physical activity to harness the benefits of physical activities.
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Maurer, Joshua M., Summer B. Rupper, and Joerg M. Schaefer. "Quantifying ice loss in the eastern Himalayas since 1974 using declassified spy satellite imagery." Cryosphere 10, no. 5 (September 23, 2016): 2203–15. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/tc-10-2203-2016.
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Abstract. Himalayan glaciers are important natural resources and climate indicators for densely populated regions in Asia. Remote sensing methods are vital for evaluating glacier response to changing climate over the vast and rugged Himalayan region, yet many platforms capable of glacier mass balance quantification are somewhat temporally limited due to typical glacier response times. We here rely on declassified spy satellite imagery and ASTER data to quantify surface lowering, ice volume change, and geodetic mass balance during 1974–2006 for glaciers in the eastern Himalayas, centered on the Bhutan–China border. The wide range of glacier types allows for the first mass balance comparison between clean, debris, and lake-terminating (calving) glaciers in the region. Measured glaciers show significant ice loss, with an estimated mean annual geodetic mass balance of −0.13 ± 0.06 m w.e. yr−1 (meters of water equivalent per year) for 10 clean-ice glaciers, −0.19 ± 0.11 m w.e. yr−1 for 5 debris-covered glaciers, −0.28 ± 0.10 m w.e. yr−1 for 6 calving glaciers, and −0.17 ± 0.05 m w.e. yr−1 for all glaciers combined. Contrasting hypsometries along with melt pond, ice cliff, and englacial conduit mechanisms result in statistically similar mass balance values for both clean-ice and debris-covered glacier groups. Calving glaciers comprise 18 % (66 km2) of the glacierized area yet have contributed 30 % (−0.7 km3) to the total ice volume loss, highlighting the growing relevance of proglacial lake formation and associated calving for the future ice mass budget of the Himalayas as the number and size of glacial lakes increase.
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Laabar, Tara Devi, Christobel Saunders, Kirsten Auret, and Claire E. Johnson. "Healthcare professionals’ views on how palliative care should be delivered in Bhutan: A qualitative study." PLOS Global Public Health 2, no. 12 (December 12, 2022): e0000775. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgph.0000775.
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Palliative care aims to relieve serious health-related suffering among patients and families affected by life-limiting illnesses. However, palliative care remains limited or non-existent in most low- and middle- income countries. Bhutan is a tiny kingdom in the Himalayas where palliative care is an emerging concept. This study aimed to explore the views of Bhutanese healthcare professionals on how palliative care should be delivered in Bhutan. It is a component of a bigger research program aimed at developing a contextual based palliative care model for Bhutan. This is a descriptive qualitative study. Eleven focus group discussions and two in-depth interviews were conducted among healthcare professionals, recruited through purposeful sampling, from community health centres, district hospitals, regional and national referral hospitals, and the traditional hospital in Bhutan. The participants in this study emphasized the need for suitable palliative care policies; education, training and awareness on palliative care; adequate access to essential palliative care medicines; adequate manpower and infrastructure; and a multi-disciplinary palliative care team. Participants confirmed a socially, culturally and spiritually appropriate approach is crucial for palliative care services in Bhutan. Despite palliative care being a young concept, the Bhutanese healthcare professionals have embraced its importance, emphasized its urgent need and highlighted their views on how it should be delivered in the country. This study will help inform the development of a public health-focused palliative care model, socially, culturally and spiritually applicable to the Bhutanese people, as recommended by the World Health Organization.
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Honwad, Sameer, Andrew D. Coppens, Greg DeFrancis, Marcos Stafne, and Shivaraj Shivaraj Bhattarai. "Weaving strands of knowledge. Learning about environmental change in the Bhutan Himalayas." Nordisk Museologi 30, no. 3 (February 19, 2021): 62. http://dx.doi.org/10.5617/nm.8631.
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Climate change is a complex phenomenon, so much so that even those with expert knowledge on the scientific data struggle to understand the impacts of climate change on their everyday lives. Contradictions across systems of knowledge make clear that climate change is not just a problem of scientific understanding but is also simultaneously a problem of global coordination as well as a sociopolitical problem of connecting domains of knowledge that are seldom valued equitably. The project described in this paper is a prototype effort to put knowledge from community members in two culturally distinct rural areas of the world at equal footing with scientific knowledge. The overarching project aim was to design partnership-based inquiry into environmental and climate change that coordinated the aforementioned three facets of climate change (a) scientific understanding, (b) cross-cultural coordination among globally dispersed communities, and (c) sociopolitical equity in bringing nondominant perspectives to the table.
