Uses of invasive alien plant species in Rema-Kalenga Wildlife Sanctuary of Bangladesh

An exploratory survey was conducted on the uses and role of invasive alien species(IAS) to local livelihoods in the Rema-Kalenga Wildlife Sanctuary in the northeastern hilly region of Bangladesh.Vegetation was sampled in 50 quadrates,each 10 m×10 m,and 25 line transects,each 50 m×20 m,through a combination of random and systematic sampling.Group discussions were also arranged with fifty local inhabitants(17 % of the total inhabitants) to learn the various uses of IAS.A total of 17 alien plant species belonging to 10 different families,of which Leguminosae constitutes the highest number(5 species),include tree(53%) followed by herb(12%),shrub(12%) and others(weed,climber and palm).The majority of the identified species were found to be used for fuel,followed by timber production,medicinal or curative uses,fodder,and many others.In addition to providing various forest products,alien tree species planted in forest plantation help provide many vital ecosystem services such as soil amelioration through nitrogen fixation.It is true that the alien species have some negative impacts on local ecosystems,and not all of them are harmful.Therefore,a national programme must be initiated to distinguish the harmful from the harmless species and to identify the uses and impacts of the former and latter.     

Improvement of glacial lakes detection under shadow environment using ASTER data in Himalayas, Nepal

The detection of glacial lake change in the Himalayas, Nepal is extremely significant since the glacial lake change is one of the crucial indicators of global climate change in this area, where is the most sensitive area of the global climate changes. In the Himalayas, some of glacial lakes are covered by the dark mountains′ shadow because of their location. Therefore, these lakes can not be detected by conventional method such as Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI), because the reflectance feature of shadowed glacial lake is different comparing to the ones which are located in the open flat area. The shadow causes two major problems: 1) glacial lakes which are covered by shadow completely result in underestimation of the number of glacial lakes; 2) glacial lakes which are partly identified are considered to undervalue the area of glacial lakes. The aim of this study is to develop a new model, named Detection of Shadowed Glacial Lakes (DSGL) model, to identify glacial lakes under the shadow environment by using Advanced Space-borne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) data in the Himalayas, Nepal. The DSGL model is based on integration of two different modifications of NDWI, namely NDWIs model and NDWI she model. NDWIs is defined as integration of the NDWI and slope analysis and used for detecting non-shadowed lake in the mountain area. The NDWIshe is proposed as a new methodology to overcome the weakness of NDWIs on identifying shadowed lakes in highly elevated mountainous area such as the Himalayas. The first step of the NDWIshe is to enhance the data from ASTER 1B using the histogram equalization (HE) method, and its outcome product is named ASTER he . We used the ASTER he for calculating the NDWI he and the NDWIshe . Integrated with terrain analysis using Digital Elevation Model (DEM) data, the NDWI she can be used to identify the shadowed glacial lakes in the Himalayas. NDWIs value of 0.41 is used to identify the glacier lake (NDWIs≥0.41), and 0.3 of NDWIshe is used to identify the shadowed glacier lake (NDWIshe≤0.3). The DSGL model was proved to be able to classify the glacial lakes more accurately, while the NDWI model had tendency to underestimate the presence of actual glacial lakes. Correct classification rate regarding the products from NDWI model and DSGL model were 57% and 99%, respectively. The results of this paper demonstrated that the DSGL model is promising to detect glacial lakes in the shadowed environment at high mountains.     

Effects of disturbance intensities on vegetation patterns in oak forests of Kumaun, west Himalaya

In order to realize the significance of oak forests for ecology and economy of the Himalayan region,the present study attempts to objectively characterize disturbance intensities and their impacts on compositional features of identified Oak forests, i.e.Banj-oak(Quercus leucotrichophora A.Camus), Tilonj-oak(Q.floribunda Lindley)and Kharsu-oak(Q. semecarpifolia J.E.Smith)in west Himalaya. Amongst studied forests,Q.leucotrichophora and Q. semecarpifolia forests exhibited high sensitivity towards disturbance intensities.In both forests, increasing level of disturbance significantly lowered tree density,dominance and natural recruitment (seedling and sapling density).Q.floribunda forests, however,appeared relatively more resilient to anthropogenic disturbances.Amongst studied oak forests,Q.semecarpifolia forests with overall poor natural regeneration are in a most critically endangered demographic state.However,a slightly improved regeneration(i.e.,seedling density)in moderately disturbed plots is indicative that such plots may be utilized most suitably for in situ revival of these forests.Effect of disturbance intensities on tree population is an important subject for forest ecology and management and the present study highlights a need for adopting different management strategies across disturbance intensities in diverse oak forests of west Himalaya.     

