My Own Thoughts

A 25-member group returned from Community Forests study tour at Nepal comprising of team leader from Social Forestry Division, Gewog Forestry Extension Officers (GFEOs), Community Forestry Management Groups (CFMGs) from Dzongkhags and representatives from the territorial divisions. The study visit was aimed to expose the participants to participatory extension in community forestry focusing on; community forest management and CF based enterprise development, NWFP processing and marketing and pro-poor income generation and sharing of costs and benefits in CFMGs.   Upon return, the team in their debriefings to the sponsors and the organizers expressed their astonishment over new ideas and insights gained from the study tour. They presented that they were fascinated by concepts of leasehold forestry concepts, FECOFUN(Federation of Community Forest User’s Nepal), 3 P model (Public-Private Partnership), bamboo and briquette enterprises, to mention few, which can be replicated in our Co...

‘That the article 5 of the constitution of kingdom of Bhutan states every Bhutanese is a trustee of the Kingdom’s natural resources and environment and it is the fundamental duty of every citizen to contribute to the protection of the natural environment, conservation of the rich biodiversity of Bhutan,’ the Department of Forests and Park Services (DoFPS) is proposing adoption of certain portion of Government Reserved Forests by individual or a group. "Such move is in addition to different types of forest management already in force"  Such move is in addition to many different types of regimes already in force towards meeting the constitutional commitment of maintaining 60% forest coverage for all time to come. However, this particular policy albeit similar to Community Forest programme will emphasis on encouraging participatory management of government reserved forests by the educated and urban population. The policy is intended to woo the urbanities to come forward to contr...

The Ludlow butterfly will be maintained status quo at T/yangtse The Ludlow’s Bhutan Glory   (Bhutanitis ludlowi)   – the butterfly endemic to Bhutan will be conserved and protected by the government. The Department of Forests and Park Services (DoFPS) under Ministry of Agriculture and Forests (MoAF) has proposed many initiatives towards conserving this beautiful butterfly. b "Researchers found out that the butterfly is not only rare but occurs in a small pocket"    The recent research and survey by the joint team of Wildlife Conservation Division, UWICE, Bumdeling Wildlife Sanctuary of DoFPS, Butterfly Society of Japan and NHK has found out that the butterfly is not only rare but occurs in a small pocket in Trashiyangtse in eastern Bhutan. Hence, it calls for the conservation and protection efforts from the government.   "Inclusion of the butterfly in the Schedule I means listing it under the totally protected species" During the presentation of the ...

The mating pair   The recording of ‘first ever evidence’ of mating of Ludlow’s Bhutan Swallowtail by the ongoing research and survey team in upper Trashiyangtse could mean Bhutan is host for healthy population of the rare butterfly. "The team was searching for the eggs of the butterfly when the mating pair was sighted for the first time" The mating pair to be ever recorded in the world was first sighted by Mr. Sonam Wangdi of Wildlife Conservation Division at a place uphill of their camp in Trashiyangtse on 15th August at 11:30 am at an altitude of 2418 masl. The team was searching for the eggs of the butterfly when the mating pair was sighted for the first time, which brought much joy and excitement to the joint research team.  This mating pair has enabled the research team to confirm the mating time of Ludlow’s Bhutan Swallowtail to be about 4-4.5 Hrs. "A second and a third mating pair has been sighted on the morning of 16th of August" A second and ...

Metamorphosis of life can be without an inch compared with the flower. The birth is equivalent to the budding of the flower. It is then so fragile and a small mishandle on part would bring large damage. So, goes the same for the child born. But it is a time for the tree to celebrate its budding. Then the linage is guaranteed. The bud would soon unfurl and exhibit very attractive flower which would attract many prospective bees and butterflies. "Whatever, the bees are attracted to the flower eager to help in pollination" The child born would go through and grow up to be the attractive teen at sweet sixteen. The life at this time is in its full bloom. Some are pink rose, others yellow sun flower and still some other are daffodils and few a water lilies. Whatever, the bees are attracted to the flower eager to help in pollination. The reproduction would then happen with copulation in case of human. Another line of generation is underway yet one cannot remain complacent. ...

Ludlow's Bhutan Glory (Ludlowii bhutanitis) to be designated as the national Butterfly What is the National Butterfly of Bhutan? We do not have one yet. But we may have one soon. The rediscovered Ludlow’s Bhutan Swallowtail (Bhutanitis ludlowi) may become the national butterfly of Bhutan. "The research and the filming of this project will be carried out in partnership" The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed this morning between Department of Forests and Park Services (DoFPS) under Ministry of Agriculture and Forests (MoAF) and Japanese researchers and film crew from NHK and The Butterfly Society of Japan will take up comprehensive research and filming on Bhutan’s Butterflies with special emphasis on Ludlow’s Bhutan Swallowtail. The research and the filming of this project will be carried out in partnership with Wildlife Conservation Division (WCD) and Ugyen Wangchuck Institute for Conservation and Environment (UWICE) as the national counterpart. “While w...