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Honwad, Sameer, Andrew D. Coppens, Greg DeFrancis, Marcos Stafne Montshire, and Shivaraj Bhattarai. "Weaving strands of knowledge. Learning about environmental change in the Bhutan Himalayas." Nordisk Museologi 30, no. 3 (December 21, 2020): 62. http://dx.doi.org/10.5617/nm.8700.
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Climate change is a complex phenomenon, so much so that even those with expert knowledge on the scientific data struggle to understand the impacts of climate change on their everyday lives. Contradictions across systems of knowledge make clear that climate change is not just a problem of scientific understanding but is also simultaneously a problem of global coordination as well as a sociopolitical problem of connecting domains of knowledge that are seldom valued equitably. The project described in this paper is a prototype effort to put knowledge from community members in two culturally distinct rural areas of the world at equal footing with scientific knowledge. The overarching project aim was to design partnership-based inquiry into environmental and climate change that coordinated the aforementioned three facets of climate change (a) scientific understanding, (b) cross-cultural coordination among globally dispersed communities, and (c) sociopolitical equity in bringing nondominant perspectives to the table.
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MOTEGI, Mutsumi. "The Spraying of the Main Central Thrust in Nepal and Bhutan Himalayas." Journal of Geography (Chigaku Zasshi) 106, no. 3 (1997): 320–31. http://dx.doi.org/10.5026/jgeography.106.3_320.
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Le Roux-Mallouf, Romain, Matthieu Ferry, Jean-François Ritz, Théo Berthet, Rodolphe Cattin, and Dowchu Drukpa. "First paleoseismic evidence for great surface-rupturing earthquakes in the Bhutan Himalayas." Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth 121, no. 10 (October 2016): 7271–83. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/2015jb012733.
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Caspari, Thomas, Rupert Bäumler, Chencho Norbu, Kado Tshering, and Ian Baillie. "Geochemical investigation of soils developed in different lithologies in Bhutan, Eastern Himalayas." Geoderma 136, no. 1-2 (December 2006): 436–58. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2006.04.017.
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Kandel, Pratikshya, Dago Tshering, Kabir Uddin, Tshering Lhamtshok, Kamal Aryal, Seema Karki, Bikash Sharma, and Nakul Chettri. "Understanding social-ecological interdependence using ecosystem services perspective in Bhutan, Eastern Himalayas." Ecosphere 9, no. 2 (February 2018): e02121. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.2121.
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Anand-Prakash. "Himalayan coals: their nature, composition, formation and rank." Journal of Palaeosciences 40 (December 31, 1991): 477–89. http://dx.doi.org/10.54991/jop.1991.1795.
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The results of maceral, microlithotype and reflectance analyses, so far carried out on the Palaeozoic (Permian) and Tertiary coals of Himalaya, have been presented along with the details of geological and chemical (proximate) studies. The Permian coals, enclosed in the sediments dispersed as thrust slices in the eastern Himalaya, are characterized by their high rank and the dominance of the maceral vitrinite. In general, these coals are classified as semianthracite, except for the Bhutan coals which are of low rank and high volatile bituminous in nature. Almost all the macerals contain fairly high amount of mineral matter. Finely disseminated argillaceous matter is the most common mineral suite present in the coals followed by carbonates and iron sulphide (pyrite). In most of the cases, the mineral matter is present as infillings in numerous sets of fissures which traverses the coals. These infillings seem to have been developed during the tectonic activity and represent secondary minerals impregnated in various macerals. Often the presence of high amount of mineral matter has greatly reduced the quality of coal. Besides, the marine animal fossil-bearing mineral concretions (coal balls) have indicated that these coals were formed in a series of lagoons under the influence of marine conditions.
The Upper Tertiary coals, associated with the Tipam sediments in the eastern Himalaya, occur as small lenses, very thin impersistent seams and pockets which are characterized by the dominance of maceral vitrinite. It is generally represented by the structured variety (telinite). In general, the cellular structures indicate that these coals have been formed by the burial of wood logs in the fluvial sediments. An important feature of telinite is the presence of folded tissues which attain prominence in the coals occurring closer to the main boundary faults. The coals in this area exhibit lignite-bituminous stage in rank and are comparable to the Mesozoic coals in peninsular India. This stage in rank has been possible mainly due to the tectonic disturbances.
