hari sharan nepali "kazi" nepal's first ornithologist

Interview with Hari Sharan Nepali (Nepalese Ornithologist)

Binita Shrestha

Submitted in:

Partial requirement in the fulfillment of

Conservation of Protected Areas-EESD 522

To

Amulya Ratna Tuladhar

Professor of Environmental Science

School of Education

Kathmandu University

18 December 2012

Binita Shrestha Page i

Table of Content

History of Ornithology in Nepal ..................................................................................................... 1

Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 3

Objectives ....................................................................................................................................... 4

Contribution .................................................................................................................................... 4

Work done ....................................................................................................................................... 6

Challenges faced ............................................................................................................................. 7

Conclusion ...................................................................................................................................... 7

List of Tables

Table 1: Species of birds spotted and recorded on single day by Nepali ....................................... 5

Binita Shrestha Page 1

History of Ornithology in Nepal

The first published observations of Nepalese birds were made by Col. W.J. Kirkpatrick who

noted a few game bird species in 1793. However the first important work was done by Brian

Hodgson, a remarkable man, who held governmental posts in the country for over 20 years

between 1820 and 1843. This included over ten years as British Resident. He made two

extensive collections comprising 9500 bird skins and 1000 skins of mammals, reptiles and fish.

These included about 665 Nepalese bird species, over 120 of which were new to science

(Inskipp, 1985).

John Scully who was resident surgeon in 1876 to 1877 also made a large collection

comprising nearly 2000 specimens of about 300 species of birds (Inskipp, 1985). He was the first

person to describe the status of birds in the Kathmandu Valley. His movements within Nepal

were restricted like those of Hodgson. During his studies of birds of the Sikkim Himalayas

between 1911 and 1914 Herbert Stevens visited the upper Mai valley in Far East Nepal. He

recorded valuable altitudinal and breeding information and collected skins which is still in

excellent condition and held at the Hancock Museum, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.

An important collection of 2146 skins comprising 381 species including a number new to

the country was made by Lt.-Col. Frank Bailey between 1935 and1938 when he was British

Envoy Extraordinary in Nepal (Inskipp, 1985).

Between 1947 and 1949 Dr. Dillon Ripley made a major collection originating in area

between the Far West and Far East of the country. He obtained 1600 specimens representing

about 300 species.


Desiree Proud published several papers between 1948 and 1961 summarizing valuable

and comprehensive observations on birds mainly relating to the Gandaki-Koshi watershed and

Kathmandu Valley.

In 1952 Oleg Polunin was able to trek extensively throughout the western Nepalese

Himalayan while participating in a British Museum (Natural History) botanical expedition. He

recorded a number of species for the first time in Nepal and contributed much to the knowledge

of bird distribution in the West.

Dr. Biswamoy Biswas and Dr. Walter Koelz collected 3500 bird skins representing about

350 species, around Kathmandu and between there and Raxaul in1947 (Inskipp, 1985). These

included a number of new species for the country. Between 1960 and 1968 he published a

detailed account of this collection and included a summary of all Nepalese bird records up to the

date.

Dr. G. Diesselhorst provided important data on the distribution, altitude range and

breeding of Nepalese birds during his ornithological expedition of 1962. He collected 1700

specimens comprising about 315 species (Inskipp, 1985).

An enormous contribution to Nepalese ornithology has been made by Drs. Robert

Fleming Sr. and Jr. They have probably travelled more widely throughout the country than any

other ornithologists. Between them they built up a large collection of bird skins, many of which

are held in the Chicago Field Museum of Natural History, and have published about 35 papers

and articles on Nepalese birds. They have also produced the only field guide to the birds of the

country, first published in 1976.


Hari Sharan Nepali, the leading Nepalese ornithologist has also collected a large number

of bird skins many of which are held at the Kathmandu Natural Museum. He has trekked

extensively within the country and has added several species to Nepalese list.

Since the early 1970s numerous visitors ranging from serious ornithologists to bird

watchers on holiday have recorded birds in Nepal. Although many have only covered the more

easily accessible areas, the knowledge of Nepalese birds has increased enormously as a result of

their observations; 67 species have been added to the Nepalese list since 1970 and new species

are found each year (Inskipp, 1985).

