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Consider the following : 1. Black-necked crane 2. Cheetah 3. Flying squirrel 4. Snow leopard Which of the above are naturally found in India ?
Explanation
The Black-necked crane is naturally found in India, specifically breeding in the high-altitude wetlands of Ladakh and wintering in parts of Arunachal Pradesh [3]. The Snow leopard is a flagship species for the Indian Himalayas, naturally occurring across Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh [1]. Various species of Flying squirrels, such as the Namdapha flying squirrel and the Giant flying squirrel, are native to the forests of Arunachal Pradesh and Central India [2]. However, the Cheetah was declared extinct in India in 1952 [1]. While African cheetahs have been recently reintroduced, they are not currently considered 'naturally found' in the wild as a native, extant population in the same sense as the others. Historically, the Asiatic cheetah had a wide range in India, but it no longer occurs naturally [1].
Sources
- [1] Environment, Shankar IAS Acedemy .(ed 10th) > Chapter 16: Conservation Efforts > 16.6. PROJECT SI{OW LEOPARD :t: > p. 240
- [3] https://moef.gov.in/uploads/2018/03/Project-Snow-Leopard-2008.pdf
- [2] Environment and Ecology, Majid Hussain (Access publishing 3rd ed.) > Chapter 4: BIODIVERSITY > x) not evaluated (ne) > p. 15