The Lower Tertiary coals of Jammu area are the only economically workable deposits in the Himalayas. These are associated with the beds containing marine animal remains. This indicates that coal formation took place under near-shore environment. These coals are comparable to the Permian coals of the eastern Himalayas. They are also rich in maceral vitrinite and semianthracitic in rank. Such a high rank of these Tertiary coals may be attributed to the effect of tectonic movements in the Himalayan areas.
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Leki, Phuntsho Thinley, Rajanathan Rajaratnam, and Rinjan Shrestha. "Establishing baseline estimates of blue sheep (Pseudois nayaur) abundance and density to sustain populations of the vulnerable snow leopard (Panthera uncia) in Western Bhutan." Wildlife Research 45, no. 1 (2018): 38. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/wr16218.
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Context Advances have been made in the development of reliable methods for estimating the abundance and density of large threatened mammalian predators, but there is little progress on developing population estimates for their principal prey. No standardised protocol for estimating prey populations exists, therefore different researchers use different methods. As such, there is little information on key prey species of the vulnerable snow leopard and this has hindered the preparation of effective snow leopard conservation plans. Aims This study aimed to establish an estimated seasonal baseline population abundance and density of blue sheep in the Lingzhi Park Range (LPR) of Bhutan’s Jigme Dorji National Park over winter (December to February) and summer (May to July). It also aimed to assess the number of snow leopard individuals that the current blue sheep population can sustain in the study area. Methods A refined double-observer survey method was used and involved walking transect lengths of 414 km in winter and 450 km in summer to estimate blue sheep abundance with the aid of 8 × 30 binoculars and 15 × 45 spotting scopes. Key results In total, 1762 (s.e. ± 199) blue sheep individuals were recorded in winter at a density of 8.51 individuals per km2 and 2097 (s.e. ± 172) individuals in summer at a density of 9.32 individuals per km2. Mean group size of blue sheep was 38.12 individuals (s.e. ± 6) in winter and 52.36 individuals (s.e. ± 4) in summer. LPR was estimated to sustain 11–17 snow leopards in winter and 15–21 in summer. Key conclusions LPR can be a hotspot for snow leopard conservation in western Bhutan and regionally in the eastern Himalayas, because the comparatively higher estimated blue sheep abundance and density supports possibly the highest density of snow leopards in Bhutan. The modified double-observer method used to assess blue sheep population estimates is inexpensive, robust and practical for the mountainous terrain of the Himalayas. Implications On the basis of this study, it is recommended that a refined double-observer method is adopted as a standard technique for estimating blue sheep populations in the snow leopard range countries of the Himalayas. Snow leopard conservation plans should, additionally, include efforts to minimise threats to blue sheep populations. This refined method is also highly applicable for future surveys of gregarious mammalian taxa, such as ungulates and primates, in difficult mountainous terrain elsewhere in the world.
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KC, Diwakar, Kabindra Gautam, Harish Dangi, Sushma Kadel, and Liangbo Hu. "Challenges in Tunneling in the Himalayas: A Survey of Several Prominent Excavation Projects in the Himalayan Mountain Range of South Asia." Geotechnics 2, no. 4 (September 26, 2022): 802–24. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/geotechnics2040039.
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The Himalayas are one of the most unstable regions in the world. Underground excavations are very challenging in this region due to the fragile geology, tectonic activities and complex geological structures. In the present study, three hydropower head race tunnel projects from Nepal, as well as six additional tunnel projects from Bhutan, India and Pakistan located at different parts of the Himalayas, are reviewed with a focus on the common problems encountered during the tunneling and their possible causes and remedies. It is found that rock bursts often occurred around the overburden of 1000 m or higher, while tunnel squeezing problems were commonly observed in a wide range of overburden. Most of the rock failures occurred in sheared zones, thrusts and heavily weathered rock mass. The geological conditions around these projects are often characterized by significant presence of folds, faults, joints and interbedding of different types of rock strata; they are so complex and diverse that it is often difficult to accurately predict the field condition from conventional geotechnical site investigation. In many cases, the presence of shear zones, thrusts and tectonic activities has a strong influence on the in situ stress. Review of these prominent projects suggests that the complicated dynamics between a wide range of geological and geotechnical factors play a critical role in the tunneling in the Himalayas.