Mountain Commons： Changing Space and Status at Community Levels in the Himalayas

This paper deals with the imperatives of nature-society interaction in the Himalayas as seen through CPR (Common Property Resources). It specifically looks at the process and factors that characterize the dynamics of the above interactions, with particular reference to the changing status and governance of CPRs at community levels. The paper puts together the synthesis of observations and inferences of different studies by ICIMOD and others in mountain regions, particularly in different parts of Nepal, India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, China and Pakistan. Rural CPRs (providing sustenance supplies and services) as an important component of a community’s natural resource base, manifest the institutional arrangements evolved by the communities to facilitate their adaptations to nature. The above process can be more clearly illustrated with reference to specific characteristics of mountain areas, called mountain specificities. However, over time, the situation of CPRs in terms of their extent and status, governance and management as well as contributions to community sustenance, has changed. The paper attempts toindicate potential lead lines for searching options for rehabilitation of CPRs, based on a closer under- standing of the factors contributing to their decline.     

Anthropogenic pressure on structure and composition of a shola forest in Kerala, India

Introduction Tropical region is endowed with a vast tract of diverse vegetation (Gentry 1992). Among different types of forests, the montane forests, due to their unique features including rich biodiversity andprominent ecological services, have always attracted biologists, bio-geographers, ecologists and forest managers (Doumenge et al. 1995). In India, montane forests covering 7.9 % of total forest area occur in the Himalayan, northeastern and southern parts of the country (Lal 1989). In s…     

Distribution patterns of medicinal plants along an elevational gradient in central Himalaya, Nepal

This study aimed to compare the distribution patterns and trends of plant parts used among different groups of medicinal plants, geographical regions,and between medicinal plants and all vascular plants.We used the published sources for elevation records of 2,331 medicinal plant species to interpolate presence between minimum and maximum elevations and estimated medicinal plant richness for each 100-m elevational band. Monte Carlo simulations were used to test whether differences in elevational distribution between different groups of medicinal plants were significant. Total number of medicinal plants as well as different groups showed unimodal relationship with elevation. The elevational distributions of medicinal plants significantly differ between regions and between medicinal plant groups.When comparing the richness of all medicinal plants to all vascular plants,Monte Carlo simulations indicated that the numbers of medicinal plants are higher than expected at low elevations.The highest richness of medicinal plants at low elevation could be possibly due to favorable environmental factors such as high temperature, rainfall,sunlight or due to higher density of human population and thus higher pressure on use of any plants in lower elevations.     

Elevational distribution of butterflies in the Himalayas: a case study from Langtang National Park,Nepal

Mountain ecosystems are relatively more vulnerable to climate change since human induced climate change is projected to be higher at high altitudes and latitudes. Climate change induced effects related to glacial response and water hazards have been documented in the Himalayas in recent years, yet studies regarding species’ response to climate change are largely lacking from the mountains and Himalayas of Nepal. Changes in distribution and latitudinal/altitudinal range shift, which are primary adaptive responses to climate change in many species, are largely unknown due to unavailability of adequate data from the past. In this study, we explored the elevational distribution of butterflies in Langtang Village Development Committee (VDC) of Langtang National park; a park located in the high altitudes of Nepal. We found a decreasing species richness pattern along the elevational gradient considered here. Interestingly, elevation did not appear to have a significant effect on the altitudinal distribution of butterflies at family level. Also, distribution of butterflies in the area was independent of habitat type, at family level. Besides, we employed indicator group analysis (at family level) and noticed that butterfly families Papilionidae, Riodinidae, and Nymphalidae are significantly associated to high, medium and low elevational zone making them indicator butterfly family for those elevational zones, respectively. We expect that this study could serve as a baseline information for future studies regarding climate change effects and range shifts and provide avenues for further exploration of butterflies in the high altitudes of Nepal.     

