It lives nowhere else on earth except a 40 square kilometre raft of floating vegetation in the middle of a lake in Manipur. Its name, in Meitei folklore, comes from the way it runs — turning its head back towards whoever is chasing it, as if to look them in the eye. And depending on which government survey you read, there are either 260 of them left, or 64.
Category Archive: Animal Facts
At its lowest point, fewer than 200 hangul survived on earth. All of them in one national park on the outskirts of Srinagar. The hangul is India’s most endangered deer, the state animal of Jammu and Kashmir, and the only survivor of a subspecies of red deer that once ranged across the length of the western Himalayas. It is, very slowly, coming back.
The nilgai is India’s largest antelope, one of its most widely distributed large mammals, and possibly its most politically contested. In Bihar it is protected by religious sentiment. In Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh it has been declared vermin. The same animal, under the same law, treated in entirely opposite ways depending on where it stands.
The sambar is India’s largest deer, the tiger’s most important prey across much of its range, and one of the least-watched large mammals in the Indian forest. Its invisibility is almost entirely intentional.
No animal in India is more seen, more photographed, or more taken for granted than the chital. That is precisely why it deserves a closer look.
Birds of India Quiz for Beginners
How well do you know India’s incredible birdlife? · 10 questions · Multiple choice
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Clocked at 80 km/h across open grassland, the blackbuck is India’s fastest land animal. It was once nearly extinct. Now it’s running again in Chhattisgarh — after 50 years of absence.
Indian Elephant Quiz — Test Your Knowledge
From tusks to territory — how much do you know? · 10 questions · Multiple choice
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In 1967, there were just 66 barasingha left in Kanha. All of them lived in one meadow in that forest. This is how India pulled its most improbable deer back from the edge.
🐯 Indian Wildlife Quiz
10 questions · Multiple choice · Fun facts after each answer
Question 1 of 10
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