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Pešić, Vladimir, Harry Smit, Neha Sharma, Pankaj Bahuguna, and Rajesh Rayal. "First description of the male of Neoatractides tashiwangmoi Pešić, Smit & Gurung, 2022 from the Indian Himalayas (Acariformes, Hydrachnidia, Torrenticolidae)." Ecologica Montenegrina 57 (October 4, 2022): 32–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.37828/em.2022.57.4.
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Neoatractides tashiwangmoi Pešić, Smit & Gurung, 2022 is known from a single female recently collected in Bhutan. In this paper the first male is described based on a specimen collected in Uttarakhand State of India.
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Smit, John, Theo Zeegers, and Phurpa Dorji. "A new species of Eumerus (Diptera, Syrphidae) from the Kingdom of Bhutan, the easternmost representative of the bactrianus subgroup." ZooKeys 906 (January 27, 2020): 141–51. http://dx.doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.906.48501.
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A new species of Eumerus, Eumerus druk Smit sp. nov., is described from Bhutan. This species belongs to the bactrianus subgroup of the strigatus species group. Seven species are currently known within this subgroup: four European, one of which is also found in the Near East, and three more only known from Tajikistan. The new species extends this disjunct distribution to the east by at least 2,000 km, stretching far beyond the reported Turano-Mediterranean region and into the Himalayas. A diagnosis and a key to all Central and Eastern Palaearctic species of the Eumerus bactrianus subgroup are provided.
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Jørgensen, Per M. "Four New Asian Species in the Lichen Genus Pannaria." Lichenologist 33, no. 4 (July 2001): 297–302. http://dx.doi.org/10.1006/lich.2001.0333.
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AbstractThree new species which have previously been confused with Pannaria rubiginosa are described. The first, Pannaria complanata sp. nov., from southern India, has a possibly subtropical Afro-Asian distribution, the second, Pannaria emodii sp. nov., may be restricted to the eastern Himalayas from Bhutan to Sichuan China, and the third, Pannaria ramulosa sp. nov. is known only from Java. The last two species are both related to Pannaria asahinae P. M. Jørg. from Japan. A fourth new species from southern Taiwan, the isidiate Pannaria formosana, is closely related to Pannaria ramosa Vain., a little known species from the Philippines.
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Tempa, Karma, Raju Sarkar, Abhirup Dikshit, Biswajeet Pradhan, Armando Lucio Simonelli, Saroj Acharya, and Abdullah M. Alamri. "Parametric Study of Local Site Response for Bedrock Ground Motion to Earthquake in Phuentsholing, Bhutan." Sustainability 12, no. 13 (June 29, 2020): 5273. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su12135273.
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Earthquakes, when it comes to natural calamities, are characteristically devastating and pose serious threats to buildings in urban areas. Out of multiple seismic regions in the Himalayas, Bhutan Himalaya is one that reigns prominent. Bhutan has seen several moderate-sized earthquakes in the past century and various recent works show that a major earthquake like the 2015 Nepal earthquake is impending. The southwestern city of Bhutan, Phuentsholing is one of the most populated regions in the country and the present study aims to explore the area using geophysical methods (Multispectral Analysis of Surface Waves (MASW)) for understanding possibilities pertaining to infrastructural development. The work involved a geophysical study on eight different sites in the study region which fall under the local area plan of Phuentsholing City. The geophysical study helps to discern shear wave velocity which indicates the soil profile of a region along with possible seismic hazard during an earthquake event, essential for understanding the withstanding power of the infrastructure foundation. The acquired shear wave velocity by MASW indicates visco-elastic soil profile down to a depth of 22.2 m, and it ranged from 350 to 600 m/s. A site response analysis to understand the correlation of bedrock rigidness to the corresponding depth was conducted using EERA (Equivalent-linear Earthquake Site Response Analysis) software. The amplification factors are presented for each site and maximum amplification factors are highlighted. These results have led to a clear indication of how the bedrock characteristics influence the surface ground motion parameters for the corresponding structure period. The results infer that the future constructional activity in the city should not be limited to two- to five-story buildings as per present practice. Apart from it, a parametric study was initiated to uncover whatever effects rigid bedrock has upon hazard parameters for various depths of soil profile up to 30 m, 40 m, 60 m, 80 m, 100 m, 120 m, 140 m, 160 m, 180 m and 200 m from the ground surface. The overriding purpose of doing said parametric study is centered upon helping the stack holders who can use the data for future development. Such a study is the first of its kind for the Bhutan region, which suffers from the unavailability of national seismic code, and this is a preliminary step towards achieving it.
