Forest and Wildlife Test - 12

The IUCN Red List includes 3079 animal and 2655 plant species as endangered (EN) worldwide. Rhino, Indian bustard and tiger fall in this category.

'Project Tiger' was started in the year 1973 by the Government of India. The main goal of this project was to conserve Bengal tigers in their natural habitat and prevent them from extinction. 

Animal,

Tundra vegetation is to the north of Taiga vegetation characterized by permanent frost. The vegetation is rare here because they must be able to survive months of continuous darkness in winter. Mosses and Lichens adapt to this climate because they have short stature and small, leathery, hairy leaves to prevent moisture loss by evaporation.

The Sariska tiger reserve is situated in the district of Alwar in Rajasthan. In 1878, it got the status of tiger reserve. It is spread over an area of 866 km 2.

This tiger reserve protects Bengal tigers. It is a part of Aravalli range.

The steppe spreads across the Russian plain, south of the cold taiga forests, sometimes penetrating deep into Siberia. Steppe has warm summers and really cold winters. There is often a lot of snow in the northern Steppes. All the Steppes experience long droughts and violent winds.

The destruction of forests and wildlife leads to deforestation. Deforestation is the process of cutting down forests in order to satisfy human needs like laying roads, for the purpose of wood for furniture etc.

It has a number of negative effects like loss of livelihood of the local communities as the forests serve as the livelihood for the people living in the area. Depletion of culture because traditional wildlife would get exhausted leading to the people moving away from the areas to urban areas. Depletion of biological stock is the other effect caused due to deforestation.

Deforestation is the process of cutting down forests in order to satisfy human needs like laying roads, for the purpose of wood for furniture etc.

Deforestation has many negative effects like Increase in temperature on the earth, Ground water depletion, and Weather change in different parts of the world

Coniferous trees (fir, pine, spruce) comprise one-third of the world’s forests and are found in northern parts of North America, Europe, and Asia in the northern hemisphere. They are generally found in cold areas where winter temperatures go as low as -50 °C.

Blackbuck - Endangered 2. Asiatic elephant - Vulnerable 3. Andaman wild pig - Endemic 4. Himalayan brown bear - Rare 5. Pink head duck - Extinct.

1. Endangered Species: Danger of extinction. Examples- black buck, crocodile, Indian wild ass, Indian rhino, lion-tailed macaque, Sangai (brow antler deer in Manipur), etc.

2. Vulnerable Species: Declined to levels, to move into the endangered category in the near future if the negative factors continue to operate. The examples of such species are blue sheep, Asiatic elephant, Gangetic dolphin, etc.

3. Endemic Species: Only found in some particular areas, usually isolated by natural or geographical barriers. Examples of such species are the Andaman teal, Nicobar pigeon, Andaman wild pig, mithun in Arunachal Pradesh.

4. Rare Species: Species with a small population may move into the endangered or vulnerable category. The examples of such species are the Himalayan brown bear, wild Asiatic buffalo, desert fox and hornbill, etc.

5. Extinct Species:  A species may be extinct from a local area, region, country, continent or the entire earth. Examples of such species are the Asiatic cheetah (declared extinct in 1952), pink head duck.