Himalayan Mountain System

There are altitudinal as well as east-West variations in this region The Himalayan foothills from the eastern frontiers of Kashmir to Assam Fauna distribution in the Himalayan foothills-

These regions are characterised by Bhabar and Tarai tract and consists of thick boulder deposits. The natural monsoon forest extends well into this region. The dominant species is Sal.Tarai is characterised by grassy meadow and savannah vegetation. This is one of the richest areas for the typical big mammals of Northern India. The animals found mostly in this area are elephant, panther, the sambar, the swamp deer, Chital hog deer, barking deer, wild boar, wild dogs, the hyena, the jackal, black and the sloth bears. Among Rodents porcupine is the most prominent. The great Indian One horned Rhinoceros, which once ranged all along the Himalayan foothills is now confined to a few pockets in Assam and Nepal terai and is considered as a rare species.

The wild buffalo which together with Gaur shared this area as a bovid, is now confined only to the Godavari Catchment of the state of Madhya Pradesh, Orissa and Andhra Pradesh and now considered as a endangered species.

The Brow Antlered deer is another rare deer found in this region confined to Keibul Lamjao Sanctuary in Manipur. This deer whose number in the world is estimated at less than 50, lives on a floating mass of vegetation deposits called 'Phumdi' and due to its floating habitat has been named 'dancing deer' of Manipur. It is probably the most threatened deer in the world. Tiger, probably the most famous animal of India, has become rare with the disappearance of a large part of its habitat and also due to their hunting by humans.It is now protected by a total ban on its killing by the implementation of 'project Tiger'.

The Gangetic Gharial , the sole representative of the family Galvanidae ,occurs in the Himalayan tributaries of the river Ganges. In 1971 the two species Hispid hare and the pygmy hog were rediscovered from the Manas Sanctuary of Assam.

higher altitudes in the Western Himalayas from Kashmir including ladakh to Kumaon

Fauna of high altitudinal region of western Himalayas

At a high altitudinal zone with a belt of coniferous alpine forests this area is rich in Rhododendron, dwarf hill, Bamboo and Birch forest mixed with the alpine pastures this area extends upto the snow line. Above this area lies alpine zone. The pine belt acts as a transition belt for the rich fauna of the alpine zone. The typical fauna of the high altitude cold region include - The wild ass which is mostly found in the cold desert regions. The largest bovid ,the yak- They are black with long black horns and a little white on the muzzle. Three species of wild goats are found in this region -Highest coniferous forests are roamed by the Thar, a typical goat with rather short horns set close together on the top of the head. Markhor, the finest of all goats with its long horns shaped like thick heavy cork screws, roams over the rocky slopes and cliffs above the treeline. The third is ibex. It is not only confined to Himalayas but found throughout the mountainous regions of Central Asia extending upto Spain. It lives mainly above tree lines, grazing between rocky cracks and on meadows just below the snow line. The three species of sheep found here are Nayan the largest sheep, extends from Ladakh to Tibet. Bharal or blue sheep extending from Western Himalayas to Sikkim and Nepal. They have a salty blue colour which mingles with the rock colours and hence it is difficult to see them if they are motionless. The Shapu or Urial is the smallest of the wild sheep and inhabits grassy mountain slopes usually below treeline.

Two kinds of Antelopes Chiru and Tibetan Gazelle. The deer species characteristic of western Himalayan Alpine Zone -Hangul or Kashmir Stag which is the local representative of the European Red Deer. This deer is mostly confined to the Dachigam Sanctuary in Jammu and kashmir near Srinagar. Other is the Snow or the Sikkim Stag which is much larger than the hangul, occurs in the Chumbi valley in the Tibet and Sikkim. The Musk deer is another deer which inhabits the high altitude in Western Himalayas. These are much valued for their musk pods and due to high poaching scale they have now become threatened.

The smaller mammals include marmots. The Himalayan or Bobak marmot is a stoutly built animal with a short bushy tail and very small ears. Pikas or mouse hare are found at 2,500m to 4000 mts altitudes. The snow leopard is one of the most beautiful animals found in Western Himalayas is now regarded as a threatened species.

