Time trends and disparities of obesity and related national policies and programs in Nepal:a systematic review

Objective Overweight and obesity prevalence has increased in low-income countries.This study systematically reviewed the obesity trend,disparities,and prevention and control efforts in Nepal.Methods We searched PubMed and Google Scholar for articles and reports published between January 1,2004 and December 31,2022.Additional information on National policies and programs related to obesity prevention was retrieved from governmental websites and consultation with relevant experts.Overweight and obesity were defined using the World Health Organization body mass index cut points.Thirty-two studies and reports were included.Results Overall,overweight and obesity rates increased in all groups in Nepal although nationally representative data remained limited.The combined overweight and obesity(OW/OB)and obesity rates in women aged 15-49 years increased from 8.5%to 22.2%and from 0.9%to 5.1%between 2006 and 2016,respectively.OW/OB and obesity rates in men were 17.1%and 2.5%based on data from the 2016 Demographic and Health Survey.OW/OB rate in under-five children increased from 0.6%to 2.8%between 2006 and 2016.Obesity rates for school-age(5-9 years)boys and girls in 2016 were 2.4%and 2.8%,respectively,and were 1.1%and 1.4%for male and female adolescents aged 10-19 years,respectively.OW/OB prevalence was much higher among women,residents in urban areas and central provinces,and in higher socioeconomic status groups.Projected prevalence of OW/OB and obesity for 2030 in adults aged 15-49 was 44.7%and 8.3%,respectively,while it was 2.2%for OW/OB in preschool children.Policies and direct interventions that specifically focused on obesity prevention and control are limited.Conclusions OW/OB prevalence in Nepal has increased during the past 1.8 decades,disproportionately affecting population groups.Existing interventions mostly focused on undernutrition with some indirect implications for obesity prevention.In the future,Nepal needs to develop population-based programs for obesity prevention.

Strengthening Active Aging through Older People’s Association and Economic Activity of the Older People in Nepal

Aging is a natural lifelong process ending in death. Many older people are living in poverty. Older people are generally considered dependent on others as they grow older. The purpose of this article is to explore the entrepreneurship activities of Nepalese older adults. Data for this study were collected from the project Help Age International (HAI) implemented in Nepal. Qualitative data observations and interviews were used to collect data. The findings of this study show the formation of the Older People’s Association (OPA) has supported many older people to participate outside the home in various social activities. Moreover, regular deposits through OPAs offer little help. OPAs support older people in their need of financial support to implement minor entrepreneurship. Older people who received support were pleased and were actively involved in their activities and also regularly deposited money in them. Subsequently, older people’s participation in social activities has increased and also helped to lower elderly abuse, loneliness, and depression. Local governments should promote such activities which will help with healthy aging.

Aging Trend and Situation in Nepal

Aging is a natural lifelong process until death. The proportions of the older population are increasing rapidly in Nepal too. There are 2.97 million older people in Nepal as of the 2021 census which is a 38.2% increase compared to the previous census of 2011. The proportion of the older population reached 10.21% of the total population of Nepal. During this decade, Nepal’s average population growth rate is 0.92% and the older population growth rate is 3.29% per year. On the other hand, Nepal’s total fertility is below replacement level, infant mortality is around 23 per thousand live births and average life expectancy is now around 71 years. The median age of Nepal is 25 years and the index of aging increased rapidly from 23.3 in 2011 to 36.7 in the 2021 census of Nepal. These indicators show aging is taking place rapidly and the caregiving burden may increase rapidly in the coming days due to the tendency of migration of the young population to other countries. In this context, the Nepal government needs to focus on how to manage the population and provide quality services and social security for the growing older people of Nepal.

Rainfall erosivity and sediment dynamics in the Himalaya catchment during the Melamchi flood in Nepal