Monitoring glacier and supra-glacier lakes from space in Mt. Qomolangma region of the Himalayas on the Tibetan Plateau in China

Because of the large number and remoteness, satellite data, including microwave data and optical imagery, have commonly been used in alpine glaciers surveys. Using remote sensing and Geographical Information System （GIS） techniques, the paper presents the results of a multitemporal satellite glacier extent mapping and glacier changes by glacier sizes in the Mt. Qomolangma region at the northern slopes of the middle Himalayas over the Tibetan Plateau. Glaciers in this region have both retreated and advanced in the past 35 years, with retreat dominating. The glacier retreat area was 3.23 km2 （or o.75 km^2 yr^-1 during 1974 and 1976, 8.68 km^2 （or 0.36 km^2 yr^-1 during 1976 and 1992, 1.44 km^2 （or 0.12 km^2 yr^-1） during 1992-2ooo. 1.14 km^2 （or 0.22 km^2 yr^-1 during 2000-2003, and 0.52 km^2 （or 0.07 km^2 yr^-1 during 2003-2008, respectively. While supra-glacier lakes on the debris-terminus of the Rongbuk Glacier were enlarged dramatically at the same time, from 0.05 km^2 in 1974 increased to 0.71 km^2 in 2008, which was more than 13 times larger in the last 35 years. In addition, glacier changes also showed spatial differences, for example, glacier retreat rate was the fastest at glacier termini between 5400 and 5700 m a.s.l than at other elevations. The result also shows that glaciers in the middle Himalayas retreat almost at a same pace with those in the western Himalayas.     

Feasibility Comparison of Reanalysis Data from NCEP-Ⅰ and NCEP-Ⅱ in the Himalayas

Mt. Everest is often referred to as the earth＇s ＇third＇ pole. As such it is relatively inaccessible and little is known about its meteorology. In 2005, an automatic weather station was operated at North Col （28°1′ 0.95＂ N, 86°57′ 48.4＂ E, 6523 m a.s.l.） of Mt. Everest. Based on the observational data, this paper compares the reanalysis data from NCEP/NCAR （hereafter NCEP-Ⅰ） and NCEP-DOE AMIP-Ⅱ （NCEP- Ⅱ）, in order to understand which reanalysis data are more suitable for the high Himalayas with Mr. Everest region. When comparing with those from the other levels, pressure interpolated from 500 hPa level is closer to the observation and can capture more synoptic-scale variability, which may be due to the very complex topography around Mt. Everest and the intricately complicated orographic land-atmosphereocean interactions. The interpolation from both NCEP-Ⅰ and NCEP-Ⅱ daily minimum temperature and daily mean pressure can capture most synopticscale variability （r〉0.82, n=83, p〈0.001）. However, there is difference between NCEP-Ⅰ and NCEP-Ⅱ reanalysis data because of different model parameterization. Comparing with the observation, the magnitude of variability was underestimated by 34.1%, 28.5 % and 27.1% for NCEP-Ⅰ temperature and pressure, and NCEP-Ⅱ pressure, respectively, while overestimated by 44.5 % for NCEP-Ⅱ temperature. For weather events interpolated from the reanalyzed data, NCEP-Ⅰ and NCEP-Ⅱ show the same features that weather events interpolated from pressure appear at the same day as those from the observation, and some events occur one day ahead, while most weather events and NCEP-Ⅱ temperature interpolated from NCEP-Ⅰ happen one day ahead of those from the observation, which is much important for the study on meteorology and climate changes in the region, and is very valuable from the view of improving the safety of climbers who attempt to climb Mt. Everest.     

喜马拉雅山脉与我国东部中低山区冰蚀地貌对比研究

我国东部中低山区第四纪冰川的存在与否一直存在争议,但冰川必然对山体进行冰蚀作用形成冰蚀地貌。为了分析我国东部中低山区的山体地貌是否具有冰蚀特征,该文选取了现代冰川集中发育区-喜马拉雅山脉作为冰蚀地貌的研究对象,通过宏观分析,除了由缩口、三角脊、残弧组成的冰斗系统外,还发现冰蚀作用过程存在避谷、吞脊、切壁、穿梁等特殊习性。分析认为冰蚀过程主要受制于雪线高程、积雪高程与坡向坡角三方面因素的控制。以此为基础,对我国东部的江西庐山、山东蒙山、大兴安岭主峰黄岗梁三个地区的山体地貌进行对比分析,发现这些山区的山体地貌与喜马拉雅山脉的冰蚀地貌具有一致性。文章从冰蚀过程的角度确认了我国东部中低山区存在第四纪冰川的事实。     

Effects of topography and land use on woody plant species composition and beta diversity in an arid Trans-Himalayan landscape,Nepal