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Ambrosi, Christian, Tazio Strozzi, Cristian Scapozza, and Urs Wegmüller. "Landslide hazard assessment in the Himalayas (Nepal and Bhutan) based on Earth-Observation data." Engineering Geology 237 (April 2018): 217–28. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.enggeo.2018.02.020.
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Magnussen, Trude, Geir E. E. Søli, and Jostein Kjærandsen. "Allodia Winnertz from the Himalayas, with nine species new to science (Diptera, Mycetophilidae)." ZooKeys 820 (January 29, 2019): 119–38. http://dx.doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.820.31618.
Full textAbstract:
An extensive collection of fungus gnats from Nepal and Bhutan, deposited at Kyushu University Museum in Japan, has been examined and revealed nine species ofAllodiaWinnertz, 1864 new to science:AllodiacaligataMagnussen,sp. n.,A.diboliaMagnussen,sp. n.,A.shimaiMagnussen,sp. n.,A.spathulataMagnussen,sp. n.,A.horologiaMagnussen,sp. n.,A.himalayensisMagnussen,sp. n.,A.nepalensisMagnussen,sp. n.,A.thudamensisMagnussen,sp. n., andA.scalprataMagnussen,sp. n.All specimens were collected at high altitudes in the central and eastern Himalayas. The species all belong to the subgenusAllodia s. str. and constitute the first records of the genusAllodiain Nepal and Bhutan.Brevicornunigrofasciatum(Brunetti, 1912)comb. n., originally described from northern India, is transferred fromAllodiabased on the original description. A key for the identification of the new species is provided.
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Rasul, Golam. "Why Eastern Himalayan countries should cooperate in transboundary water resource management." Water Policy 16, no. 1 (August 27, 2013): 19–38. http://dx.doi.org/10.2166/wp.2013.190.
Full textAbstract:
Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, and Nepal in the Eastern Himalayas are interconnected by the common river systems of the Ganges, Brahmaputra, and Meghna (GBM). The GBM basin is home to approximately 700 million people, comprising over 10% of the world's population. The economy and environment of the region depend on water, but while the need for water is increasing, poor management and climate-related effects are making water supplies erratic. Upstream–downstream interdependencies necessitate developing a shared river system in an integrated manner through collaboration of the riparian countries. This paper examines the opportunities for, and potential benefits of, regional cooperation in water resource management. It suggests that the benefits can increase considerably when a regional (river basin) perspective is adopted that promotes optimum use of water resources for consumptive and non-consumptive use. Regional cooperation can bring additional economic, environmental, social, and political benefits through multi-purpose river projects, which help by storing monsoon water, mitigating the effects of floods and droughts, augmenting dry season river flows, expanding irrigation and navigation facilities, generating hydropower, and enhancing energy and environmental security. A broader framework to facilitate regional cooperation in transboundary rivers in the Eastern Himalayan region is suggested.
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Chhogyel, Ngawang, Lalit Kumar, and Yadunath Bajgai. "Consequences of Climate Change Impacts and Incidences of Extreme Weather Events in Relation to Crop Production in Bhutan." Sustainability 12, no. 10 (May 25, 2020): 4319. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su12104319.
Full textAbstract:
Being a country in the Himalayas, Bhutan is highly prone to the vagaries of weather events that affect agricultural production and the subsequent livelihood of the people. To identify the main issues that affect crop production and the decisions of farmers, a survey was conducted in three different agro-ecosystems in Bhutan. Our key findings indicate that farming and the decisions of farmers were largely affected by different climatic and non-climatic factors. These were in descending order of importance: irrigation availability > farm labour > crop seasonality > crop damage (climatic) > land holding > crop damage (wildlife) > crop damage (diseases and pests). The most important consequences of climate change impacts were the drying of irrigation sources (4.35) and crop losses due to weather events (4.10), whereas land fallowing, the occurrence of flood and soil erosion, weed pressure and changes in cropping pattern (with mean ratings of 2.53–3.03) experienced lesser consequences. The extreme weather events, such as untimely rains, drought and windstorms, were rated as the ‘most common’ to ‘common’ occurrences, thus inflicting a crop loss of 1–19%. These confirm our hearsay knowledge that extreme weather events have major consequences on irrigation water, which is said to be either drying or getting smaller in comparison to the past. Therefore, Bhutan must step up its on-ground farmer-support system towards improving the country’s food production, whilst embracing climate smart farm technologies for adapting to the impacts of change.