Flora in Uttarakhand :

Nestled in the lap of the Himalayas, Uttarakhand is one of the most beautiful northern states of India that enthralls everyone with its spectacularly scenic landscapes. Charming hill stations juxtaposed against snow-capped peaks, quaint villages along winding mountain roads, serpentine rivers carving their way through the hills, world renowned conservation parks like ‘Jim Corbett Tiger National Park’ and ‘Asan Wetland Conservation Reserve’, world heritage sites like ‘Valley of Flowers’ and ‘Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve’, waterfalls hurtling down slopes and serene lakes shimmering amidst beautiful towns .

The Garhwal  Himalayas were considered by the British to be the most spectacular part of the Himalayas. This was in part because Nepal was closed to foreigners but it is hard to deny the beauty of this part of the Western Himalayas. Some of important native flora of state are :

Wild Leopards :

Forest leopards are found in the lower temperate forests throughout Uttarakhand. Serow and goral are found in the upper elevations of the temperate forests, where musk deer may also be spotted. To provide safer breeding grounds for these endangered species, a number of sanctuaries have been established, including one near Kedarnath.

Brown Bear :

Brown bear are found in the caves and ledges above the high alpine slopes, while black bear are sighted at lower elevations in the summer, close to the village cornfields. in the summers bears can be spotted on the trek to Dayara Bugyal and Dodital Trek.

Bharal :

(Himalayan Blue sheep) and ibex are restricted to the high alpine pastures. Mountaineers and trekkers in the Nanda Devi Sanctuary in the 1970s were taken aback by the tame Bharal, while there were frequent sightings of snow leopards. Nowadays the ibex and bharal are confined to remote regions such as the Govind National Park, the alpine meadows beneath the Khatling Glacier and the upper reaches of the Milam Valley and the Markha Valley.

Deer :

Uttarakhand is home to may species of deer – the magnificent Sambar with heavy antlers, which is called Jarau in the hills, the beautiful Chital, the rare Barasinga or swamp deer, the Kasturi or musk deer, so named because the buck has a gland beneath the skin of the abdomen that secretes musk, the Kakar, rib-faced or barking deer which is a very pretty little animal, bright chestnut in colour with forked  horns, and many others.

Birds :

Monal :

The Himalayan monal (Lophophorus impejanus), also known as the Impeyan monal and Impeyan pheasant, is a bird in the pheasantfamily, Phasianidae. It is the national bird of Nepal, where it is known as the danphe, and state bird of Uttarakhand, India, where it is known as the monal. It was also the state bird of Himachal Pradesh until 2007.The scientific name commemorates Lady Mary Impey, the wife of the British chief justice of Bengal Sir Elijah Impey.

Birds include golden eagles, lammergeiers(Bearded vulture) and Steppe eagles. Sparrow hawks are also seen swooping on small birds at lower altitudes. Koklass and kalij pheasants are regularly seen in the forested regions bordering the alpine pastures, as are cheer pheasants and the impressive satyr tragopan. The Munal, an exotic pheasant with brilliant plumage, which has been adjudged as the “Bird of the state” by Uttarakhand, is found at above 2439 mtr to 3658 mtr.  The well-known Chakor is very common among the partridges, and in the extreme north, the raucous note of the black partridge is often heard.  The Himalayan Snow Cock is found on or about the snow-line.  Amongst Pigeons, the blue rock and the wood Pigeon are very common.  Birds of prey such as Eagles, Falcons, Hawks and Vultures are frequently seen.

In the mixed forest, expect to see the distinctive white-capped water redstart, blue whistling thrush, leaf warblers, yellow-breasted greenfinches, Himalayan and scaly-bellied woodpeckers, white-tailed nuthatch and spotted forktails. Eurasian and blackheaded jays are found at lower altitudes, as are kingfishers, black-throated tits, flycatchers,Himalayan woodpeckers, Indian and Drongo cuckoos, barn swallows and winter wrens. Extensive chir forests extend from 1500m to 2300m across the many hill regions. Above the chir pine are temperate forests of horse chestnut, yew and sycamore, which give way to blue pine, bamboo and rhododendron. Birch groves are found in the upper regions to the west of the state.