Residents’ willingness-to-pay for watershed conservation plays a crucial role in developing sustainable market-based ecological protection strategies. The main objective of this study was to assess ...local residents’ willingness-to-pay for the protection and conservation of the Begnas watershed ecosystem services, which was estimated using a contingent valuation method. Particularly, the study assessed the factors that affect the residents' willingness-to-pay using the Heckit model generating knowledge crucial to design watershed conservation programs and market-based protection strategies. The total willingness-to-pay was worth of $203,598.15 year
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, and the average annual willingness-to-pay of a household (US$ 33.95) indicated the high importance of Begnas watershed conservation. Likewise, the results from econometric modeling showed a positive relationship between factors, namely gender (male resident), household size, education level, occupation (tourism and agriculture), income, and landholding size with the residents' decision to pay for the watershed conservation. These findings imply that a public-funded watershed conservation program is feasible in the Begnas watershed. Further, local resident participation in the program is seen increased because of the potential improvement in watershed ecosystem services, which are directly related to their livelihoods.
This study prioritized five major ecosystem services from the watershed which included clean and silt less water, conservation and biodiversity, fresh environment, tourism, and beautiful landscape. ...Among these ecosystem services, the fresh environment was ranked first based on respondent’s importance. We conducted multiple focus group discussions, key informant surveys, a household survey, and performed statistical analysis to derive results. About 120 respondents were surveyed, out of which 60 were from upstream and 60 were from the downstream community. The majority of the respondents agreed to participate in the PES mechanism for the conservation of watersheds. The present study has estimated average WTP NRs 114.51/ropani/year/HH and WTA of NRs118.18/ropani/year/HH for conservation of watershed. The probit model was adopted to identify the factors affecting people to pay or accept for ecosystem services. Respondent’s socio-economic characteristics such as gender (female), household income, higher education level, and people involved in agriculture and tourism had a positive impact on willingness to pay in downstream community, while the variables occupation (agriculture and tourism) and property size only had a positive relationship with a willingness to accept in upstream community. Our findings showed the feasibility to initiate and implement the PES mechanism in this watershed and the result of this study could also be used to design a long-term wetland management plan in the future to preserve the wetland. Moreover, time and again studies on the monetary values for ecosystem services are also recommended to assess the varying behavior of the people with time and development.
Determinants for choosing climate change adaptation strategies and selecting improved agroforestry practices have rarely been explored, while numerous studies have been conducted on climate change ...and agroforestry. This paper discusses; local understanding of climate change, climatic impacts, and factors that affect farmers’ choices of adaptation strategies, and agroforestry practices. We focused on three districts located in the mid-hills of Nepal, where farmers were adopting agroforestry practices in two forms; traditional and improved practices. We followed three techniques of social survey; household survey (n = 420), focus group discussions (n = 6), and key informant interviews (n = 24). Almost all farmers of the study areas were experiencing climatic challenges, but only 59.29% of them accepted that the challenges are induced by climate change and, likewise, 55.24% have adopted climate change adaptation measures. Diversifying crop production, shifting farming practices, changing occupation, and emigration were local adaptation strategies. Livelihood improvement, income generation, and food production were the primary motives for adopting agroforestry practices in the study area. Agroforestry as an adaptation measure to climate change was considered secondary by most farmers. Statistical analysis using a logit model revealed that age, education, and habit of growing commercial species significantly influenced farmers adopting climate change adaptation strategies. Likewise, age, education, gender, habit of growing commercial species, and income from tree products significantly influenced the choice of improved agroforestry practices as a better option. Though agroforestry was widely considered a strategy to combat climate change, only some farmers accepted it due to their awareness level. Therefore, education programs such as training, farmer field schools, door-to-door visits, etc., should be intensified to sensitize farmers about climate change and encourage them to adopt improved agroforestry practices. The findings of the study could reinforce local, national, and international allied agencies to design operative actions in the days to come.
•Modification of the traditional agroforestry practice to optimize household benefits.•Out of total farmers experiencing climatic effects, only some of them were adopting adaptation strategies.•Multiple factors affect farmers in adopting climate change adaptation strategies.•Multiple factors affect farmers for selecting the better agroforestry practice.•Additional education programs are required to promote the agroforestry practice.
Income; Climatic effects; Traditional practice; Improved practice; Education; Combat.
