**Executive Summary**
This report discusses a study by scientists from the Birbal Sahni institution of Palaeosciences (BSIP), who analyzed pollens from mud in the wetlands of Kaziranga National Park (KNP) to trace the long-term palaeoecological records in relation to the palaeoherbivory. The study highlights the evolution of the one-horned rhino's residence due to climate change, vegetation shifts, exotic species invasion, and herbivore activity. The findings were published in the journal 'Catena' (Elsevier).
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **Research Focus:**
* The research traces the evolution of Kaziranga's environment and its impact on the one-horned rhino population.
* The study uses pollen analysis from wetland mud to create long-term palaeoecological records.
* **Kaziranga National Park (KNP):**
* KNP's wetlands preserve microscopic traces of the past like pollen grains and fungal spores from animal dung.
* KNP is identified as a stronghold for megaherbivores, including the Indian one-horned rhinoceros.
* **Evolution and Distribution of Rhinos:**
* The present landscape of Kaziranga differs significantly from its past.
* Fossil evidence indicates the Indian one-horned rhino was once widely distributed across the Indian subcontinent.
* Climatic stability in northeastern India, combined with pressures in northwestern regions, led to the eastward migration and concentration of rhinos in Kaziranga.
* **Environmental Factors:**
* Rapid urbanization, industrialization, and deforestation, along with natural disasters, drive ecological degradation and biodiversity loss.
* Climate change, habitat loss, and overhunting contributed to the decline and confinement of megaherbivores, especially the Indian one-horned rhino.
* **Study Implications:**
* The study provides long-term ecological knowledge to guide better conservation and wildlife management under present and future climate change.
**Impact Analysis**
**Stakeholder: Department of Science and Technology (DST)**
* **Impact:** The DST's autonomous institute (BSIP) conducted the research, contributing to the understanding of long-term ecological changes.
* **Action Required:** Utilize the research findings to inform future conservation and wildlife management strategies.
**Stakeholder: Conservationists and Wildlife Management Professionals**
* **Impact:** The study provides valuable insights into the long-term effects of climate change and human activities on wildlife populations.
* **Action Required:** Incorporate the study's findings into conservation efforts and wildlife management practices to ensure the survival and migration of species like the one-horned rhino.
**Stakeholder: Kaziranga National Park (KNP)**
* **Impact:** The research highlights the park's crucial role in preserving megaherbivores and its environmental history.
* **Action Required:** Implement conservation strategies based on the study to safeguard the park's biodiversity.
Key Entities Referenced
Kaziranga National Park (KNP): A UNESCO World Heritage Site in Assam, India, and the focal point of the study, examining the evolution of the one-horned rhino and its habitat.
Department of Science and Technology (DST): The government department under which Birbal Sahni institution of Palaeosciences (BSIP) operates, funding the research described in the article.
Birbal Sahni institution of Palaeosciences (BSIP): The autonomous institute that conducted the study on palaeoecological records in Kaziranga National Park.
Ministry of Science & Technology
Researchers trace evolution of Kaziranga to the
last great Home of the one-horned rhino
Posted On: 03 FEB 2026 5:13PM by PIB Delhi
From the mud below the wetlands of Assam’s Kaziranga National Park (KNP), has emerged a story of
how residence of the one horned Rhino has evolved through climate change, vegetation shifts, exotic
species invasion, and herbivore activity.
Rapid urbanization, industrialization, and deforestation, together with natural hazards such as floods,
droughts, earthquakes, and landslides, are driving global ecological degradation and accelerating
biodiversity loss. Northeast India, part of the Indo-Burma biodiversity hotspot, hosts numerous
endangered species facing extinction risk. Late Quaternary megafaunal extinctions remain a major global
concern, with their causes still debated; today, nearly 60% of large herbivores are threatened worldwide,
and Southeast Asia has the highest number of at-risk species. Kaziranga National Park, a UNESCO World
Heritage Site, is a stronghold of megaherbivores, notably the Indian one-horned rhinoceros.
Scientists from Birbal Sahni institution of Palaeosciences (BSIP), an autonomous institute of the
Department of Science and Technology (DST), used pollens from mud below wetlands in KNP to trace the
first long-term palaeoecological records in relation to the palaeoherbivory from KNP.
The researchers extracted a sediment core just over a metre long from the Sohola swamp inside Kaziranga
National Park. Layer by layer, this mud acts like a natural archive, preserving microscopic traces of the
past. Among these traces are pollen grains from plants and fungal spores that thrive on animal dung.
Fig 1: a. Location map of the sampling site, b. Vegetation coverage map of the Kaziranga National Park
(after Das et al., 2014).Fig 2: A model (schematic view) of palaeovegetation and palaeoherbivory activities in the KNP, a. Dense
forest with wider and swamp condition with low wildlife activities, b. Relatively less dense and less deep
water with increased wildlife activities, c. Comparatively more less dense forest and less deep swamp with
more increased wildlife activities within KNP.
The study (published in journal, 'Catena' (Elsevier)) highlights that Kaziranga’s present landscape differs
markedly from its past and documents the regional extinction of megaherbivores, including the Indian
rhinoceros, from northwestern India due to climatic amelioration during late Holocene, especially during
the Little Ice Age and increasing human activities. In contrast, northeastern India remained relatively
climatically stable, facilitating eastward migration and eventual concentration of rhinoceroses in
Kaziranga.
The study which examined the reasons behind the decline and present confinement of megaherbivores,
especially the Indian one-horned rhinoceros, to Kaziranga National Park shows through fossil evidence
that the species was once widely distributed across the Indian subcontinent, but this distribution greatly
reduced since the Holocene. Over the last ~3300 years, northeastern India remained relatively climatically
stable with lower human pressure, while habitat loss, climate deterioration, and overhunting in
northwestern regions forced rhinoceroses to migrate eastward and eventually concentrate in Kaziranga.
The study demonstrates how long-term vegetation and climate changes shaped wildlife survival,
migration, and extinction, providing long-term ecological knowledge that can help guide better
conservation and wildlife management under present and future climate change.Publication Link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2025.109762
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