ZSI Book on Scheduled Mammals of India: Issue of Endangerment of Species

ZSI Book on Scheduled Mammals of India: Issue of Endangerment of Species

Question: The Zoological Survey of India has recently published a listing of scheduled species of mammals found in India. Discuss the critical issue of endangerment of many of these species.

• Zoological Survey of India has published a book entitled An Identification Manual for Scheduled Mammals of India which provides a consolidated list of scheduled and protected mammal species found in India

Critical Issue of Endangerment

• India is home to 428 species of mammals from which around 60% or 251 species are under the protected/scheduled categories of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act 1972

• The book lists the statues of the scheduled mammals as per IUCN Red List of threatened species

• Around 50% of the mammalian fauna of the species have shrunk in distributional range on account of anthropogenic pressures

• 4 species namely cheetah, banteng, Sumatran and Javan rhino are already extinct

• Highest priority is given to Schedule 1 mammals of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act

• The list includes the following animals: Tiger, elephant and Indian rhinoceros, clouded leopard, snow leopard, gaur, desert cat, Niligiri tahr, swamp deer, sloth bear and Tibetan, sand fox

• The book also lists the mammals that come under the “Critically Endangered” category of the IUCN which includes pygmy hog, Malabar civet, large rock rat and kondana rat. According to IUCN status 29 mammals (including Chinese Pangolin, fishing cat, Gangetic dolphin, golden langur, hispid hare) are endangered

Facts and Stats

• 428 species of mammals contribute to 8% of the total mammal species in the world

• Of 251 Scheduled mammal species listed in the publication, around 180 fall under the category which is lesser known and not much is known about behaviour, habitat and population of these

• Around 78 species of mammals are included in Schedule 1 of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act 1972