The western himalayan birds - snow cocks , snow partridges, monal pheasant , The Western tragopan, The satyr tragopan , the koklass , the white crested kalij and the cheer pheasant. The scavengers include Griffon vultures, lammergeiers , coughs and ravens

Eastern Himalayan sub-region

The character of vegetation changes at the altitudes of 1525m to 1830m as we go up from dense evergreen and semi-evergreen vegetation of the foothills of Eastern Himalayas to higher altitudes on these mountain regions. Oaks magnolias, laurels and birches covered with mosses and ferns replace the sal, silk cotton trees and giant bamboos of the foothills. The animal life in the temperate region is characterised by Indo-Chinese fauna. The animals typical to these forests include - the red panda, hog badgers, ferret badgers, crestless porcupines. The common three types of goats found here are Serow, Goral and Takins.

The Peninsular Indian Subregion

It was once linked by continuous woodland savannah with the Ethiopian region of north Africa. Desert barriers now separate the two areas but there are certain similarities among fauna. It is characterised by the raised plateau land of the Deccan extending northwards into the flood plains of the Indo-Gangetic basin and westwards into the great Thar desert of Rajasthan. Ecologically it may include the salt flats of the little Rann of Kutch which lie to the south of the Thar desert. Overall this region is divided in two broad zones. Firstly, the tropical deciduous woodlands and its extension into the drainage basin of the Ganges river System. The second is the desert region of Rajasthan or the Thar with the connected salt flats of the Rann of Kutch and the desert fringe.

Peninsular India and the Drainage Basin

The Northern and Eastern extensions having relatively higher rainfall have Sal as the predominant species while the Southern plateau is characterised by Teak, as the principal species. The western Ghats and the central belt lying to the west of it, is a region of very high rainfall, and is characterised by evergreen vegetation. The inhabitants of these area are elephant, muntjac, the euryphagous sambar deer, the wild boar, cheetal, hog deer, swamp deer, barasingha.The two large antelopes the Nilgai and the Black Bucks. The Chinkara gazelle is the smallest of the antelopes. Main predators of the Indian woodlands are wild dog or Dhole, the tiger, the leopard, the cheetah and the lion. The cheetah has now become an extinct animal in India.

Two other carnivores of African origin are the striped Hyena and the jackal. The elephant which has a wide distribution in the Himalayan Tarai is missing from most of the central Indian plateau but appears in Karnataka, Kerala and Tamilnadu. The biggest bovid of the Indian region is the Gaur. A big indian bull may weigh a ton and stand over 6 feet at the shoulder.

The Indian desert

The Thar or the Indian desert is linked through Sind and Baluchistan in Pakistan to the deserts of Arabia and Middle East. Here the daytime temperature rises very high reaching 48 degree centigrade or more and the night temperature falls upto zero. Due to the scarcity of water the desert animals have some modified physical characters and behaviours and have grown some remarkable physiological adaptations to conserve water. Rodents probably represent the largest group in the mammalian fauna of the desert. The Indian desert gerbils are burrow dwellers. They are pale grey mouse like rodents with long tufted tails and live together in small colonies. Asiatic wild ass is one of the endangered species , found in Rann of kutch. The ungulate blackbucks inhabit the scrub forests and open savannah. These animals are fully protected by the Bishnoi tribes due to their religious beliefs in them.

Desert cat and the Caracal represent the carnivorous animals of this region. Reptiles include desert lizards, snakes as Saw scaled vipers. The great Indian Bustard, one of the largest birds, is found in these deserts.

The Tropical Evergreen Forest of Indo-Malayan Subregion

It is covered with rain forest with a highly complex environment and contains a wealth of species of flora and fauna. There are some exclusively confined species such as Hoolock Gibbon, red Panda, tree shrew, giant squirrel and flying lemurs that are specific to these areas.

This region consists of a heavy rainfall zone and comprises North Eastern India (Khasi Jaintia hills and the lower Himalayan slopes embracing areas of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura and the Western Ghats region in the south including the Malabar coast. The Nilgiris, an offshoot of the Western Ghats, rise precipitously to form extensive grassy downs and tablelands interspersed with densely forested gorges of evergreen vegetation known as Sholas. Sholas are also found in the Annamalai, Palani hills and other South Indian regions.Himalayan animals as the thar , pine marten and the European Otter occur in the Nilgiris.The north East region of Arunachal Pradesh and Assam is inhabited by the Hoolock Gibbon , the only ape found in India at present ; the golden langur,the caped langur or the leaf monkey, the Assam macaque and the pigtailed macaque. in the South the most prominent primate of the evergreen forests is the lion tailed macaque which is now considered rare and endangered species and is specially protected. Other Primates include Nilgiri langur and the slender loris.Slender loris is barely seen for being nocturnal and spends the day in sleep curled like a ball.

