Union Territory (UT) government of Ladakh has declared ‘snow leopard’ its state animal and black-necked crane state bird.

“The Lieutenant Governor of Union Territory of Ladakh is pleased to declare snow leopard (Panther unica) and black–necked crane (Grus nicricollis) as state animal and state bird, respectively, of the union territory of Ladakh from the date of issue of this notification.”

Erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state had the black-necked crane and Kashmir stag (Hangul) as its state bird and animal respectively.

Following the bifurcation into separate administrative divisions, the black-necked crane and snow leopard were declared as the state animal of Ladakh.
The estimated population of Black-necked Crane in ladakh region is between 80-100 while the global population is estimated to be around 6,000.