Dan Bahadur Giri of Sukadhik, Khatyad Rural Municipality-8, Mugu, now thinks his village is a desert. "Until 2008, it used to snow 4/5 times a year, and after the snow melted, the mountains looked lush," he said. "Nowadays, there is no end to the snowfall. The mountains look rough and deserted."

He said that in recent years, snow has not been seen in places that used to be covered with snow in Mangsir itself. He said that herbs such as Guchchichayu, Ratochyayu, Satuwa, Atis, Niramasi, Kutki, Jatamsi, Sugandhawal and others have stopped growing in the forests around the village.

He has been going to Sano Koiki, Thulo Koiki, Rimar, and Tanke in Mugamkarmarong Rural Municipality for three decades to collect Yarsagumba and said that Yarsagumba has also started moving upwards along with the snow. ‘Nowadays, snow has stopped accumulating below Patan, when snow does not accumulate, Yarsagumba has also started to be found only above Patan,’ he said, ‘Yarsagumba is moving upwards by 1/2 foot every year.’

The main source of income for the family of 59-year-old Karma Tamang of Dolpobuddha Rural Municipality-4 in Dolpa is Yarsagumba collection. He has been going to Patan, including Ruppatan, Chinarangsi, Majhdanda, Majhdhari, Batulile, Kanda, Furke, Gyan, Jair, Saikumari and other places to pick yarsa for a decade and a half, but has been frustrated lately. He said that his family of four used to earn up to five hundred thousand rupees per season from the yarsa they picked, but last year they barely earned 150 thousand rupees.

He goes to Patan with his wife Tshiring and two sons to pick yarsa. ‘It has stopped snowing as much as needed, if there is no snow, it is difficult to get yarsa,’ he said, ‘Now, yarsa is only available in the upper part of Patan, it is no longer available in the lower part.’ He estimates that yarsa is moving upwards by about 2/3 feet every year.

Mugu's Mugamkarmarod Rural Municipality, in collaboration with various organizations, conducted a study two years ago to conclude that the fertility rate of Yarsa is decreasing due to snow. During the study, it was found that the life cycle of Yarsa has decreased due to less snow, increased pollution in the valley, and various human activities affecting the environment.

Former forest officer Min Bahadur KC, who participated in the study, said that in places where Yarsa was found the previous year, there was no production the next year. 'Snow mainly affects the life cycle of Yarsa. In natural conditions, the larvae of Thetarodes (Yarsa) are underground and the fungus emerges above the ground,' he said. 'It remains in the snow until the end of Chait. After the snow melts in Baisakh, the stroma of Ophiocordyceps grows from the body of Thetarodes larvae and emerges from the ground.'

He said that the production of yarsa has started decreasing in the lower part of Patan due to open grazing. Yarsa, which is found at an altitude of 3,000 to 5,500 meters above sea level, has recently started to be found in small quantities at an altitude of less than 4,000 meters, said Dr. Laxman Sharma, a researcher working on yarsa conservation. ‘Yarsa larvae grow under the snow, but due to the effects of climate change, snow has stopped falling, and even if it does fall, it only falls on the top, due to which yarsa larvae have not been able to grow in the lower part of Patan,’ he said, ‘Even when collectors use shovels, the habitat of yarsa has been degraded, which has reduced production.’

The Takk Dagar of Sukadhik, Khatyad Rural Municipality-8, Mugu, said that snow has started to have a major impact on their livelihood. ‘We have not had jobs for generations, the produce from our fields is not enough to eat even for 3 months,’ he said, ‘so all our needs throughout the year are met by herbs.’ He has been going to Patan with his family members to pick Yarsa for almost a decade and a half. ‘When it snows, Yarsa is available in abundance. Now, even if 4/5 people search for Yarsa all day, they never find more than 10/15,’ he said. ‘A family’s expenses when going to search for Yarsa are at least 50/60 thousand, and their income has stopped exceeding 150,000.’

He complains that after his income decreased, he has been forced to go to places such as the district headquarters Gamgadhi to earn a living. He said that due to the lack of snow, apples have also stopped growing in most villages in Mugu.
Divisional Forest Officer of the Ministry of Industry, Tourism, Forest and Environment Ramesh Kumar Giri said that the snowfall in the Himalayan district is decreasing every year.

According to him, the life cycle of the Yarsagumba is unique and most of the stages are completed in the snow. ‘A type of butterfly lays eggs in Pus-Magh, covers them with snow, from which its life cycle begins, it becomes a larva in Falgun-Chaitra and turns into a worm in Jestha and comes out of the ground,’ he said, ‘For those eggs, the Yarsagumba sperm matures and falls in the months of Jestha-Asar, the sperm that falls in this way turns into a butterfly again in the months of Bhadau-Asoj and completes the life cycle of the Yarsagumba.’ According to him, snow plays an important role in completing its life cycle. But he said that the production is also decreasing every year because the sperm cannot fall when the yarsa is picked before it is mature.

Environmentalist Manish Acharya said that it is difficult to see snow in the Himalayas due to the effects of climate change and changes in temperature. ‘Without rain, the temperature in the Himalayan region increases and if the existing snow melts, a new snowfall system cannot develop,’ he said, ‘which is having a direct impact on everything from agricultural production to the environment and ecosystem, and the production of herbs including yarsa has decreased.’

Even though the production is decreasing, the price of yarsa is increasing every year. Collectors sell yarsa for up to Rs 1,000 per kilo in Patan. Parbal Lama, a trader from Charkatangsong in Dolpa, said that he sold yarsa for around Rs 2.7 million per kilo this year.

According to him, yarsa was sold for Rs 2.2 to 2.5 million last year. ‘The main market for Yarsa here is China. If you could take it directly to China and sell it, you would get a higher price. Traders who come to Kathmandu are forced to pay whatever they want,’ he said. ‘Recently, due to less snowfall, high-quality Yarsa has stopped being available. The price is not as high as you would like due to the Yarsa that have not ripened.’ According to him, Yarsa costs between Rs 2,500 and Rs 4,000 per kilo. He informed that Yarsa is being bought and sold in China for about Rs 6 million per kilo.