Bats, giant squirrel, civets, binturong and the red panda are characteristic of the evergreen forest in the eastern region.The flying squirrel, the nilgiri mongoose and the stripe necked mongoose, the malabar civet are characteristic animals of the Western Ghats.

The wildlife in the Andaman and the Nicobar islands

The Andaman and the Nicobar islands lie in the Bay of Bengal on a curve between Cape Negrais in Burma and the west end of Sumatra. The climate of these islands is tropical and they are the home of tropical rainforest. These islands posses about 35 species of mammals , a number of interesting reptiles and a variety of marine fauna.

the Andaman pig is the one of the large mammals found in the Andaman. Crab eating Macaque, the palm civet and various species of are also found. Of the deer sambar and spotted deer are more prominent. An important marine mammal found around the island are the Dugong, the false killer whale and the Dolphin. The Dugong are the rare and threatened animals and are completely protected.

The avifauna includes Narcondam hornbill, the Nicobar pigeon, megapode which has Australian affinities, the white bellied sea eagle, the white breasted swiftlet and a number of fruit pigeons. Reportedly 240 species and subspecies of birds are found in these islands of which 92 are migrants, 32 residents, and 112 as resident endemic species.

The saltwater crocodile which is a threatened and protected species resides in the swampy coastal areas.

A number of marine turtles are found of which the green turtle is common. The coconut crab has so far been recorded only on the South Sentinel Island. It is the only Arthropod included in the schedule 1 of the Wildlife Protection Act as a rare species. Reptiles include Water Monitor, green lizard, cobra, viper, coral and sea snakes. Pythons are found in the Nicobar group.

Water birds in the Bharatpur sanctuary

Near the town of Bharatpur (Rajasthan) is the freshwater swamp of Keoladeo Ghana with the picturesque Kadam tree, Acacia tree and profuse aquatic vegetation extending over an area of 2900 hectares. Over a million birds come here during winter season from far distance temperate regions of Eurasia, making it a truly international community of birds , unique to its richness and variety.

Nearly 328 species of birds have been identified in this region, of which 110 are migratory birds. Amongst the breeding birds in the Bharatpur Sanctuary are the painted stork, large egret, medium egret, little egret, open billed stork, spoonbill, the white ibis, the pond heron, the night heron, the snake bird or Indian darter, the large cormorant, and the small cormorant.

Among the winter visitors - there are a number of geese and ducks, rosy or white pelican, Dalmatian pelican, bar-headed geese, greylag geese, pochards, pintails, sandpipers, a large number of warblers, wagtails and pipits. However, the VIP visitor to this area is the Siberian crane which is one of the rarest bird. A water sedge, Cyperus rotundus found in the swamps of Bharatpur is the main attraction for the Siberian crane, which is a vegetarian. Its tuberous roots form the crane's main food.

The mangrove forest of the Sundarbans

Mangrove forests are found in the sunderban delta of the river Ganges where both the Brahmaputra and the Ganges join and drain into the Bay of Bengal. Here the river has divided itself into hundred of streams to form narrow creeks. In between the creeks, lie the mud flats of the delta region which are periodically flooded through tidal inundations by the sea. Water logging, humidity, salinity, and regular inundations are the salient features of this habitat. These areas are characterised by the Sonerentians whose roots are thrown up vertically as respiratory roots (pneumatophores) because due to high salinity no air can penetrate in the saline mud. The Rhizophora tree is found in these mangrove regions which possesses the supporting roots or the stilt roots. These help it in respiration. Fishes in this biome have special adaptations which make them independent of the water. They are the mud -skippers of the semi-terrestrial gobies ;they can leap with a flick of the tail or even swim across the mud or water by a series of hops normally they slowly , crawling or clutching on their pectoral fins. Later they revert to the normal fish. The most spectacular feat of the mudskipper, however is its ability to climb up the roots of mangrove trees which presents the strange sight of tree climbing fishes. Among the crabs the Land crabs and the Fiddler crabs are the most famous ones because of their brilliantly coloured claws. One small crab, the Dorippe has two pairs of legs modified as little claws that carry an oval plate on which a small sea anemone lives.

