The mist-covered mountains and forests of the Garhwal range in Uttarakhand are home to a wide range of migratory birds and endemic species. For the forest officials here, every dawn is a harbinger of a new hope—to spot a bird that may not exist anymore, the Himalayan Quail, which was last sighted in 1876.

The unseen bird is not the only one that has possibly gone extinct. In its Red List, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) names 1,039 species in various categories as ‘threatened’ in India.

The Himalayan Quail finds a mention in the list, which has species in eight categories: mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, molluscs, other invertebrates, and plants. In its 2015 report, IUCN states that in the mammals category, 96 mammals species, 82 bird species and 53 species of reptiles are endangered...................Read more

Source: The New Indian Express