Hangul-deer is found in which part of India?

Question

UnlockIAS · Accepted Answer

Correct — C, Jammu and Kashmir. The Hangul, or Kashmir stag (Cervus hanglu hanglu), is the state animal of Jammu and Kashmir and is found chiefly in the Kashmir Valley, with its last major stronghold in Dachigam National Park near Srinagar (and adjoining Tral Wildlife Sanctuary). It is Critically Endangered (IUCN) and listed on CITES Appendix I, its population having crashed to a few hundred, which is why its home range is so tightly identified with J&K.

Why the other options are wrong — (a) Rajasthan's arid habitat suits chinkara, blackbuck and the Great Indian Bustard, not the temperate-forest Hangul, which needs the Himalayan valleys of Kashmir.  (b) Kerala's Western Ghats are known for the Nilgiri tahr, lion-tailed macaque and elephants — the Hangul does not occur there.  (d) Assam is famous for the one-horned rhinoceros of Kaziranga; the Hangul is not found in Assam.

Concept: The Hangul (Kashmir stag) is a subspecies of the Central Asian red deer surviving only in India, in the mountainous forests of the Kashmir Valley. As the state animal of Jammu and Kashmir and one of India's most endangered large mammals, it is a flagship of Himalayan conservation, centred on Dachigam National Park just outside Srinagar.

State PCS 2023 Q104 — Environment & Ecology PYQ with Answer

State PCS 2023 Q104 — Environment & Ecology PYQ with Answer