Data Zone
Country/territory: Nepal
IBA criteria met: A1 (2005)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here
Area: 3,000 hectares (30.00 km2)
| IBA conservation status | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year of assessment (most recent) | State (condition) | Pressure (threat) | Response (action) |
| 2011 | very poor | very high | low |
| For more information about IBA monitoring, please click here | |||
Site description (2005 baseline)
Rampur Valley (=Rampurphant) lies in Palpa district of west-central Nepal. The Kali Gandaki River borders Rampur valley on the northern side. Agricultural land covers about 41.85% of Palpa district area while forest land covers 39.6%. The district is thinly populated. Most of the communities consist of farmers who practice terraced agriculture on the lower slopes; the higher slopes remain vegetated in some form.
The IBA has been identified because of its important White-rumped Vulture nesting colony. Vulture nests are spread along the Kali Gandaki River in a 15 km stretch in patches of riverine forests. The most important of the nesting sites is located at Khaireni forest where over 30 nests have been located.
The riverine forests growing along the Kali Gandaki River have Silk-Cotton Tree Bombax ceiba, Trewia nudiflora, Acacia catechu and various other tree species. The Silk-Cotton is the main nesting tree in the area.
Key biodiversity
In 2003 the post-breeding population was 123 birds; a total of 70 active nests was found. These included 31 nests at Khaireni forest in an area of 0.25 km²; this is the highest concentration of White-rumped Vulture nests in the country. Half of the nests in Rampur valley were successful in 2003, a better breeding success than elsewhere in Nepal (Gautam et al. 2003a, b, Baral and Pain 2003, Gautam and Baral 2004). In 2004 the number of active nests had fallen a little to 64, although the observer did not consider that the vulture population had declined (Ramji Gautam in litt. May 2004).
Non-bird biodiversity: Golden Jackal Canis aureus, Bengal Fox Vulpes bengalensis, Indian Hare Lepus nigricollis, Bengal Fox Vulpes bengalensis have been seen here.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Rampur valley (Nepal). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/rampur-valley-iba-nepal on 27/12/2024.