Threatened Species of India

Snow LeopardPanthera uncia

Mammal

Alpine and subalpine rocky steppe above the treeline, 3,000 to 5,400 m. Hemis is the flagship site.

The 'ghost of the mountains'. It cannot roar: the hyoid structure differs from other big cats. The very long tail stores fat and is wrapped around the body for warmth. Downlisted from Endangered to Vulnerable in 2017. The Snow Leopard Population Assessment in India put the number at 718. State animal of Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh.

Ladakh · Himachal Pradesh · Uttarakhand · Sikkim · Arunachal Pradesh · Jammu & Kashmir

Indian Rhinoceros or Greater One-horned RhinocerosRhinoceros unicornis

Mammal

Alluvial floodplain grassland and swamps. Kaziranga holds about 70 per cent of the world population; also Orang, Pobitora, Manas, Jaldapara, Gorumara and Dudhwa.

State animal of Assam. Has a single horn of compacted keratin, not bone, and armour-like skin folds. Pobitora has the highest density of rhinos anywhere in the world. A conservation success story: numbers rose from around 200 in the early twentieth century to over 4,000.

Assam · West Bengal · Uttar Pradesh · Bihar

Gaur or Indian BisonBos gaurus

Mammal

Moist and dry deciduous forest with grassy glades, up to about 2,800 m in the Western Ghats and the north east.

The largest wild cattle in the world and the tallest bovid. Distinguished by white 'stockings' on all four legs and a prominent dorsal ridge. State animal of Goa and Bihar. Successfully reintroduced to Bandhavgarh from Kanha in 2011.

Karnataka · Kerala · Tamil Nadu · Maharashtra · Madhya Pradesh · Chhattisgarh · Odisha · Assam · Meghalaya · Goa · Jharkhand · Bihar · Tripura

Sloth BearMelursus ursinus

Mammal

Dry and moist deciduous forest, scrub and rocky outcrops with termite mounds and caves.

Specialised for eating termites: it lacks the two upper incisors, leaving a gap through which it vacuums insects with an audible sound heard 100 metres away. Carries its cubs on its back, uniquely among bears. The species behind the historic 'dancing bear' trade, ended in 2009. Daroji in Karnataka is a dedicated sanctuary.

Madhya Pradesh · Chhattisgarh · Maharashtra · Karnataka · Odisha · Rajasthan · Gujarat · Andhra Pradesh · Telangana · Jharkhand · Tamil Nadu · Kerala · Bihar · Uttar Pradesh

Asiatic Black BearUrsus thibetanus

Mammal

Temperate broadleaf and conifer forest of the Himalaya and north east, 1,200 to 3,300 m.

The white or cream V-shaped crescent on the chest gives it the name moon bear. A major driver of human-wildlife conflict in Kashmir and Himachal, where orchards draw bears to villages.

Jammu & Kashmir · Himachal Pradesh · Uttarakhand · Arunachal Pradesh · Sikkim · Assam · Manipur · Nagaland · Meghalaya · West Bengal

Clouded LeopardNeofelis nebulosa

Mammal

Dense tropical and subtropical evergreen forest of the north east and eastern Himalaya.

Has the longest canine teeth relative to skull size of any living cat, often compared with the extinct sabre-tooths. Its ankles rotate so far that it can climb down trunks head first and hang upside down from branches. State animal of Meghalaya. Tripura has a national park named after it.

Arunachal Pradesh · Assam · Meghalaya · Nagaland · Manipur · Mizoram · Tripura · Sikkim · West Bengal

Fishing CatPrionailurus viverrinus

Mammal

Mangroves, reedbeds, marshes and tidal creeks. The Sundarbans, Bhitarkanika, Chilika and the Coringa mangroves are strongholds.

State animal of West Bengal. Partially webbed feet and a double-layered coat make it a strong swimmer; it taps the water surface to mimic insects and lure fish. Downlisted from Endangered to Vulnerable in 2016. Almost entirely dependent on wetlands, so it is the natural flagship for wetland conservation.

West Bengal · Odisha · Andhra Pradesh · Assam · Bihar · Uttar Pradesh · Tamil Nadu

DugongDugong dugon

Mammal

Shallow seagrass meadows. The Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay hold the largest Indian population.

The only strictly herbivorous marine mammal and the sole surviving member of its family. State animal of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. India notified a Dugong Conservation Reserve in Palk Bay in 2022, the first of its kind in the country.

Tamil Nadu · Andaman & Nicobar Islands · Gujarat · Lakshadweep

Barasingha or Swamp DeerRucervus duvaucelii

Mammal

Two distinct forms: hard-ground barasingha on the maidans of Kanha, and wetland forms in the terai at Dudhwa and in Assam.

State animal of Madhya Pradesh. The name means twelve-tined, from the branched antlers. The Kanha hard-ground subspecies recovered from about 66 animals in 1970 to over 800, one of India's best documented recoveries, and has been reintroduced to Satpura and Bandhavgarh.

Madhya Pradesh · Uttar Pradesh · Assam · Uttarakhand · West Bengal

Four-horned Antelope or ChousinghaTetracerus quadricornis

MammalEndemic · Indian subcontinent

Open dry deciduous forest with hills and grass, always near water.