Mission Tsendhen trees in Bhutan: Mapping crew at Lumitsawa Very little is known about our national tree the cypress, and even less is known when it comes to its distribution and phenotypical characteristics. The Tsenden Mapping initiative that is currently under full swing and being conducted by the Ugyen Wangchuck Institute for Conservation and Environment (UWICE) in Bumthang will help shed light on many such aspects of the cypress, as no such comprehensive mapping activity has been carried out in the past.     "The 5-member Tsenden mapping team from UWICE is out in the field visiting every cypress stand as well as significant single trees" The 5-member Tsenden mapping team from UWICE is out in the field visiting every cypress stand as well as significant single trees. They made head start on May 17 from Punakha Dzongkhag and will tentatively complete the surveying by the end of August. In their four months field tenure seeking out every cypress tree, they’ll be visiti...

Geywaringa - fortress of the five goddess sisters Buddhists believe that the mountains, vales, rivers, trees, rocky face and many of the nature formations are but the residence of certain spirits. Like the human who need roof over head to protect ourselves from shine and shower, the deities, demigod and other spirit do also need the place which they can call home. Putting harm to these so-called homes of the spirits by ways of disturbing their surrounding serenity, cutting down trees is considered to cause annoyance of such invisible owners and inflict sickness and even death. "Like we human do, the deities, demigod and other spirit do also need the place which they can call home" If the rock in Chasilakha in Bongo could withstand all the force of the bombs in an effort to demolish it and the rocky cliff at Wangsisina refuse to come down to rubble during the widening of Thimphu – Phuntsholing national highway, it merely is not a superstitions to believe that deiti...

You started early from Thimphu on your trip to Phuntsholing all alone in your cozy private car. You might have preferred a girl join you from Chuzom checkpoint, but unfortunate enough, there are none waving you, asking for the lift. Instead an old aged woman from Gedu has waited for whole morning but everyone denied the lift for her and you didn’t even care to look at her. This is Bhutan and all wear such attitude. What luxury is, if not shared with people in dire need? I don’t know if she can make it to home at Gedu. She has already left her daughter at Paro and if darkness fall, she has no one to put up for the night or don’t have enough money if there is any lodge around. You lit a cigarette as you board the car after entry in the checkpoint. Putting on rock English music, you rock all the way. Tsimakoti, no girl still waiting lift! "Your legs on brake, clutch and accelerator pains" By the time you are at Gedu specifically Jumja, you are already feeling the fatigue. Yo...

From the time of birth, we are all born alone in this world and so must go alone after the death with exception to those twins born together. But although they are born together, they never die together. Yet, during the time of stay here in this world we all tend to succumb to the fact that we are always in the hunt for friends and other people to live with. Is it because we are scared to live alone? "Is it because we are scared to live alone?" From the time we are born, we live with our parents learning to live under their warm and cozy protection, yet once we are matured enough, we bear our own wings and fly away to live in our own world seeking our own destiny. It is here that one find the boredom suppressing you when you live all alone as bachelor. After my completion of my formal training, I lived as a bachelor for almost 2 years and it is at this time that I have confronted the life of complete freedom yet with boredom. The experience of those couple of single l...

Man finally finds a single piece of magic worm   “If wishes are horses, every beggar would ride it,” and if cordyceps are wishes, every highlanders would collect it as much as they want. But sadly though, wishes merely remain wishes. Given the availability, every highland nomads vies for as much collection in every season as they can because every piece of cordyceps collected is a ‘midas’ collection when it can bring lots of money.  "Like economist puts it, all resources are limited and one day must exhaust" But like economist puts it, all resources are limited and one day must exhaust. This is exactly what seems to be happening even to the cordyceps in northern fringes of Laya gewog of the Gasa Dzongkhag as vindicated by Aum Om of Laya. “In five days of literal hunting for the worms, I could manage only 100 pieces," said Om “In five days of literal hunting for the worms, I could manage only 100 pieces,” unveiled Om. She added, “Last year I collected almost quadrup...

The settlements within the ice-capped mountain - the Laya village  This is the story of one Mr. John Wehrein from Hawaii in United States of America who was recently in Laya attending the Takin Festival 2011. It was the twist in his trip that landed him in the festival where tourist and foreigners alike were meant to be the main visitors. And he has no regrets having manipulated his travel itinerary for good. Neither he planned to be in Laya nor did anyone inform him. It was his sheer luck that he chanced upon such happening en route to Lingzhi. Mr. John was in Bhutan to do a research on Buddhist greatest Masters. Buddhism being our state religion with many eminent religious personalities, this is what encouraged him to come half the globe to the other side of the world. And this isn’t his first time in the Country and even to Laya and Lingzhi as well. "Setting all odds aside, he headed to Lingzhi oblivious and least expecting that he’d be in the right place at the right ti...

With ever ballooning of the urban populations at an estimated growth of 10 to 12 percent annually and demands ever increasing for green environment, urban forestry is a viable option worth contemplation from policy and decision makers at this juncture. This will also compensate the concrete jungles sprouting at unchecked rate, providing a respite for urban dwellers. The so-called ‘green infrastructure’ is what the town cries silently for today. "The so-called ‘green infrastructure’ is what the town cries silently for today" Urban forestry is generally defined as “the art, science and technology of managing trees and forest resources in and around urban community ecosystems for the psychological, sociological, economic and aesthetic benefits trees provide” (Helms, 1998). Many people also call urban forestry “Green Infrastructure”. Technically it is a specialized branch of forestry that deals with cultivation and management of trees for their present and potential contribution ...