Nutrient management has been a major constraint in mungbean cultivation, resulting in huge economic losses to farmers. A field experiment was conducted at Paklihawa, Rupandehi, Nepal to evaluate the ...effects of different biofertilizers and nutrient sources on yield, performance, and economics of mungbean in 2020. The experiment was laid out in a split-plot design comprising of three treatments of biofertilizers in the main plot i.e., Control, Rhizobium, and Azotobacter, and six treatments of organic and inorganic fertilizers in sub-plots i.e., Control, Farm Yard Manure (FYM) @5000 kg/ha, Poultry Manure (PM) @3000 kg/ha, Recommended dose of chemical fertilizer (RDF) @20:40:20 kg/ha, and Poultry manure in combination with the recommended dose of chemical fertilizer. The experiment results revealed that in the case of biofertilizer application, the highest grain yield was obtained by Rhizobium inoculation (1019.32 kg/ha) and with Azotobacter inoculation (962.57 kg/ha) as compared to control (756.35 kg/ha). In the case of fertilizer application, integrated application of poultry manure and recommended dose of fertilizers resulted in a higher yield (1045 kg/ha), which is statistically similar to the combination of farmyard manure and recommended dose of fertilizers (991.08 kg/ha), followed by the solo use of fertilizer and control. The treatment with the recommended dose of fertilizers alone resulted in higher economics, while interaction with Rhizobium resulted in a benefit-cost ratio of 3.96. Moreover, organic manure treatment in control plots contributed to a low benefit-cost ratio (3) compared to other combinations of treatments (>3). The authors suggested the use of biofertilizers in combination with other fertilizers for better crop yields and high economic returns. However, further research is required to conclude the effects of different nutrient sources on successful mungbean cultivation.
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•The integrated application of biofertilizers and chemical fertilizers has a synergistic effect on the performance of mungbean.•The recommended dose of fertilizers provided with Rhizobium inoculation resulted in higher economics.•Further comprehensive experimental research is needed to arrive at a more consistent and bolder conclusion.
Key Clinical Message
Diastematomyelia, tethered cord, intradural extramedullary dermoid tumor and lipomyelomeningocele such disease entities themselves are rare in their own form and concurrent ...presentation of all those pathological states in a single individual can be considered one of the rarest forms of spinal dysraphism globally. Moreover for prompt management with optimal prognosis needs refined neurosurgical intervention guided by intraoperative neuromonitoring so as to bring about the best quality of life in the patient.
Myasthenia gravis is a neuromuscular junction disorder characterised by fluctuating muscle weakness, improved by using anti-cholinesterase drugs. In addition to the autoimmune aetiology, various ...factors such as infections, surgery, and drugs are known to precipitate the condition. We report a case of a 15-year-old boy with D-penicillamine-induced myasthenia gravis who presented with facial diplegia, dysphagia, and drooling of saliva, 6 years after the initiation of treatment for Wilson's disease. Therefore, clinicians should be more vigilant while prescribing patients with chelating drugs like D-penicillamine with regular monitoring of the new symptoms and keeping a very low threshold for the suspicion of myasthenia gravis.
d-penicillamine; myasthenia gravis; pyridostigmine; Wilson's disease.
Farmers are predominantly adopting two forms of agroforestry, traditional and improved practices, in the midhills of Nepal, but their efficacy on a comparative basis is poorly assessed, so farmers ...often confuse whether to continue the traditional practice or embrace the improved practice. We carried out a study in six villages of three districts, interviewed 210 farmers adopting each practice, organized six focus group discussions, and interacted with 24 key informants to compare agroforestry practices from income generation and forest conservation perspectives. An individual household adopting the improved practice annually generated 841.60 US$, which was more than two folds of the traditional practitioner. Similarly, the improved practitioner annually fulfilled 84% demand for forest products from the adopted agroforestry practice, whereas the traditional practitioner only fulfilled about 50%. The fodder, fuelwood, and timber productions were found to be significantly higher in the improved practice, whereas leaf litter production was found to be almost similar. The improved practitioners seemed to be self-sustained in forest products, where the traditional practitioners only satisfied half of their requirements from the agroforestry practice. The study concludes that the improved agroforestry practice is more beneficial compared to the traditional practice. Therefore, we suggest the traditional practitioners to modify their ongoing practice to enhance the contribution of agroforestry practice at the local level.