Rainfall erosivity is an indicator of rainfall potential to cause soil erosion.The Melamchi extreme flood occurred on June-15 and recurred on July-31,2021 in Nepal.During these flooding events,a large volume of sediments were eroded,transported and deposited due to the high rainfall erosivity of the basin.In this study,the temporal and the spatial distribution of rainfall erosivity within the Melamchi River Basin was estimated and further linked to sediment discharge and concentration at various sites along the river segments.The daily rainfall data for the event year 2021 of the entire basin were used.Validation was performed by post-flooding grain size sampling.The result showed that rainfall and rainfall erosivity exhibit pronounced intensity within the Melamchi River basin,particularly at Sermathang and Tarkeghang,both located in the middle section of the basin.The average annual rainfall in the Melamchi region was 3140.39 mm with an average annual erosivity of 18302.06(MJ mm)/(ha h yr).The average daily erosivity of the basin was 358.67(MJ mm)/(ha h)during the first event and 1241(MJ mm)/(ha h)for the second event.In the upper section of sampling,the sediment size ranged from 0.1 mm to>8 mm and was poorly graded.However,the lower region had smaller sediment ranging from 0.075 mm to>4.75 mm and also well graded.The smaller size(<1 mm)sediment passing was much higher in the Chanaute(78%)and Melamchi(66.5%)river segments but the larger size(>100 mm)sediments were passed relatively higher from the Kiwil(8.20%)and Ambathan(8.39%)river segments.During premonsoon and monsoon seasons,the highest sediment concentration was found to be 563.8 g/L and 344.3 g/L in Bhimtar and the lowest was 238.5 g/L and 132.1 g/L at the Ambathan,respectively.The sediment concentration during the pre-monsoon was found to be higher than the sediment concentration during the monsoon season in the Melamchi River.The more erosive regions in the basin were associated with the presence of highly fractured rock,weathered rocks and a thrust(weak)zone.The higher rainfall erosivity at upstream and the higher sediment concentration at downstream during flooding events have coincided well in the basin.Thus,the estimation of rainfall erosivity at the catchment scale and its influences on sediment concentration in the river are crucial for erosion control measures during flooding times in the Himalaya.

Co-seismic deformation for the 2015 M_(W)7.8 Gorkha earthquake(Nepal)using near-field GPS data

Seasonal variations and common mode errors affect the precision of the Global Positioning System(GPS)time series.In this paper,we explore to improve the precision of coordinate time series,thereby providing a better detection of weak or transient deformation signals,particularly co-seismic signals.Based on 97 GPS stations,including the campaign and continuous GPS stations in Nepal and southern Tibet,we first consider seasonal variations and common errors,then obtain co-seismic deformation of the 2015 Gorkha earthquake in Nepal and southern Tibet.Our co-seismic rupture model is characterized by a shallow ramp and a deeper detachment fault,in agreement with the relocated aftershock sequence.Our results indicate that the earthquake rupture is mainly distributed in the upper-crustal fault,and the maximum slip is up to 8.0 m at~15.0 km depth located in the approximate-80 km east of the epicenter.The average slip is more than 5 m,and the total modelled magnitude is M_(W)7.84,consistent with the observed seismic moment.Our rupture model for the 2015 Gorkha earthquake suggests that the rupture zone is not only in the upper crustal Main Himalayan Thrust(MHT),but also spreads to the northern segment of the MHT.

Knowledge and Preventive Practice during COVID-19 Pandemic in Bagmati Province, Nepal

Introduction: COVID-19 has become a global public health concern. In Nepal, the government has imposed lockdown, school closures, non-pharmacological interventions, isolation, and quarantine. People were asked to accept self-care interventions. However, the effectiveness of these preventive measures depends on the knowledge and practice of an individual. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the association between knowledge and practice among Bagmati province residents during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted using an online Google Form questionnaire. A total of 296 participants completed the surveys on social media, particularly Facebook. To assess the factors associated with knowledge and practices toward COVID-19, logistic regression analysis was applied. Results: The total scores of knowledge and practice were 7.62 ± 2.06 and 11 ± 1.91, respectively. Results showed that education, people having a medical background, and occupation were significantly associated with knowledge. While urban residence, older age, and living in a rental with a shared room were significantly associated with practice. Conclusions: People with higher education, medical backgrounds, and household workers had high knowledge about COVID-19;however, knowledge was not associated with practice. There was a gap between knowledge and practice.

A New Species of the Genus Placidus Distant (Homoptera: Cicadellidae: Stegel ytrinae) from Nepal

A new species, Placidus incurvatus sp. nov. from Nepal is described and the genus is placed in Stegelytrinae, new placement.

Damage characteristics and seismic capacity of buildings during Nepal M_s 8.1 earthquake

The extensive damage to buildings caused by the Nepal Ms8.1 earthquake has attracted much attention by the international community.Afterthe preliminary scientific investigations on the different affected areas inNepal,the construction and damage characteristics of five different types of buildings commonly existing in Nepal were discussed and the reasons of their disaster performance were analyzed.Types of buildings investigated include reinforced concrete(RC) frame structures,rubble structures,brick-wood structures,raw soil structures,and brick-wood structures of historic buildings.In addition,the weak links of the seismic design were pointed out,which was very important for the post-earthquake reconstruction and recovery,and gave a preliminary explanations for the damage experienced.

