Common Animal Species In India
1. Sambars live in small family groups, primarily in hilly forested areas, and eat shrubs and low branch leaves. They have large, thick antlers with three branches that are dark brown in color.
2. Chital deer, also known as spotted deer, graze in large herds in forest clearings. They have a rust brown body with white spots that helps them blend in with the environment. The tines are three branches on each antler.
3. Hangul deer, only Kashmir is home of rare Hangul deer. It has a magnificent spread of antlers, each with six branches.
4. The Barasingha, or swamp deer, has large hooves that allow it to live in the Terai's flooded areas. Six or more branches can be found on each antler. The small barking deer can be found in many forest areas across India. It has two ridges on its face and only two branches on its antler. Its call is similar to a dog's bark.
5. The blackbuck, In India it is the only true antelope. It can be found in large herds. The males have beautiful spiral horns that form a ‘V' shape and are black on top and cream below.
6. The chinkara, also known as the Indian gazelle, is a smaller animal with beautiful curved horns and a pale brown color.
7. The Chausingha, or four-horned antelope, is the world's only animal with four horns.
8. The Nilgai is the largest herbivore found in dryland areas. The males have a blue-gray coloration. The legs and head of Nilgai have white markings. They have spike-like horns that are short and strong.
9. The Indian wild ass, which is only found in the Little Rann of Kutch, is a very rare species.
10. Several species of wild goats and sheep live in Himalayan pastures, many of which are endemic to the region, such as the goral and Himalayan tahr. The Nilgiri tahr is a single species found in the Nilgiri and Annamalai hills of south India.
11. The rhinoceros is now only found in Assam, but it used to be found all over the Gangetic plains.
12. The Terai is now the only place where wild buffalo can be found.
13. The elephant can be found in both the Northeastern and Southern United States. It is endangered due to habitat loss and ivory poaching.
14. Gaur can be found in patches throughout India's forested areas.
15. The tiger is the most well-known predator in our forests. Only three or four times a month does the tiger kill. Poaching for its excellent skin and the supposed magical value of its teeth, claws, and whiskers has reduced its numbers. It has recently been slaughtered in large numbers for the alleged medicinal properties of its bones, which are used in Chinese medicine.
16. The Asiatic lion can now only be found in Gujarat's Gir forests.
17. The leopard is more adaptable than the tiger, living in both dense and degraded forests. Its beautiful ring-like markings blend in so well with its surroundings that its prey is completely unaware of its stealthy approach.
18. The leopard cat, which is a little bigger than a domestic cat, and the smaller jungle cat, which is a light brown animal, are both extremely rare. The snow leopard is the most common predator in the Himalayas, and it is extremely rare and poached for its beautiful pale grey skin with dark grey ring-like markings.
19. Canids are a group of animals that includes wolves, jackals, foxes, and wild dogs, also known as dholes. The Himalayan wolf is another endangered predator. Wolves have become increasingly reliant on shepherds' flocks, putting them in jeopardy. As a result, shepherds are constantly looking for new ways to kill wolves.
20. The bonnet macaque, which has a red face, a long tail, and a whorl of hair on the scalp that resembles a cap, is one of the most common monkey species in the forest.
21. The rhesus macaque, which is smaller and has a shorter tail than the bonnet macaque, is our other common monkey.
22. The lion-tailed macaque is a rare macaque that can only be found in a few forests in the southern Western Ghats and Annamalai ranges. It is black in color, with long hair, a grey mane, and a lion's tail tassel at the end of its tail.
23. The Hanuman monkey is a species of common langur with a black face.
24. The golden langur is a rare species of golden yellow langur that lives along the banks of the Manas River in Assam.
25. The capped langur is a rare Northeast Indian species.
26. The Nilgiris and Annamalais in the southern Western Ghats are home to the rare black nilgiri langur.
BIRDS:
• India has over 1200 bird species that live in a variety of habitats.
• The majority of our forest birds have evolved to live in specific types of forests.