Distribution patterns of plant species are believed to be impacted by small-scale habitat heterogeneity. However, there have been few comparative studies examining how woody vegetation composition and diversity varies with aspects of different orientations in the Trans-Himalayan region at a local scale. Here, we examined the effects of incoming solar radiation on variation in woody species composition and compared the diversity between the northeast- and southwest-facing slopes in a Trans-Himalayan valley of Nepal. We also examined the implicit interactions between slope orientation and land use in determining the compositional variations between the slopes. We selected two pairs of northeast- and southwest-facing slopes where the first pair has a similar land use and differs in exposure only（Pisang site） while the other pair has clear differences in land use in addition to slope exposure（Braka site）. In each site, we sampled 72 plots（36 on each slope） in which the presence and absence of woody species, environmental variables, and disturbance were recorded. Correspondence Analysis（CA） results suggested that the woody species composition significantly varied between northeast- and southwest-facing slopes at both sites, and was significantly correlated with measured environmental variables such as radiation index, altitude, and canopy openness. In the Braka site,mean alpha diversity was significantly higher on southwest-facing slopes. In contrast, beta diversity and gamma diversity were greater on northeast-facing slopes at both sites. Our results suggest that topographic variables（e.g., radiation index） affect species composition between the slopes, likely due to their influence on small scale abiotic environmental variables. However, the effects of land use, such as livestock browsing/grazing may interact with the effects of slope exposure, effectively reducing differences in species composition within slopes but enhancing the differences in beta diversity between contrasting slopes in the Br     

Root structure,distribution and biomass in five multipurpose tree species of Western Himalayas

【Title】

【Author】

【Addresses】1

The tree root distribution pattern and biomass of seventeen year old trees of Grewia optiva, Morus alba, Celtis australis, Bauhinia variegata and Robinia pseudoacacia were studied by excavation method. B. variegata roots penetrated to a maximum depth of 4.78 m, whereas, M. alba roots were found down to 1.48 m depth. Lateral spread was minimum in B. variegata （1.10 m）and maximum inR. pseudoacacia （7.33 m）. Maximum root biomass of 6.30 kg was found in R. pseudoacacia and minimum （2.43 kg） was found in M. alba. For four species viz.,G. optiva, M. alba, C. australis andR. pseudoacacia, 68%-87% root biomass occurred within top 0-30 cm soil depth, but forB. variegata this was only45%. The soil binding factor was maximum in G. optiva and minimum in B. variegata. Soil physico-chemical properties also showed wide variation. The study suggests thatB. variegata with a deep root system is the most suitable species for plantation under agroforestry systems. R. pseudoacacia and G. optiva with deep root systems, more lateral spread and high soil binding factor are suitable for plantation on degraded lands for soil conservation.     

Effect of environmental gradients on the quantity and quality of fallen logs in Tsuga longibracteata forest in Tianbaoyan National Nature Reserve, Fujian province, China

We investigated the quantity and quality 0f fallen l0gs in different Tsuga l0ngibracteata f0rest c0mmunities in the Tianba0yan Nati0nal Nature Reserve. We used redundancy analysis t0 determine the spatial distributi0n 0f fallen l0gs in the different f0rest c0mmunities and t0 analyze the relati0nships am0ng stand structure, t0p0graphic fact0rs and human disturbance. The v0lume, c0vered area, mean l0g length and number 0f fallen l0gs differed significantly am0ng f0rest types （P 〈 0.05）, but mean diameter at breast height sh0wed n0 significant difference （P 〉 0.05）. The l0g v0lume and c0vered area in different f0rest types sh0wed the f0ll0wing trend： T. l0ngibracteata pure f0rest 〈 T. l0ngibracteata ＋ Olig0staehyum scabrifl0rur 〈 T. l0ngibraeteata ＋ hardw00d 〈 Rh0d0dendr0n simiarum ＋ T. l0ngibraeteata 〈 T. l0ngibraeteata ＋ Phyll0stachys heter0cycla pubescens. The spatial distributi0n patterns 0f l0gs quantity and quality indicated that l0g v0lume and c0vered area were str0ngly affected by envir0nmental fact0rs in the f0ll0wing 0rder： human disturbance 〉 elevati0n 〉 sl0pe p0siti0n 〉 b0le height 〉 tree height 〉 sl0pe aspect 〉 density 〉 basal area 〉 sl0pe gradient. The relative c0ntributi0n 0f envir0nmental variables 0n the t0tal variance was t0p0graphy （76%） 〉 disturbance （42%） 〉 stand structure （35%）. T0p0graphy and disturbance c0mbined explained 8.2% 0f the variance. Fallen l0~s auantitv and aualitvwere negatively related t0 elevati0n and sl0pe p0siti0n, and p0sitively ass0ciated t0 human disturbance. The l0g v0lume decreased fr0m n0rthern t0 s0uthern sl0pes. Envir0nmental fact0rs had the highest impact 0n class I （slightly decayed）, and l0west impact 0n class V （highly decayed）.     