Introduction

Only a few people are sure of what they want to do since their childhood. Hari Sharan Nepali is

one such name that discovered a life-long passion at an early age and made that his profession.

Hari Sharan Nepali, or ‘Kazi Dai’ to those who know him well, discovered that he wanted to

devote all his life to birds when he was just 13. And that is why he is rare and exceptional. He

was born in Chhetrapati, Kathmandu in 1934. He is the first and the most well-known

ornithologists of Nepal; therefore his studies never took place inside a classroom. He never paid

attention to his teachers, but he was in the forest, he was all ears to the twitters and chirpings of

birds.

In his early days, while his friends made rounds of Ason and Indrachowk, Hari Sharan

Nepali sneaked into Shivapuri forest, Godavari and Phulchowki hill to find new birds. During

winter when migratory birds gathered around riverside at Bishnumati, Chobhar, Shangri Khola,

Manohara and Tokha, he used to go with his friend to study birds. While his friends swam and

fished, Hari Sharan Nepali used to silently watch the birds and sometimes shot them to make a


closer study. He never bothered to get into a college because no any colleges offer the course he

wanted to study. The only school Hari Sharan Nepali regularly attended was Nature’s School and

the only lectures he ever paid attention to were the cries of various birds. He can tell the order,

family and species of most birds found in Nepal just by listening to their sounds.

In his quest to record the birds found in Nepal, Hari Sharan Nepali trekked the full length

of the country, from Mechi to Mahakali three times.

Objectives

The objectives of this project are to detail and discuss:

i. Contribution made by Nepalese ornithologist in the conservation history of Nepal.

ii. Effort made by Nepalese ornithologist in the conservation history of Nepal

iii. Challenges faced by Nepalese ornithologist in the conservation history of Nepal

Contribution

Some of the contribution of Mr. Nepali is in finding new species of birds, which was new to the

world, and Nepal. The key contributions made by Hari Sharan Nepali in the conservation history

of Nepal are discussed as follows:

i. Researcher on the birds of Nepal

Though Hari Sharan Nepali has never attended a university or college, he learned everything

through experimentation. He has been to 14 Zones and 75 Districts of Nepal to research birds’

species of Nepal. By 1975, he had collected enough specimens of his own and gathered

necessary information to put on a solo exhibition of stuffed birds. As such Dr. R.L. Fleming


loaned 550 species from him for illustration later on published on a book called “Birds of Nepal”

in 1976 (Bhattarai, 2003).

ii. Collect large number of bird skins, which are held at the Natural History Museum.

He has collected large number of bird skins, many of which are held at Natural History Museum,

Kathmandu. In 1977, he discovered 13 new species, including Tibet Owlet which was spotted in

Dolpa and three Snow Finch species which was spotted and recorded on single day during a bird

watching trip in northeast Mustang. Others include the Black-tailed Godwit and the Booted

Warbler, both of which were thought to be extinct.

Table 1: Species of birds spotted and recorded on single day by Nepali

Species Place found

Rufus-necked Snow Finch Mustang

Brand’s Snow Finch Mustang

Mandle’s Snow Finch Mustang

iii. Founder president of Bird Conservation Nepal (BCN)

Hari Sharan Nepali is the founder president of Bird Conservation Nepal (BCN) which is

supported by 10 patrons, over 60 life members and more than 900 ordinary members. Bird

Conservation Nepal, established in 1982 is the leading organization focusing on the conservation

of birds, their habitats and sites. It seeks to promote interest in birds among general public,

encourage research on birds and identify major threats to bird’ continued survival. BCN in 2004

declared that 133 out of Nepal’s total 865 bird species to be nationally threatened.


