Wild INDIA

        

The wildlife in India comprises a mix of species of different types of organisms.Apart from a handful of the major farm animals such as cows, buffaloes, goats, poultry, and camels, India has an amazingly wide variety of animals native to the country. It is home to Bengal tigers, Indian lions, deer, pythons, wolves, foxes, bears, crocodiles, wild dogs, monkeys, snakes, antelope species, varieties of bison and the Asian elephant. The region's rich and diverse wildlife is preserved in 120+ national parks, 18 Bio-reserves and 500+ wildlife sanctuaries across the country. India has some of the most biodiverse regions of the world and hosts three of the world’s 35 biodiversity hotspots – or treasure-houses – that is the Western Ghats, the Eastern Himalayas and Indo- Burma. Since India is home to a number of rare and threatened animal species, wildlife management in the country is essential to preserve these species. India is one of the seventeen megadiverse countries. According to one study, India along with other 16 mega diverse countries is home to about 60-70 % of the world's biodiversity.

India, lying within the Indomalaya ecozone, is home to about 7.6% of all mammalian, 12.6% of avian, 6.2% of reptilian, and 6.0% of flowering plant species. Manyecoregions, such as the shola forests, also exhibit extremely high rates of endemism; overall, 33% of Indian plant species are endemic. India's forest cover ranges from the tropical rainforest of the Andaman Islands, Western Ghats, and Northeast India to the coniferous forest of the Himalaya. Between these extremes lie the sal-dominatedmoist deciduous forest of eastern India; teak-dominated dry deciduous forest of central and southern India; and the babul-dominated thorn forest of the central Deccan and western Gangetic plain. Important Indian trees include the medicinal neem, widely used in rural Indian herbal remedies. The pipal fig tree, shown on the seals of Mohenjo-daro, shaded the Gautama Buddha as he sought enlightenment.

In recent decades, human encroachment has posed a threat to India's wildlife; in response, the system of national parks and protected areas, first established in 1935, was substantially expanded. In 1972, India enacted the Wildlife Protection Act andProject Tiger to safeguard crucial habitat; further federal protections were promulgated in the 1980s. Along with over 515 wildlife sanctuaries, India now hosts 18 biosphere reserves, 9 of which are part of the World Network of Biosphere Reserves; 26 wetlandsare registered under the Ramsar Convention.Many Indian species are descendants of taxa originating in Gondwana, to which India originally belonged. Peninsular India's subsequent movement towards, and collision with, the Laurasian landmass set off a mass exchange of species. However, volcanismand climatic change 20 million years ago caused the extinction of many endemic Indian forms. Soon thereafter, mammals entered India from Asia through twozoogeographical passes on either side of the emerging Himalaya. As a result, among Indian species, only 12.6% of mammals and 4.5% of birds are endemic, contrasting with 45.8% of reptiles and 55.8% of amphibians. Notable endemics are the Nilgiri leaf monkey and the brown and carmine Beddome's toad of the Western Ghats. India contains 172, or 2.9%, of IUCN-designated threatened species. These include theAsian elephant, the Asiatic lion, the Bengal tiger, the Indian rhinoceros, the mugger crocodile, and the Indian white-rumped vulture, which suffered a near-extinction from ingesting the carrion of diclofenac-treated cattle.

The varied and rich wildlife of India has had a profound impact on the region's popular culture. The common name for wilderness in India is jungle, which was adopted into the English language. The word has been also made famous in The Jungle Book byRudyard Kipling. India's wildlife has been the subject of numerous other tales and fables such as the Panchatantra.

India is home to several well-known large mammals, including the Asian elephant,Bengal tiger, Asiatic lion, leopard, sloth bear and Indian rhinoceros. Some other well-known large Indian mammals are: ungulates such as the rare wild Asian water buffalo, common domestic Asian water buffalo, gail, gaur, and several species of deer and antelope. Some members of the dog family, such as the Indian wolf, Bengal fox andgolden jackal, and the dhole or wild dogs are also widely distributed. However, the dhole, also known as the whistling hunter, is the most endangered top Indian carnivore, and the Himalayan wolf is now a critically endangered species endemic toIndia. It is also home to the striped hyena, macaques, langur andmongoose species.

India has 515 animal sanctuaries referred to as wildlife sanctuaries category IV protected areas. Among these, the 48 tiger reserves are governed by Project Tiger, and are of special significance in the conservation of the tiger. Some wildlife sanctuaries are specifically named bird sanctuary, e.g., Keoladeo National Park before attaining National Park status. Many National Parks were initially wildlife sanctuaries.The conservative measures taken by the Indian Government for the conservation of Tigers was awarded by a 30% rise in the number of tigers in 2015.

Wildlife sanctuaries are of national importance due to some flagship faunal species, are named National Wildlife Sanctuary, like the tri-state National Chambal (Gharial) Wildlife Sanctuary for conserving the gharial.