Recent Changes Occurred in the Terminus of the Debris-covered Bilafond Glacier in the Karakoram Himalayas Using Remotely Sensed Images and Digital Elevation Models (1978-2011)

Recent changes occurred in terminus of the debris-covered Bilafond Glacier in the Karakoram Range in the Himalayas, Northern Pakistan was investigated in this research. Landsat MSS, TM and ETM＋ images were used for this study. Digital elevation models derived from ASTER GDEM and SRTM were also utilized. Visible, infrared and thermal infrared channels were utilized in order to get accurate glacier change maps. Three methods were tried to map this debris-covered glacier in this research. The glacier has been mapped successfully and the changes in the glacier terminus from 1978 to 2011 have been calculated. Manual, semi-automatic and thermal methods were found to give similar results. It was found that the glacier has undergone serious ablation during this period despite of the fact that many of the larger glaciers in the Hindu Kush and Karakoram mountain regions in the Upper Indus Basin were reported to be expanding. The terminus has been moved back about 600 meters during this period and there was an abrupt change in the glacier terminus during 1990-2002. We propose that debris thickness is not the only factor that influences the glacier ablation but the altitude of the debris-covered glacier as well. Many glaciers in the Karakoram region reported to be expanding were having higher altitudes compared to the study area.     

生物多样性保护优先区人类干扰遥感监测与评价方法

本文利用遥感数据时空分辨率高、覆盖面积大、获取便捷的特点,构建优先区人类干扰状况的评价指标体系和计算方法,提取人类干扰类型的空间分布数据,借助地理信息系统的空间分析功能对人类干扰数据进行栅格运算,建立生物多样性保护优先区人类干扰指数（Human Disturbance Index）,定量评价了优先区内人类干扰程度的空间分布特征及动态变化,并以桂西黔南生物多样性保护优先区为例进行了方法验证。结果表明,该方法能有效地进行优先区内人类干扰状况定量评价,数据易获取、过程易操作,具有较强的业务推广价值。生物多样性保护优先区人类干扰指数定量评价方法的建立,可为优先区制定合理、有效的保护措施,为优先区保护和日常监管提供技术支持。     

A new species of the genus Arcoscalpellum (Cirripedia,Thoracica, Scalpellidae) from deep waters in the South China Sea

A new species of deep-water barnacle that belongs to the family Scalpellidae is described from the South China Sea. A rcoscalpellum liui sp. nov. is morphologically similar to A rcoscalpellum gryllum Zevina,but differs from the latter by the absence of longitudinal striae on the capitular plates and the presence of caudal appendages with few terminal setae.     

Shifting dynamics of nature,society and agriculture in the Hindu Kush Himalayas: Perspectives for future mountain development

Current approaches for sustainable mountain development have several persisting warning signals. Economic globalization, profitoriented market development, and infrastructure development have significantly altered traditional nature-society interactions, increased environmental pressures, and challenged agricultural sustainability in the mountains. Some of the effects of globalization could also be beneficial. Social differentiation and disintegration of mountain communities' have weakened their collective stakes on natural resources resulting in decline in initiatives such as community forestry, collective water management, domestication of rapidly disappearing herbal species, and balancing of economic and ecological concerns. Population growth, food insecurity, unemployment, and increasing economic gaps between rich and poor have led to out-migration of youth. Sustained action promoting ownership of new initiatives for rehabilitating degraded mountain landscapes through macro-level global/national initiatives, mountain specific planning and development efforts is severely lacking in many areas on the Hindu Kush Himalayan region. Therefore, there is an urgent need for widening the scope of efforts directed to help mountain areas and communities, and a future thinking approach to enhance the sustainability of mountain areas as they are a valuable natural resource for humankind. This paper discusses the issues, opportunities, and provides suggestions for the future of mountain development.     

