Gharial Breeding Center in Chitwan National Park was established in 1978 and in the course of time more than 500 gharials were released in Rapti and Narayani rivers. The recent survey shows about 100 individuals in these rivers. No of mortality recorded is very low, we don't know exactly what is happening to the released gharials. Every year gharials are released but post-release monitoring is lacking. There was some study putting radio transmitters on the tail part of the gharials but it could not be successful. Any suggestions for post-release monitoring of these gharials?
If radio transmittors are not an option, best would be to mark-recapture individuals. Several good guidelines are available on internet for crocodilians capture (such as Cherkiss et al. at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/uw198). Marking methods are proposed for example by FAO (see http://www.fao.org/docrep/006/t0226e/t0226e08.htm). Best luck in your field work!
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