• However, some Himalayan species can be found in the Western Ghats.
• Fruit-eating Hornbills come in a variety of species. Their beaks are heavy and curved, with a projection on top. Fruit-eating frugivores like parakeets, barbets, and bulbuls are frequently seen eating Ficus fruits like banyan and pipal.
• Many species of insectivorous birds feed on forest insects. Flycatchers, bee-eaters, and other species are among them.
• The male paradise flycatcher is a small white bird with two long white trailing tail feathers and a black head. The female is brown and lacks the long tail feathers of the male.
• Many eagles, falcons, and kites have become endangered in recent years.
• Grasslands are home to a diverse range of bird species. The Great Indian bustard, a large, brown stately bird with long legs that struts through grasslands looking for locusts and grasshoppers, is the most endangered species.
• The floricans are a rare and endangered group of birds. Quails, partridges, larks, munias, and other grain-eating birds have adapted to grasslands in large numbers.
• Several aquatic bird species, such as waders, gulls, and terns, live along the seashore and go out fishing many kilometers out to sea. Because of pollution, many of these birds have lost their coastal habitats. Waders, such as stilts and sandpipers, are aquatic birds with long legs that live in freshwater. The other group consists of birds that swim on water, such as ducks and geese.
• There are numerous species of large birds that are associated with water or marshy areas. Various species of storks, cranes, spoonbills, flamingos, and pelicans are among them. Migrants make up a large percentage of aquatic species. They breed in Northern Europe or Siberia and migrate to India in the winter by the thousands.
REPTILES
• India is home to a diverse range of lizards, snakes, and turtles, many of which are endemism-rich.
• The common garden lizard, Fan throated lizard, Chamelion, Skink, Common Monitor, and Water Monitor are among the lizards.
• The trade in reptile skins has put some of these species in jeopardy. The Rock Python, Russell's viper, and Vine snake are all Indian snakes.
• We rarely appreciate the fact that only a few snake species are poisonous, and the vast majority of snakes are non-venomous.
THE AMPHIBIANS
• The Travancore tortoise and the Star tortoise are now endangered species. India's most well-known turtles are the Olive Ridley and Flapshell turtles. Poaching of adults and eggs has resulted in the extinction of many turtle species.
• The crocodile is our largest reptile, and its skin is highly prized. The gharial is a threatened species that is only found in India.
• Frogs and toads make up the majority of amphibians found in India. Several species, such as the Indian Bullfrog and Tree Frog, are among them. These amphibians are mostly found in the Northeast and Western Ghats hotspots. Global warming and rising levels of UV radiation are now thought to be wreaking havoc on amphibian populations in some areas.
THE INVERTEBRATES:
• Invertebrates are a diverse group of animals that live in both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.
• In aquatic habitats, microscopic animals such as protozoa and zooplankton form the foundation of the food chain. Coral is made up of colonies of polyp-like creatures.
• Worms, mollusks (snails), spiders, crabs, jellyfish, and octopuses are among the more well-known invertebrates found in India.
• There are over a million insect species known to science on the planet. Grasshoppers, bugs, beetles, ants, bees, butterflies, and moths are among them. Butterfly and moth species abound in India.
• Shrimp is a type of seafood that we eat.
THREAT TO THE AQUATIC ANIMAL
• Marine turtles, which are reptiles, and whales, which are mammals, are among the other endangered species.
• A large number of freshwater fish species found in our Indian rivers and lakes are now endangered due to the introduction of fish from other countries as well as from one river to another.
• Pollution is now having a significant impact on fish.
• In our coastal waters, marine fisheries are overfished, and the fish catch has dropped dramatically in recent years. The use of large, small-mesh nets by mechanized boats is a major contributor to the depletion of this resource.
• There are many endangered fish, such as the Mahseer, which used to reach lengths of over a meter.
• Many marine animals that live in the Indian Ocean, such as whales, sharks, and dolphins, are now threatened with extinction due to deep sea fishing.