Co-occurrence patterns of above-ground and below-ground mite communities in farmland of Sanjiang Plain,Northeast China

One of the fundamental questions in community ecology is whether communities are random or formed by deterministic mechanisms. Although many efforts have been made to verify non-randomness in community structure, little is known with regard to co-occurrence patterns in above-ground and below-ground communities. In this paper, we used a null model to test non-randomness in the structure of the above-ground and below-ground mite communities in farmland of the Sanjiang Plain, Northeast China. Then, we used four tests for non-randomness to recognize species pairs that would be demonstrated as significantly aggregated or segregated co-occurrences of the above-ground and below-ground mite communities. The pattern of the above-ground mite commu- nity was significantly non-random in October, suggesting species segregation and hence interspecific competition. Additionally, species co-occurrence patterns did not differ from randomness in the above-ground mite community in August or in below-ground mite com- munities in August and October. Only one significant species pair was detected in the above-ground mite community in August, while no significant species pairs were recognized in the above-ground mite community in October or in the below-ground mite communities in August and October. The results indicate that non-randomness and significant species pairs may not be the general rule in the above-ground and below-ground mite communities in farmland of the Sanjiang Plain at the fine scale.     

Vegetation traits and soil properties in response to utilization patterns of grassland in Hulun Buir City,Inner Mongolia,China

Numerous studies have focused on vegetation traits and soil properties in grassland, few of which concerned about effects of human utilization patterns on grassland yet. Thus, this study hypothesized that human disturbance （e.g., grazing, mowing and fencing） triggered significant variation of biomass partitioning and carbon reallocation. Besides, there existed some differences of species diversity and soil fertility. To address these hypotheses of grassland with diverse utilization patterns in Hulun Buir City, Inner Mongolia, China, we sampled in situ about aboveground biomass （AGB） and belowground biomass （BGB） to evaluate their biomass allocation. Species diversity and soil properties were also investigated. Subsequently, we discussed the relationship of species diversity with environmental conditions, using data collected from 23 sites during the ecological project period of Returning Grazing Lands to Grasslands （RGLG） program. The results were as follows： 1） both AGB and BGB were lower on grazing regime than those on fencing and mowing, but the ratio of root-to-shoot （R/S） was higher on grazing regime than the other two utilization patterns; 2） neither of evenness and Simpson Index was different significantly among all grassland utilization patterns in desert, typical, and meadow grassland at 0.05. In meadow grassland, species richness of fencing pattern was significantly higher than that of grazing pattern （p 〈 0.05）; 3） both of soil organic carbon content and soil available phosphorous content were increased significantly on fencing pattern than grazing pattern （p 〈 0.05） in desert grassland, and mowing patterns increased the soil nutrients （soil organic carbon, soil total phosphorous, soil available phosphorous, and soil total nitrogen） significantly compared with grazing patterns （p 〈 0.05） in typical grassland. However, there were no significant differences among utilization patterns in meadow grassland. In conclusion, both of AGB and BGB were increased s     

Stakeholder perspectives on use, trade, and conservation of medicinal plants in the Rasuwa district of central Nepal

People’s livelihood in several Himalayan regions largely depends on collection, use, and trade of medicinal plants. Traditional use is generally not a problem, but commercial gathering of selected species to meet increasing national and international demand can result in over-exploitation. Sustainable management of medicinal plants requires a clear understanding of the respective roles, responsibilities and viewpoints of the various stakeholders involved. Through personal interviews and group discussions, this study aimed at investigating the views of two stakeholder groups on use, trade and conservation of medicinal plants in the Rasuwa district of Nepal. Local people and district and national organizations agreed that medicinal plants are collected for a combination of commercial and personal uses. Perceptions on market availability differed significantly: 100 % of the respondents from district and national organizations saw markets as easily available, against only 36 % for local people. This could explain why medicinal plants were perceived by local people to contribute less to income generation than to livelihood improvement. Different viewpoints were also expressed concerning the status of medicinal plants in the district: 81 % of the respondents from district and national organizations considered that medicinal plants were threatened, compared to only 28 % for local people. Despite this disparity, both stakeholder groups agreed upon potential threats to medicinal plants: over-harvesting; habitat loss due to land-use change and deforestation; and over-grazing by livestock. Several challenges were identified regarding sustainable management of medicinal plants, such as ambiguous policies; lack of resources, information and infrastructures; habitat degradation; and over-exploitation. Despite these challenges, respondents agreed that the medicinal plants sector offers huge opportunities in the Rasuwa district, given resource availability, community awareness and motivation, and the priority given to the sector by governments and other agencies. Proper collaboration, communication and coordination among stakeholders are needed to grab these opportunities.