Above the mud flats on the mangrove trees live numerous weaver ants which make their nests in the trees by weaving together 5, 6 or more leaves with their fine silken thread. Spotted deer, pigs, monitor lizards and monkeys characterise the area.

The most interesting animal found in the Sundarbans is the royal Bengal Tiger. They have adapted themselves so intriguing to this strange habitat of the high salinity and periodic inundation, leading an amphibious life, subsisting on a variety of food which includes, apart from the normal deer and boar even fish and crabs. The most peculiar tendency of these tigers is their tendency of man-eating

Marine turtles along the Indian coast

India has a coastline of more than 8000 km which is rich in biodiversity. Apart from sustaining fishing grounds, India’s coastal waters and beaches provide foraging and nesting sites for a variety of marine species, including sea turtles. Five species of sea turtles are known to inhabit Indian coastal waters and islands.

These are the Olive Ridley (Lepidochelys olivacea), Green (Chelonia mydas), Hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata), Loggerhead (Caretta caretta) and the Leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea) turtles. Except the Loggerhead, the remaining four species nest along the Indian coast.

Though many of the ecological interconnections influencing sea turtle behavior and biology remain unclear, it is known that sea turtles occupy a unique position within the food web. They consume an assortment of prey, including puffer fish, crustaceans, sponges, tunicates, sea grasses, and algae. The unusual life cycle of the animal plays a vital role in transportation of nutrients from the highly productive marine habitats such as seagrass beds to energy-poor habitats like sandy beaches. This helps reverse the usual flow of nutrients from land to sea.

Threats to marine turtles in India are many, and varied. Some of the major threats include unplanned beach development (including ports, lighting, tourism and plantations), by-catch mortality (in trawl nets and gill nets), weak enforcement of fisheries and Protected Area regulations and, to a limited extent, killing of turtles for meat and the poaching of eggs.

The coastal state of Odisha on the eastern coast of India experiences one of the world’s largest mass nestings or arribada of the Olive Ridley turtle during the months of October to April. Three of the world’s major mass nesting beaches for this species are located in Odisha, supporting a nesting population of probably more than half a million Olive Ridleys, making this one of the most critical conservation areas for this species globally.

Types of Endangered Species in India

The endangered species in India have been divided into 4 main categories-

• Critically Endangered (CR),
• Endangered (EN),
• Vulnerable (VU) and
• Threatened
• The endangered species in India have been identified by different national and international organisations like the world Wildlife Fund (WWF), International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) and the Wildlife Institute of India.
• The number of endangered species in India accounts for around 8.86 % of the world mammals. The mammals are extended over 186 genera, 45 families and 13 orders out of which around 89 species are listed as threatened in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals (IUCN 2006).
• The Critically Endangered species in India, as identified by the IUCN and WII include the Jenkins Shrew, Malabar Large-spotted Civet, Namdapha Flying Squirrel, Pygmy Hog, Salim Ali’s Fruit Bats, Snow Leopard, Sumatran Rhinoceros, and the Wroughton's Free-tailed Bat.
• The list of Endangered species in India include the Asiatic Lion, Asiatic Black Bear, Desert Cat, Great Indian Rhinoceros, Hispid Hare, Hoolock Gibbon, Kashmir Stag, Lion-Tailed Macaque, Markhor, Nayan Ovis, Nilgiri Leaf Monkey, Pygmy Hog, Andaman Shrew, Andaman Spiny Shrew, Indian Elephant or Asian Elephant, Blue Whale,Ganges River Dolphin, Golden Leaf Monkey, Indus River Dolphin,Lion-Tailed Macaque, Nilgiri Tahr, Parti-coloured Flying Squirrel etc.,
• Vulnerable and Threatened Species in India:  Apart from the Critically Endangered and the endangered species in India, the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources and Wildlife Institute of India also identified several species as vulnerable in India.
• These species include the Asiatic Wild Dog, Banteng Bos javanicus, Brow-antlered Deer, Brown Bear, Brown Palm Civet, Clouded Leopard, Common Otter, Ganges River Dolphin, Asiatic Wild Ass, Macaque Monkey, Back-striped Weasel, Brown fish owl,Fishing Cat, Four-horned Antelope, etc.,
• The species like the Indian Wild Ass, the Leopard and the Red Fox have been identified as the threatened species in India.
• Selected list of Important Species along with their status.