^137Cs tracing dynamics of soil erosion,organic carbon,and total nitrogen in terraced fields and forestland in the Middle Mountains of Nepal

The Middle Mountains is one of the regions of Nepal most vulnerable to water erosion, where fragile geology, steep topography, anomalous climatic conditions, and intensive human activity have resulted in serious soil erosion and enhanced land degradation. Based on the 137 Cs tracing method, spatial variations in soil erosion, organic carbon, and total nitrogen(TN) in terraced fields lacking field banks and forestland were determined. Soil samples were collected at approximately 5 m and 20 m intervals along terraced field series and forestland transects respectively. Mean 137 Cs inventories of the four soil cores from the reference site was estimated at 574.33 ± 126.22 Bq m-2(1 Bq(i.e., one Becquerel) is equal to 1 disintegration per second(1 dps)). For each terrace, the 137 Cs inventory generally increased fromupper to lower slope positions, accompanied by a decrease in the soil erosion rate. Along the entire terraced toposequence, 137 Cs data showed that abrupt changes in soil erosion rates could occur between the lower part of the upper terrace and the upper part of the immediate terrace within a small distance. This result indicated that tillage erosion is also a dominant erosion type in the sloping farmland of this area. At the same time, we observed a fluctuant decrease in soil erosion rates for the whole terraced toposequence as well as a net deposition at the toe terrace. Although steep terraces(lacking banks and hedgerows) to some extent could act to limit soil sediment accumulation in catchments, soil erosion in the terraced field was determined to be serious. For forestland, with the exception of serious soil erosion that had taken place at the top of slopes due to concentrated flows from a country road situated above the forestland site, spatialvariation in soil erosion was similar to the "standard" water erosion model. Soil organic carbon(SOC) and TN inventories showed similar spatial patterns to the 137 Cs inventory for both toposequences investigated. However, due to the different dominant erosion processes between the two, we found similar patterns between the <0.002 mm soil particle size fraction(clay sized) and 137 Cs inventories in terraced fields, while different patterns could be found between 137 Cs inventories and the <0.002 mm soil particle size fraction in the forestland site. Such results confirm that 137 Cs can successfully trace soil erosion, SOC and soil nitrogen dynamics in steep terraced fields and forestland in the Middle Mountains of Nepal.

Landslide susceptibility assessment of the region affected by the 25 April 2015 Gorkha earthquake of Nepal

Nepal was hit by a 7.8 magnitude earthquake on 25^(th) April,2015.The main shock and many large aftershocks generated a large number of coseismic landslips in central Nepal.We have developed a landslide susceptibility map of the affected region based on the coseismic landslides collected from remotely sensed data and fieldwork,using bivariate statistical model with different landslide causative factors.From the investigation,it is observed that most of the coseismic landslides are independent of previous landslides.Out of 3,716 mapped landslides,we used 80% of them to develop a susceptibility map and the remaining 20% were taken for validating the model.A total of 11 different landslide-influencing parameters were considered.These include slope gradient,slope aspect,plan curvature,elevation,relative relief,Peak Ground Acceleration(PGA),distance from epicenters of the mainshock and major aftershocks,lithology,distance of the landslide from the fault,fold,and drainage line.The success rate of 87.66% and the prediction rate of86.87% indicate that the model is in good agreement between the developed susceptibility map and theexisting landslides data.PGA,lithology,slope angle and elevation have played a major role in triggering the coseismic mass movements.This susceptibility map can be used for relocating the people in the affected regions as well as for future land development.

