Assessing and monitoring forest health using a forest fragmentation approach in Sariska Tiger Reserve, India

The relationship between trajectories of forest cover change and fragmentation due to physical and anthropogenic activities in Sariska Tiger Reserve is addressed in the article. The authors conducted a field visit to the reserve to collect groundtruth data and perform a village survey. Thereafter, their main method consisted of using Landsat TM images for three days, one in each of the years 1989, 1994, and 2014, to assess spatial-temporal variation in forest cover. A fragmentation model was used to examine the extent and pattern of forest degradation. The results showed an overall increase in forest cover in Sariska Tiger Reserve from 53% in 1989 to 55% in 2014. However, the fragmentation statistics revealed a deterioration in forest health. There was an increase in the fragmentation categories perforated, edge, and patch in their respective areas, while the core areas decreased at the expense of other fragmentation classes. The existence of villages, roads, and pilgrimage sites had increased the pace of degradation and fragmentation of forest in the reserve. The authors conclude that the fragmentation model was effective for analysing forest degradation and identifying the priority areas for strategic planning of nature conservation.