Ever wondered how many types of animals are there in India?
The history of animal species is billion years old. As per fossil biochemical evidence supported by molecular clock analyses, animals came into this world at least 700 million years ago. As per recent estimates, there are at least 9 - 10 million species of animals are there in this world. However, only 8 lakh of these species have been identified till date. India has only around 2.4% of global land area containing approximately 7-8% of total recorded species. Thus, animal diversity is a vast domain of study, especially in a country like India. To ease the process, Indian government, with the help of researchers have done something extraordinary! In this article, we will discuss about key insights about recently published list of all Indian animal species
Due to vastness, it becomes highly difficult to track all the animal species. It needs help from researchers, naturalists, and policy makers. There is no such country-specific animal list ever published. India becomes the first nation to do so! Indeed, a great achievement. In presence of Union environment minister Bhupender Yadav, the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) has released the checklist of India’s fauna. This portal was launched on the occasion of 109th Foundation Day of Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) in Kolkata.
The Union environment minister Bhupender Yadav said: “The Fauna of India Checklist Portal is the first comprehensive document on the faunal species reported from India.”
Details about Indian Animals: The list encompasses a total of 104,561 species. “It comprises 121 checklists of all known taxa covering 36 phyla. Endemic, threatened, and scheduled species have also been included in the list,” the minister added.
Mammals Diversity: Among 455 recorded mammalian species recorded from India, Meghalaya (163 species), West Bengal (161 species), Arunachal Pradesh (142 species), Tamil Nadu (139 species), Assam (138 species), Sikkim (137 species) and Kerala (134 species) are having the maximum number of species. In union territories, Andaman & Nicobar Islands (68 species), Ladakh (59 species) and Delhi (38 species) have maximum number of mammals.
Endemic Species: There are 52 endemic species reported in India. Endemic species are those animals which are found nowhere except that particular place/country. Tamil Nadu has the highest number of endemic species (23) followed by Karnataka (19) and Kerala (19), according to checklist. Western Ghats, often considered the heart of India because of its diversity and importance, has the highest rate of endemic species.
Bird Variety: As per the list, there are 1,358 bird species currently present in India. Among them, 79 that are endemic. The Western Ghats Bio-geographic zone harbours the highest number of endemic species (28).
During the event, the Union environment minister mentioned “Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam” programme, an initiative by Indian government. Indian prime minister Narendra Modi also mentioned about this initiative in ‘Mann Ki Baat’. This is to promote awareness about saving wildlife. To encourage conservation of Indian biodiversity, several other initiatives including International Big Cat Alliance were also undertaken by the government.
“The faunal checklist will be an invaluable reference for taxonomists, researchers, academicians, conservation managers, and policymakers,” the Union environment minister told in the event.
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