HIMALAYAN
WOLF - ENVIORNMENT
News:
Himalayan wolf listed as
‘vulnerable’ in IUCN, prompts concerted conservation efforts
What's
in the news?
●
The Himalayan wolf was recently classified
as vulnerable in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, with only 2,275 to
3,792 individuals left in the wild.
Key
takeaways:
●
The species was found to have a distinct
genetic lineage of ancient origin, different from the grey wolf lineage which
it was previously assumed to belong to.
Himalayan
Wolf:
●
The Himalayan Wolf (Canis lupus chanco), a prominent lupine predator found across the Himalayas.
●
It is also called Tibetan wolves, which live at more than 4,000 metres altitudes and
are genetically distinct from grey wolves.
●
Living at such high altitudes, these
wolves have genetically adapted themselves to live in low oxygen (hypoxic)
conditions.
Habitat:
●
In China,
the Himalayan wolf lives on the Tibetan Plateau in the provinces of Gansu,
Qinghai, Tibet, and western Sichuan.
●
In northern India, it occurs in the Union
Territory of Ladakh and in the Lahaul and Spiti region in northeastern Himachal
Pradesh.
Conservation
Status:
●
IUCN:
Vulnerable
●
CITES:
Appendix I
●
Wildlife
Protection Act, 1972: Schedule I
Threats:
●
Habitat loss, conflict with humans as
retaliatory killings, competition with feral dogs and hunting for illegal
wildlife trade threaten the survival of the species.
WAY
FORWARD:
●
Securing and restoring healthy wild prey
populations and landscapes and setting aside wildlife habitat refuges.
●
Improving livestock guarding methods, such
as predator-proof corral pens and using sustainable livestock herding
practices, including reduced livestock loads, adapted herding, and developing
novel but tradition-based holistic management practices.
●
Management of feral dog populations.
●
Trans-boundary efforts in conservation of
the species in range countries through research and monitoring.