UPSC Articles
Red Panda
Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III- Environment
In News:
- Hunting of Red Panda has decreased as per study by wildlife trade monitoring network TRAFFIC, indicative of the success of awareness campaigns.
- Red panda is endemic to the temperate forests of the Himalayas.
- Native to the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China.
- It is arboreal, feeds mainly on bamboo, but also eats eggs, birds, and insects
- Habitat: Sikkim, Assam, Meghalaya, West Bengal and northern Arunachal Pradesh.
- Threat: Hunted for meat and fur, besides illegal capture for the pet trade.
- IUCN Status: Endangered
- Significance: Red panda’s survival is crucial for the eastern and north-eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests and the eastern Himalayan broadleaf forests
- Estimated Population: 14,500 animals in the wild across Nepal, Bhutan, India, China and Myanmar.
- It is the state animal of Sikkim
Protected areas
- Kanchendzonga National Park (NP) — Sikkim
- Neora Valley NP – West Bengal
- Namdapha National Park – Arunachal Pradesh
- Singalila National Park – West Bengal