Spatial and temporal variation of daytime and nighttime MODIS land surface temperature across Nepal

Land surface temperature(LST)is an important variable for assessing climate change and related environmental impacts observed in recent decades.Regular monitoring of LST using satellite sensors such as MODIS has the advantage of global coverage,including topographically complex regions such as Nepal.In order to assess the climatic and environmental changes,daytime and nighttime LST trend analysis from 2000 to 2017 using Terra-MODIS monthly daytime and nighttime LST datasets at seasonal and annual scales over the territory of Nepal was performed.The magnitude of the trend was quantified using ordinary linear regression,while the statistical significance of the trend was identified by the Modified Mann—Kendall test.Our findings suggest that the nighttime LST in Nepal increased more prominently compared to the daytime LST,with more pronounced warming in the pre-monsoon and monsoon seasons.The annual nighttime LST increased at a rate of 0.05 K yr-1(p<0.01),while the daytime LST change was statistically insignificant.Spatial heterogeneity of the LST and LST change was observed both during the day and the night.The daytime LST remained fairly unchanged in large parts of Nepal,while a nighttime LST rise was dominant all across Nepal in the pre-monsoon and monsoon seasons.Our results on LST trends and their spatial distribution can facilitate a better understanding of regional climate changes.

Probabilistic seismic hazard analysis in Nepal

The seismic ground motion hazard for Nepal has been estimated using a probabilistic approach. A catalogue of earthquakes has been compiled for Nepal and the surrounding region （latitude 26% N and 31.7% N and longitude 79° E and 90° E） from 1255 to 2011. The distribution of catalogued earthquakes, together with available geological and tectonic information were used to delineate twenty-three seismic source seismic source information and probabilistic earthquake hazard prediction relationship, peak ground accelerations （PGAs） have zones in Nepal and the surrounding region. By using the parameters in conjunction with a selected ground motion been calculated at bedrock level with 63%, 10%, and 2% probability of exceedance in 50 years. The estimated PGA values are in the range of 0.07-0.16 g, 0.21 0.62 g, and 0.38-1.1 g for 63%, 10%, and 2% probability of exceedance in 50 years, respectively. The resulting ground motion maps show different characteristics of PGA distribution, i.e., high hazard in the far-western and eastern sections, and low hazard in southern Nepal. The quantified PGA values at bedrock level provide information for microzonation studies in different parts of the country.

An Investigation of Landslide Susceptibility Using Logistic Regression and Statistical Index Methods in Dailekh District, Nepal

Landslide distribution and susceptibility mapping are the fundamental steps for landslide-related hazard and disaster risk management activities, especially in the Himalaya region which has resulted in a great deal of death and damage to property. To better understand the landslide condition in the Nepal Himalaya, we carried out an investigation on the landslide distribution and susceptibility using the landslide inventory data and 12 different contributing factors in the Dailekh district, Western Nepal. Based on the evaluation of the frequency distribution of the landslide, the relationship between the landslide and the various contributing factors was determined.Then, the landslide susceptibility was calculated using logistic regression and statistical index methods along with different topographic(slope, aspect, relative relief, plan curvature, altitude, topographic wetness index) and non-topographic factors(distance from river, normalized difference vegetation index(NDVI), distance from road, precipitation, land use and land cover, and geology), and 470(70%) of total 658 landslides. The receiver operating characteristic(ROC) curve analysis using 198(30%) of total landslides showed that the prediction curve rates(area under the curve, AUC) values for two methods(logistic regression and statistical index) were 0.826, and 0.823with success rates of 0.793, and 0.811, respectively. The values of R-Index for the logistic regression and statistical index methods were83.66 and 88.54, respectively, consisting of high susceptible hazard classes. In general, this research concluded that the cohesive and coherent natural interplay of topographic and non-topographic factors strongly affects landslide occurrence, distribution, and susceptibility condition in the Nepal Himalaya region. Furthermore, the reliability of these two methods is verified for landslide susceptibility mapping in Nepal’s central mountain region.

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 Hima- layas, some of glacial lakes are covered by the dark mountains＇ shadow because of their location. Therefore, these lakes can not be de- tected 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 iden- tified 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 Ther- mal Emission and Reflection Radiometer （ASTER） data in the Himalayas, Nepal. The DSGL model is based on integration of two dif- ferent modifications of NDWI, namely NDWls model and NDWIshe model. NDWI~ 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 NDWI~ 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 AS- TERho. We used the ASTERhe for calculating the NDWIhc and the NDWIshe. Integrated with terrain analysis using Digital Elevation Model （DEM） data, the NDWIshe can be used to identify the shadowed glacial lakes in the Himalayas. NDWIs value of 0.41 is used to identify the glacier lake （NDWI~ 〉 0.41）, and 0.3 of NDWIshe is used to identify the shadowed glacier lake （NDWIsho 〈 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 en- vironment at high mountains.