Work done

Hari Sharan Nepali started his official collecting the specimens of birds found in Nepal since

1952 by observing birds in the wild and taking notes of migration patterns, behavior, and

plumage characteristics. He began a systematic record keeping in 1955. In 1955, he organized an

exhibition of stuffed birds during King Mahendra’s coronation where he had a sizeable

collection but did not have enough information on many of the birds. In 1956, he collected and

preserved his first bird specimen. He worked as co-researcher with Dr. R.L. Fleming in a work

named ‘Survey of Nepal’ in 1964. Similarly in 1966, he continued his work as co-researcher

with C.O. Messer in “Ornithologist Survey of Nepal” conducted by Chicago (USA) Natural

History Museum. By 1975, at the time of King Birendra’s coronation, Hari Sharan Nepali

collected enough specimens of his own and had gathered all the required information about them

to be able to put on a solo exhibition of stuffed birds. His collection is now in Natural History

Museum at Swoyambhu, Kathmandu. In 1984, he put his effort in the project entitled “Socio-

ecological Studies of Macaques in Nepal”. In same year he worked as ornithologist in a research

expedition entitled “Nepal Tree Bear” in Barun Valley and various other project KMTNC (King

Mahendra Trust for Nature Conservation), Makalu Barun Conservation Project, IUCN/Nepal and

CREST.

Apart from this, Hari Sharan Nepali has also written many articles on field research. His

reports on the tree frog and Goldfinch were published in the Newsletter of Nepal Nature

Conservation Society in 1972. He also contributed writings to the ‘Scientific Report on 1989

Field Survey General and Photo-Ecology’ and Aspects of Wildlife Protection and Utilization in

the Makalu-Barun Conservation Area’ supported by Makalu Barun Conservation Project in

1990.


Challenges faced

There are many challenges faced by Nepali in contributing towards the conservation. During the

research on birds, Nepali faced many challenges. The formal education of Hari Sharan Nepali,

who loves to call himself a “self-made scientist”, came to full stop when he was in class IX. He

was more fascinated towards birds than studying. But how would he preserve the collected

specimen of the birds? He did not have scientific knowledge; still he consulted a compounder

and later on developed the techniques of preserving the collected samples of birds.

There are several incidences impressed in his memories of the time when he wandered

his quest to record the bird species. During his excursions into different places in search of birds,

he has put up with many difficulties, sometimes near death situations. During his visit to

Langtang, he ran out of food and fuel supplies which made him cancel the trip.

Guiding the nature researchers every time Hari Sharan Nepali accumulates some amount

of money that would be sufficient for the bird research expedition. He was not supported by

government or any of the organization for his research on birds. He used to manage fund

required for his research by himself. He used to guide tourists who come to Nepal for studying

different aspects of nature and the money collected from them was the only source of his income.

Conclusion

Birds are found nearly everywhere and so serve as valuable indictors for global environmental

change. Over the past 20 years the status of the world’s 10,000 bird species has deteriorated

significantly with more species slipping closer to extinction (The State of Nepal's Birds, 2010).

Today, one in eight bird species is threatened with global extinction, including Asian birds which

are vanishing rapidly largely because of anthropogenic activities such as expanding and


intensifying agriculture and forestry are destroying and degrading habitats. A climate change

effect is an emerging new concepts in the time line Nepal conservation history. The impacts of

climate change on birds are already visible which could be the most serious threat of all. Most of

the world lies outside protected areas as do most of the world’s birds. The fate of this wider

environment is crucial for conservation to link buffer sites, to meet the requirements of wide

ranging species, and to maintain the familiar species that we know and value. So conservation

requires policies that promote sustainable development and that take nature into account

alongside the needs of the people.

Although government of Nepal has placed high priority on biodiversity conservation

including its birdlife, the work on bird conservation should be developed more in the days to

come. In Nepal, there are 27 Important Bird Areas, out of which 15 Important Bird Areas are

well known with a good track record of conservation activities (The State of Nepal's Birds,

2010). However, 12 Important Bird Areas are still unprotected and these special areas require

more attention. As only nine species are listed in the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation

Act, we have to protect all birds, as protected areas can only provide the last refuge for many

species.


References

www.bcn.org.np.

A self made scientist. (2012, January 06).

Bhattarai, P. (2003). Nepal's Bird Man: Hari Sharan Nepali. ECS NEPAL .

Bisht, K. (2010, October 01). The sorry state of Natural History Museum.

Hari Sharan Nepalensis. (2002, August 09).

Inskipp, T. (1985). A Guide to the Birds of Nepal. British Museum.

Pokharel, A. (2009). Hari Sharan Nepali: An Avid Birder Turned Ornithologist. ECS NEPAL .

(2010). The State of Nepal's Birds. Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation.

Bird Conservation Nepal.