Ziro Valley losing rare wildlife due to hunting: Survey

Ziro Valley losing rare wildlife due to hunting: Survey
Press Trust of India | Kolkata June 23, 2013 Last Updated at 17:55 IST

A number of threatened and rare wildlife species, including leopards, are vanishing from Arunachal Pradesh's Ziro Valley as a result of rampant hunting by the indigenous Apatani tribe, a survey has revealed.

A team of researchers from the Wildlife Institute of India recently surveyed the hunting practices by the Apatanis and found that they were threatening the survival of several rare and threatened species in the picturesque valley in Lower Subansiri district.

"The species which are hunted include common leopard, clouded leopard, marbled cat, leopard cat, spotted linsang, otter, yellow-throated marten, orange-bellied squirrel, Malayan giant squirrel, sambar, barking deer, wild pig and birds," a WII report, published in the Current Science journal, said.

In Arunachal, hunting is a widespread cultural practice that has probably led to low wildlife existence.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has classified Sambar, marbled cat, black bear and clouded leopard as being vulnerable while common leopard and Malayan giant squirrel are described as near threatened.

Of the 85 households surveyed, about 54 per cent reported hunting for subsistence, 25 per cent for commercial trade (often sold in markets), 10 per cent for medicinal purposes and 4.7 per cent reported hunting for pleasure.

The major species hunted are mostly those protected by law, said WII scientist Gopi Govindan Veeraswami in the report.

Large-bodied animals were mainly hunted for subsistence and Asiatic black bear hunting was reported for ethno-zoo therapeutic purposes.

It increasingly appears that it has become an acceptable fact that wildlife in Arunachal Pradesh will vanish in the next couple of years.

In one incident a couple of years back, it was reported that a tiger was killed and eaten by people infront of film cameras. The rise in human population and unabated gun culture is swiftly decimating the wildlife. One can openly buy bush meat in the markets in Arunachal. It needs a lot of effort by people to educate and change attitudes towards wildlife. Perhaps images of our members like Kaling Dai can help in changing attitudes. We need grass root campaigns.