Chapter 1: ZOOLOGICAL DIVERSITY

Introduction

• India is one of the mega-biodiversity countries in the world with unique biogeographical locations, diversified climatic conditions and wide array of ecosystems from deep sea to high mountain ranges at Himalayas.
• According to world biogeographic categorization, India represents two of the major realms, the Palearctic and Indo-Malayan, and three biomes viz. Tropical Humid Forest, Tropical Dry Deciduous Forests, and Warm Deserts/Semi-Deserts. And, the Indian landmass has been classified into the 10 Biogeographic Zones.
• In order to safeguard biodiversity, 990 Protected Areas extending across 5.27% of the country’s geographical area have been established, of which faunal communities have been thoroughly listed among 120 Protected Areas by the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI).
• ZSI was founded in 1916 and is a part of the Ministry of Forests, Environment, and Climate Change (MoEF&CC).
• It has an inventory of the faunal resources.
• With its headquarters located in Kolkata, India, it has 16 regional centres.

Coastal and Marine Biodiversity:

• India has a total length of 7516.6 km of coastline, including the Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, and the mainland.
• The different types of coast include bays, covers, gulfs, estuaries, and peninsulas.
• Diverse ecosystems, including mangrove swamps, coral reefs, seagrass beds, beaches, dunes, salt marshes, and mud flats, can be found along Indian shores.
• Its 2.37 million square kilometre Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) makes it the 18th largest EEZ in the world.
• With 20,444 species, India has one of the highest marine biodiversities in the Indian Ocean region.
• In addition, 9,457 freshwater species, 3,939 estuarine species, and 5,747 species from mangrove environments have been identified in the nation.

State Fauna

• Since the past 107 years, ZSI has investigated several species of fauna.
• 28 states and Union Territories' faunal diversity has been revealed.
• The rate of new species discovered by ZSI researchers is from 125 to 175 per year.

ZSI status survey results:

• ZSI has made considerable strides in its monitoring of the status of rare/endangered animal species.
• ZSI recently launched a major operation to tag Olive ridley turtles along the coast of Odisha and Leatherback turtles on Great Nicobar Island in order to study their migratory patterns in the Indian Ocean.
• From the molecular level to the monitoring of fauna, ZSI also started a number of unique programmes.
• By using non-invasive genetic analysis techniques, at least 37 species of mammals from Himalayan regions have been genetically identified.
• Similar research has been done by ZSI experts on the population genetics of the Chinese Pangolin, Muntiacus muntjak, the Arunachal Macaque (Macaca munzala), and the Arunachal Barking Deer (Muntiacus muntjak).

Forensic Study

• ZSI has been approved by the Ministry of Home Affairs as a forensic laboratory for use in resolving wildlife case materials and assisting the MoEF&CC.

Mapping of Fauna

• In partnership with the State Forest Department, ZSI has implemented a variety of geospatial modelling studies, such as the mapping of biological corridors, landscape change analysis, and climate change risk modelling, for the number of studies of the Himalayan region as well as other locations.
• The geospatial library of the fauna of India is being developed by ZSI based on the National Zoological Collections.
• A total of 5.7 million specimens, representing around 40,000 animal species, have been recognised and geo-tagged to 4.2 different places.
• To give detailed information on various animals in India's protected areas, mobile applications and web-based geographic information systems (GIS) have been developed in partnership with the National Remote Sensing Center, ISRO.
• In order to comprehend the diversity and richness of wildlife species in the Himalayan region, a geospatial database for the threatened vertebrates of the Indian Himalayan Region has been developed.
• There have been plans for studies on pollinators, foreign and invasive species, and climate change in relation to faunal diversity and preservation.
• Moreover, research has been done to identify areas that are likely to catch fire and to comprehend the effects of forest fires in Northeast India.

Long-Term Fauna Monitoring in India:

• The Long-Term Ecological Observatories (LTEO) programme was introduced by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change as a component activity of the nation's Climate Change Action Programme.
• A multi-institutional effort called India - Long Term Ecological Observatories (India - LTEO) intends to establish long-term ecological monitoring for various species in six diverse landscapes throughout India.
• Forests, grasslands, soil, herpetofauna, marine ecosystems, arthropods, freshwater fish, birds, and movement ecology are among the nine categories covered by India's LTEO.
• The Western Ghats, Western and Eastern Himalayas, Central India, the North West Arid Zone, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are among the LTEO landscapes.

Reef Restoration:

• A degraded reef area of about 1050 square metres has been repaired.

Other Components

• ZSI is researching and developing a model to forecast areas that are more likely to experience forest fires in North-East India.
• Its research is published in scientific publications, documents, etc.
• It has helped to influence the modification of the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972.
• It provides advice to a number of ministries, including the Ministries of Agriculture, Commerce, Jal Shakti, and Science and Technology, regarding the preservation of species and biodiversity in India.