EFI's "Know Your Animals" - Ganges shark

EFI's "Know Your City"- Chennai

LEATHERBACK SEA TURTLE

Kingdom: Animalia

Class: Reptilia

Order: Testudines                                          Family: Dermochelyidae

Species: D.coriacea

 The leatherback sea turtle, also called the lute turtle or leathery turtle is the only living species in the genus Dermochelys. It can easily be differentiated from other modern sea turtles by its lack of a bony shell.

Leatherbacks are the largest of all living turtles and is the fourth-heaviest modern reptile behind three crocodilians. They grow up to seven feet (two meters) long and exceed 2,000 pounds (900 kilograms).

Leatherbacks have the widest global distribution of all reptile species, and possibly of any vertebrate. They can be found in the tropic and temperate waters of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans, as well as the Mediterranean Sea. Adult leatherbacks also traverse as far north as Canada and Norway and as far south as New Zealand and South America.

These reptilian relics are the only remaining representatives of a family of turtles that traces its evolutionary roots back more than 100 million years. Once prevalent in every ocean except the Arctic and Antarctic, the leatherback population is rapidly declining in many parts of the world.

Adult Leatherback turtles subsist almost entirely on jellyfish. Due to their obligate feeding nature, leatherback turtles help control jellyfish populations. Leatherbacks also feed on other soft-bodied organisms.

Leatherback sea turtles are declining due to habitat fragmentation, caught accidentally by fishing nets. Due to their large consumption of jellyfish, they are susceptible to swallow plastic bags, which can kill them.

RED PANDA

Red Panda

Kingdom : Animalia

Class       : Mammalia

Order      : Carnivora

Family    : Ailuride

Species   : A. fulgens

Red Panda also called as Lesser Panda and Red cat bear lives in the temperate climates , mostly along the Himalayan region  which includes foothills of Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and in India it is found in the Northeastern states such as Arunachal pradesh, Sikkim, West bengal and Meghalaya with majority of the population found in Arunachal pradesh. About 50% of Red pandas are found in eastern Himalayas. Most of the Red pandas are found in china.

Red pandas usually grow to the size of an house cat. The total length of Red Panda measures between 80 cm to 115 cm (Head and body length is 50 to 65 cm and length of the tail measure between 30 to 50 cm). The weight of the Red Panda measures between 3.3 to 6.6 kilograms. The body of Red Panda is marked with red and white markings which helps to blend in with the environment the live(mostly red mosses and white lichens). Red pandas use their long, bushy tails for balance and cover themselves during winter

Red pandas eat bamboos, acorns, fruits, eggs and small mammals. Red Pandas are mostly herbivores but occasionally they like to surprise small mammals and birds by adding them to their diet.

Red pandas are declining due to habitat fragmentation*, deforestation(for agriculture development and timber extraction), livestock grazing in wildlife sanctuaries and national parks which results in loss of nesting trees and bamboos on which the Red Pandas feed. Red Pandas are also poached for their pelt from which fancy hats and dresses are produced (Bushy tails are used for decoration on cats and dresses).

*Habitat fragmentation: Emergence of discontinuities (fragmentation) or change in an organisms preferred environment due to geological process that slowly alter the layout of the physical environment.

HIMALAYAN WOLF

HIMALAYAN WOLF

Kingdom: Animalia

Class: Mammalia

Order: Carnivora

Family: Candae

Species: C. himalayensis

The Himalayan Wolf is a kind of wolf that belongs to the species Canis himalayensis. It is usually found in northern India, in Himachal Pradesh, Indian Kashmir and also in the eastern part of Nepal in the Himalayas. 

Himalayan Wolves are smaller in number,so they tend to have smaller packs. Each Himalayan Wolf pack may only have six or eight members.

Himalayan Wolfs are carnivorous and the wolfs mainly feed in small rodents and rabbits.

The Himalayan wolf is listed as an endangered species in certain areas of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand. A large portion of the wolf population in these areas exists outside of the protected area network.

There are around 350 Himalayan Wolfs left in the wild and 21 are in the zoo's in various parts of India. 

The Himalayan wolfs are mainly hunted for their flesh. The wolfs flesh are consumed by the humans.

Hawksbill sea turtle

Kingdom: Animalia

Class : Reptilia

Family: Cheloniidae

Hawksbill sea turtle has narrow narrow head and hawk like beak. It is one of the critically endangered species. The hawksbill's appearance is similar to that of other marine turtles. In general it has a flattened body shape, a protective carapace, and flipper-like arms, adapted for swimming in the open ocean.

Hawksbill sea turtles are typically found around coastal reefs, rocky areas, estuaries and lagoons.

Several characteristics of the hawksbill sea turtle distinguish it from other sea turtle species. Its elongated, tapered head ends in a beak-like mouth (from which its common name is derived), and its beak is more sharply pronounced and hooked than others. The hawksbill's arms have two visible claws on each flipper.

Throughout the world, hawksbill sea turtles are taken by humans, though it is illegal to hunt them in many countries.In some parts of the world, hawksbill sea turtles are eaten as a delicacy. 

These turtles have been harvested for their beautiful shell. 

Ganges Shark

Ganges shark

The Ganges shark (Glyphis gangeticus) is a critically endangered species of requiem shark found in the Ganges River and the Brahmaputra River of India.

The Ganges shark, as its name suggests, is largely restricted to the rivers of eastern and northeastern India, particularly the Hooghly River of West Bengal, and the Ganges, Brahmaputra, and Mahanadi in Bihar, Assam, and Odisha, respectively.

River sharks are thought to be particularly vulnerable to habitat changes. The Ganges shark is restricted to a very narrow band of habitat that is heavily impacted by human activity.

Overfishing, habitat degradation from pollution, increasing river use and management, including construction of dams and barrages are the principle threats.

Thought to be consumed locally for its meat, the Ganges shark is caught by gillnet and its oil, along with that of the South Asian river dolphin, is highly sought after as a fish attractant