Multiplicity of solutions to geophysical inversion reflected by rupture slip distribution of the 2015 Nepal earthquake

The equivalence of geophysical fields, the finiteness of measurements and the measurement errors make the result of geophysical inversion non-unique. For example, the measurements and inversion method used, the priori rupture model determined and the slip distribution smoothing factor selected will have significant influences on the earthquake rupture slip distribution. Using different data and methods, different authors have given different rupture slip distribution models of the 2015 Mw7.9 Nepal earth- quake, with the maximum slip ranging from 3.0 m to 6.8 m. In this paper, geometry parameters of the single rectangular fault model in elastic half-space were inferred constraining with the Global Posi- tioning System （GPS） and Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar （InSAR） coseismic deformations and bounding the slip with approximate average value; and then, the single rectangular fault was divided into multiple sub-faults, and the final slip smoothing factor, the final slip distribution and the maximum slip were determined with the misfit-roughness tradeoff curve, the cross-validation sum of squares （CVSS） and the third-party observation data or indexes being comprehensively taken into account. The results show that, the rupture of the Nepal earthquake extended by over 100 km east by south. The maximum slip of the earthquake was about 6.5-6.7 m, and most of the slip is confined at depths of 8 -20 kin, consistent with the depth distribution of aftershocks. The method for reducing the multiplicity of solutions to rupture slip distribution in this paper was ever used in inversion of rupture slip distri- bution for the 2008 Wenchuan and 2013 Lushan earthquakes, and the third-party measurement - surface dislocation has very large effect on reducing the multiplicity of solutions to inversion of the Wenchuan earthquake. Other priori information or indicators, such as fault strike, dip, earthquake magnitude, seismic activity, Coulomb stress, and seismic period, can be used for beneficial validation of and comparison with inversion results.

Undergraduate nursing students' knowledge of aging, attitudes toward and perceptions of working with older adults in Kathmandu Nepal

Objectives: This study aims to examine Nepalese undergraduate nursing students' knowledge of aging,attitudes towards older adults and perceptions of working with older adults,and to assess differences in these outcomes by socio-demographic characteristics as well as type of nursing program.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 385 undergraduate nursing students in six nursing colleges located in the Kathmandu Valley,Knowledge of aging,attitudes toward older adults and perceptions of working with older adults were assessed using standardized tools,the Palmore Facts on Aging Quiz,Kogan's Attitudes towards Older People Scale,and Nolan's Intent to Work with Older People Questionnaire,respectively.Results: The mean knowledge scores on older adults and aging were relatively low;participants scored an average of 26.9 out of 50.Scores assessing attitudes towards and perceptions of working with older adults were more favorable.Compared to students pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN),students pursuing a Bachelor of Nursing (BN) had a significantly higher score on the knowledge,attitudes and perception of aging scales.Linear regression analyses showed that the students' knowledge of aging (β =0.55;95% CI =0.25-0.86) and perceptions of working with older adults (β =0.22;95% Cl =0.05 -0.38) had a significant positive association with their attitudes toward older adults.Conclusions: Undergraduate nursing students in the Kathmandu Valley of Nepal displayed a relatively low level of knowledge,but a positive attitude towards older adults,and a positive perception of working with older adults.Observed differences in knowledge,attitude,and perception scores between students in BSN and BN programs needs further investigation;closing this gap may be important for bolstering undergraduate gerontological preparation in Nepal.

Far-field coseismic gravity changes related to the 2015 MW7.8 Nepal(Gorkha)earthquake observed by superconducting gravimeters in Chinese mainland

Using data from five SGs at four stations in Chinese mainland,obvious permanent gravity changes caused by the 2015 MW7.8 Nepal(Gorkha)earthquake were detected.We analyzed the gravity effects from ground vertical deformation(VD)using co-site continuous GPS(cGPS)data collocated at the Lijiang and the Wuhan station,and hydrological effects using GLDAS models and groundwater level records.After removing these effects,SG observations before and after the earthquake revealed obvious permanent gravity changes:−3.0μGal,7.3μGal and 8.0μGal at Lhasa,Lijiang and Wuhan station,respectively.We found that the gravity changes cannot be explained by the results of dislocation theory.

