Lakes in Shuklaphanta national park begin to dry as summer heat intensifies

Mahendranagar: Wildlife inside Shuklaphanta National Park in Kanchanpur has been facing difficulties as most of the lakes within the park have started drying up.

The park office has stated that the water level in both natural and artificial lakes has decreased with the rise in summer heat. “Although most of the lakes are drying up due to summer heat, solar panels are being installed to fill them,” said Purushottam Wagle, information officer of the park. “The water level in lakes other than Shikari Lake in the park has been decreasing significantly.”

He added that lakes including Baba Lake, Rani Lake and Salgaudi Lake have already started drying up. “The problem arises when wild elephants damage the solar panels installed near the lakes,” Wagle said. “We have been filling water in many lakes by using solar panels to manage water for wildlife.”

The natural lakes inside Shuklaphanta National Park, where one of the world’s rare buffalo herds can be seen, are also facing degradation due to lack of protection. The existence of lakes such as Ranital, Kalikich Lake and Shikari Lake is at risk as they have long been filled with water lilies.

“Although more than a dozen lakes inside the park are being filled up, they have not been cleaned due to lack of budget,” he said. “There are 120 artificial and natural lakes.”

Shuklaphanta National Park is home to more than 2,400 rare buffaloes, 44 leopards, and over 430 species of birds within a relatively small area. Although the tiger census has been completed this year, the park office has stated that the buffalo census is currently underway within the park.