The only wild bovid in the world with four horns. The rear pair is longer; the front pair is sometimes reduced to a stub. Solitary and largely restricted to India.

Madhya Pradesh · Maharashtra · Rajasthan · Gujarat · Odisha · Andhra Pradesh · Telangana · Karnataka · Chhattisgarh · Jharkhand · Uttar Pradesh · Bihar

Nilgiri LangurSemnopithecus johnii

MammalEndemic · Western Ghats

Evergreen shola forest and moist deciduous forest, 300 to 2,000 m.

Glossy black with a golden-brown head ruff. Poached for the supposed medicinal value of its flesh and organs, a threat unusual among Indian primates.

Kerala · Tamil Nadu · Karnataka

Capped LangurTrachypithecus pileatus

Mammal

Tropical evergreen and moist deciduous forest north and east of the Brahmaputra.

Named for the dark cap of hair on the crown that contrasts sharply with a pale golden or orange belly.

Assam · Arunachal Pradesh · Meghalaya · Nagaland · Manipur · Tripura

Stump-tailed MacaqueMacaca arctoides

Mammal

Dense evergreen and semi-evergreen forest of the north east.

Also called the bear macaque for its shaggy coat and very short tail. The bright red face darkens with age and sun exposure.

Assam · Arunachal Pradesh · Meghalaya · Nagaland · Manipur · Mizoram · Tripura

Eastern Hoolock GibbonHoolock leuconedys

Mammal

Evergreen forest east of the Dibang river in Arunachal Pradesh, the only Indian range.

Separated from the western hoolock by the white brow patches, which are divided rather than joined, and by a pale genital tuft.

Arunachal Pradesh

Nilgiri MartenMartes gwatkinsii

MammalEndemic · Western Ghats

Shola forest, montane grassland and plantation edges above 1,000 m.

The only marten in peninsular India and the sole mustelid of the southern Western Ghats. Recognised by a bright yellow to orange throat patch. Very rarely seen and almost never studied in the wild.

Kerala · Tamil Nadu · Karnataka

Smooth-coated OtterLutrogale perspicillata

Mammal

Rivers, reservoirs, mangroves and estuaries. The Chambal, Cauvery, Ropar and Sundarbans hold good numbers.

The largest otter in South Asia and highly social, hunting in coordinated family groups that drive fish into the shallows.

Karnataka · Kerala · Tamil Nadu · Uttar Pradesh · Madhya Pradesh · Punjab · Odisha · West Bengal · Assam · Gujarat · Maharashtra

Asian Small-clawed OtterAonyx cinereus

Mammal

Hill streams, paddy fields and mangrove creeks in the Western Ghats and the north east.

The smallest otter in the world. Its claws are reduced to blunt spikes and the paws are highly dexterous, used to feel under stones for crabs and molluscs rather than to catch fish.

Kerala · Karnataka · Tamil Nadu · Assam · Arunachal Pradesh · Meghalaya · West Bengal · Sikkim

Himalayan SerowCapricornis thar

Mammal

Steep, forested and rocky slopes between 2,000 and 4,000 m in the Himalaya, and lower hills in the north east.

A goat-antelope, part goat and part antelope in appearance, with large mule-like ears. State animal of Mizoram. First recorded in Assam's Manas landscape and in Spiti at unusually high elevation in recent years.

Himachal Pradesh · Uttarakhand · Sikkim · Arunachal Pradesh · Jammu & Kashmir · West Bengal · Assam · Meghalaya · Mizoram · Nagaland

TakinBudorcas taxicolor

Mammal

Bamboo and rhododendron thickets and alpine meadow, 2,000 to 4,500 m, in the eastern Himalaya.

A heavy-set goat-antelope sometimes called the gnu goat. Secretes an oily substance over its coat that acts as a natural raincoat. The Mishmi takin occurs only in Arunachal Pradesh within India.

Arunachal Pradesh

Wild YakBos mutus

Mammal

Alpine tundra and cold desert steppe above 4,000 m, in eastern Ladakh and along the northern borders.

Far larger than the domestic yak. Dense two-layered fur and enlarged lungs and heart let it function at elevations where most large mammals cannot. Very few remain in India.

Ladakh · Sikkim · Arunachal Pradesh

Indo-Pacific Finless PorpoiseNeophocaena phocaenoides

Mammal

Shallow coastal waters, mangrove channels and lagoons, including Chilika and the Sundarbans.

Has no dorsal fin at all, only a low ridge of tubercles along the back. Frequently killed as bycatch in gillnets.

Odisha · West Bengal · Tamil Nadu · Gujarat · Maharashtra · Kerala

Sperm WhalePhyseter macrocephalus

Mammal

Deep offshore waters and submarine canyons of the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal.

The largest toothed predator on earth and the deepest-diving mammal, reaching beyond 2,000 m. Has the largest brain of any animal.

Kerala · Tamil Nadu · Andaman & Nicobar Islands · Lakshadweep · Maharashtra · Gujarat