The world has faced huge negative effects from the COVID-19 pandemic between early 2020 and late 2021. Each country has implemented a range of preventive measures to minimize the risk during the ...COVID-19 pandemic. This study assessed the COVID-19-related fear, risk perception, and preventative behavior during the nationwide lockdown due to COVID-19 in Nepal. In a cross-sectional study, conducted in mid-2021 during the nationwide lockdown in Nepal, a total of 1484 individuals completed measures on fear of COVID-19, COVID-19 risk perception, and preventive behavior. A multiple linear regression analysis was used to identify factors associated with COVID-19 fear. The results revealed significant differences in the fear of COVID-19 in association with the perceived risk of COVID-19 and preventive behaviors. Age, risk perception, preventive behavior, and poor health status were significantly positively related to fear of COVID-19. Perceived risk and preventive behaviors uniquely predicted fear of COVID-19 over and above the effects of socio-demographic variables. Being female and unmarried were the significant factors associated with fear of COVID-19 among study respondents. Higher risk perception, poor health status, and being female were strong factors of increased fear of COVID-19. Targeted interventions are essential to integrate community-level mental health care for COVID-19 resilience.
Pastoralist–wolf conflict over livestock depredation is the main factor affecting conservation of grey wolf worldwide. Very limited research has been carried out to evaluate the pattern and nature of ...livestock depredation by wolf. This study aims to determine the status and nature of human–wolf conflict across different villages in the Hind Kush region of Pakistan during the period January 2016–December 2016. For this purpose, a total of 110 local male respondents from all walks of life were interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire. The grey wolf was declared as a common species in the area by 51.3% of the locals with an annual sighting rate of 0.46 each. During the year (2016), a total of 358 livestock were lost to grey wolf predation and disease. Of the total livestock loss, grey wolf was held responsible for a total 101 livestock losses. Goat and sheep were the most vulnerable prey species as they accounted for 80 (79.2%) of the total reported depredations. Out of the total economic loss (USD 46,736, USD 424.87/household), grey wolf was accountable for USD 11,910 (USD 108.27 per household), while disease contributed 34,826 (USD 316.6 per household). High depredation was observed during the summer season 58.42% (n = 59) followed by spring and autumn. Unattended livestock were more prone to grey wolf attack during free grazing in forests. Most of the respondents (75.45%) showed aggressive and negative attitudes towards grey wolf. The herders shared more negative attitude (z = −3.21, p = 0.001) than businessman towards the species. Herders having larger herd size displayed more deleterious behavior towards wolves than those having smaller herd size. Active herding techniques, vaccinating livestock, educating locals about wildlife importance, and initiating compensating schemes for affected families could be helpful to decrease negative perceptions.
It is essential to assess the feeding strategies of threatened species during resource-scarce seasons to understand their dietary niche breadth and inform appropriate habitat management measures. In ...this study, we examined the diet composition of four-horned antelope (FHA)
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, one of the least studied ungulate species, in Banke National Park, Nepal. A total of 53 fresh pellet groups were collected between December 2015 and January 2016 and analyzed using micro-histological fecal analysis technique. First, we prepared 133 micro-histological photographs of different parts of 64 reference plant species. Then we compared 1,590 fragments of 53 fecal samples with photographs of reference plants to assess the percentage of occurrence of different plant species in FHA diet. A total of 30 plant species belonging to 18 different families were identified in fecal samples. Chi-square goodness of fit tests showed that FHA appeared not to feed all plant uniformly. Out of 1,520 identified fragments in fecal samples, 1,300 were browse species and 220 were grass species. Browse represented 85.5% of the identified plant fragments, suggesting that FHA might be adopting a browser strategy at least during winter when grasses are low in abundance and their nutritive quality is poor. Tree species had the highest contribution in the diet (46.55%) followed by shrubs (24.52%). The family Gramineae was consumed in the highest proportion (27.68%) followed by Euphorbiaceae (11.95%). Overall, our results suggest that FHA has the feeding plasticity to adapt to resource fluctuation. Based on the findings of this study, we recommend that dicot plant species-particularly fruit trees and shrubs, which are the major source of nutrients for FHA during resource-lean, dry season-be conserved and natural regeneration of these taxa be promoted.
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