He informed that a dolphin was also spotted in the Narayani River during the Gharial crocodile census.
What you should know
Nine male gharial crocodiles have been counted in the Rapti and Narayani rivers that flow through Chitwan National Park.
The park has stated that nine gharial crocodiles, seven in the Rapti River and two in the Narayani River, were found during a live count of the critically endangered gharial crocodiles, the park said.
According to Abinash Thapa Magar, the park's information officer and conservation officer, a total of 366 gharial crocodiles have been found in both rivers. 'During the monitoring, we have found 231 gharial crocodiles in the Rapti River and 135 gharial crocodiles in the Narayani River,' Thapa Magar said. 'Last year, only 352 gharial crocodiles were seen in both rivers.' According to him, in this year's count, 206 gharials have been found in the Rapti River and 146 gharials in the Narayani River.
Stating that the number of gharials has decreased in the Narayani River this year compared to last year, he informed that the number of gharials has increased in the Rapti River. "The number of gharial crocodiles may have increased due to our conservation initiatives and increased conservation awareness in the community," he said. "Even though the park releases the baby crocodiles raised at the gharial breeding center into the Narayani and Rapti rivers every year, the number of crocodiles in the rivers is also increasing."
Thapa Magar informed that since 1978, the gharial breeding center has been established in Kasara, the headquarters of the park, and work has been underway to conserve the critically endangered gharial. He said that crocodile eggs are collected from the banks of the Narayani and Rapti rivers, hatched using machines at the breeding center, and released into their natural habitat every year.
He said that in the coming days, he will continue to work with stakeholders for sustainable conservation of gharial crocodiles, regular monitoring, and cooperation with stakeholders for the protection of the river system, thereby playing a role in increasing the number of gharials. The Chitwan National Park Office made public the results of the regular monitoring of gharial crocodiles conducted from Mangsir 21 to Mangsir 29 this year on Friday.
The main objective of counting gharials in the Rapti River and Narayani River flowing through the Chitwan National Park area is to collect updated information on the current status of gharial crocodiles and their habitats in the river system, said Dr. Ganesh Pant, Chief Conservation Officer of the park.
Pant said that the counting of gharial crocodiles was done based on direct observation in various sections of the Rapti and Narayani rivers during the monitoring. He informed that a dolphin (song) was also seen in the Narayani River during the counting of gharial crocodiles.
According to Chief Conservation Officer Pant, a dolphin was found in the Golaghat area of the Narayani River flowing through Nawalpur and Chitwan during the counting of gharial crocodiles. Pant said that the sighting of dolphins in the Narayani River is considered a positive sign in terms of biodiversity. In previous years, dolphins had been seen repeatedly in this area of the Narayani River and in the Baguwan and Amaltari areas of Nawalpur.