Habitat Range of two Alpine Medicinal Plants in a Trans-Himalayan Dry Valley,Central Nepal

Understanding of the habitat range of threatened Himalayan medicinal plants which are declining in their abundance due to high anthropogenic disturbances is essential for developing conservation strategies and agrotechnologies for cultivation. In this communication, we have discussed the habitat range of two alpine medicinal plants, Aconitum naviculare （Bruehl） Stapf and Neopicrorhiza scrophulariiflora （Pennel） Hong in a trans-Himalayan dry valley of central Nepal, Manang district. They are the most prioritized medicinal plants of the study area in terms of ethnomedicinal uses. A. naviculare occurs on warm and dry south facing slopes between 4090-4650 m asl along with sclerophyllous and thorny alpine scrubs, while N. scrophulariiflora is exclusively found on cool and moist north facing slope between 4000 and 4400 m asl where adequate water is available from snow melt to create a suitable habitat for this wetland dependent species. The soil in rooting zone of the two plants differs significantly in organic carbon （OC）, organic matter （OM）, total nitrogen （N） and carbon to nitrogen （C/N） ratio. Due to cool and moist condition of N. scrophulariiflora habitat, accumulation of soil OC is higher, but soil N content is lower probably due to slow release from litter, higher leaching loss and greater retention in perennial live biomass of the plant. The C/N ratio of soil is more suitable in A. navuculare habitat than that of N scrophulariiflora for N supply. Warm and sunny site with N rich soil can be suitable for cultivation ofA. naviculare, while moist and cool site with organic soil for N. scrophulariiflora. The populations of both the plants are fragmented and small. Due to collection by human and trampling damage by livestock, the population of A. naviculare was found absent in open areas in five of the six sampling sites and it was confined only within the bushes of alpine scrubs. For N. serophulariiflora, high probability of complete receding of small glaeiers may be a new threat in future to its habitat. The information about habitat conditions, together with the information from other areas, ean be useful to identify potential habitats and plan for cultivation or domestication of the two medieinal plants.

Micro-site Conditions of Epiphytic Orchids in a Human Impact Gradient in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

We studied distribution and site conditions of epiphytic orchids in a gradient of human interference in Kathmandu valley, central Nepal. The aim was to understand the recent distribution pattern of epiphytic orchids, with respect to (i) the micro-site conditions and (ii) the type and intensity of land use. The occurrence of epiphytic orchids was recorded for a grid with 1.5 km cell size. The cells represent different types and intensities of human impact. Site factors such as bark rugosity, bark pH, diameter at breast height (dbh; 1.3 m) of host trees, exposure to wind and sunlight intensity were recorded. With regard to the species richness and abundance of epiphytic orchids, we compared different human impact categories from very strong human impact (settlement area) to very low human impact (national park). Remote sensing was used for a supervised classification of land cover. Ficus religiosa turned out to be the most important host species for orchids in urban areas, while Schima wallichii and Alnus nepalensis significantly host orchids in the other categories. Both species richness and abundance of epiphytic orchids were significantly higher under very low human impact (forest in national park) and also some remaining patches of primary forest than the other regions. Micro-climate is crucial for orchid populations. Host bark pH, bark rugosity, sunlight intensity and host exposure were significantly different for all human impact categories in order to harbour epiphytic orchid species. Habitats with a mixture of mature trees are suitable and essential for the conservation of viable populations of epiphytic orchids in settled areas. The study reveals that to improve the population size of orchids it is essential for future urban forestry to: (i) Protect old trees as carriers of existing epiphytic orchid diversity, (ii) protect medium old trees to ensure that they may become old trees, (iii) plant new host trees for the future, (iv) plant in groups instead of single isolate trees. Trees should especially be planted in areas where orchids still exist to provide more trees for orchid population enlargement (e.g. along riparian system). Native species should be favoured; the pool of such native host species is wide.

A New Species of Megophryid Frog of the Genus Scutiger from Kangchenjunga Conservation Area, Eastern Nepal

This study investigated the systematics of the megophryid genus Scutiger from eastern and western Nepal using molecular and morphological data. Our results support two divergent lineages, one of which has nuptial spines on the dorsal surface of the first three fingers while the other has spines only on the dorsal surface of the first two fingers. The Ghunsa lineage from eastern Nepal shows significant morphological and molecular differences to other species of genus Scutiger and is here described as a new species. Based on the molecular analysis, the Muktinath lineage from western Nepal is confirmed to be Scutiger boulengeri and represents a species complex widespread throughout the Himalayan region. The newly described taxon is endemic to the eastern Himalayas and currently known only from the Ghunsa valley, Taplejung district, Nepal.