Western Ghats - Fauna

Fauna

The Western Ghats are home to thousands of animal species including at least 325 globally threatened species. Many are endemic species, especially in the amphibian and reptilian classes. Thirty two threatened species of mammals live in the Western Ghats. Of the 16 endemic mammals, 13 are threatened

• Mammals- There are at least 139 mammal species. A critically endangered mammal of the Western Ghats is the nocturnal Malabar large-spotted civet. The arboreal Lion-tailed macaque is endangered. Only 2500 of this species are remaining. The largest population of Lion tailed macacque is in Silent Valley National Park. Kudremukh National Park also protects a viable population.

These hill ranges serve as important wildlife corridors, allowing seasonal migration of endangered Asian elephants. The Nilgiri Bio-sphere is home to the largest population of Asian Elephants and forms an important Project Elephant and Project Tiger reserve. Brahmagiri and Pushpagiri wildlife sanctuaries are important elephant habitats. Karnataka's Ghat areas hold over six thousand elephants (as of 2004) and ten percent of India's critically endangered tiger population.

The largest population of India's tigers outside the Sundarbans is in the unbroken forests bordering Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The largest numbers and herds of vulnerable gaur are found here with the Bandipur National Park and Nagarhole together holding over five thousand Gaur. To the west the forests of Kodagu hold sizeable populations of the endangered Nilgiri langur.

Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary and project tiger reserve in Chikmagalur has large populations of Indian muntjac. Many Asian elephant, gaur, sambar, vulnerable sloth bears, leopard, tiger and wild boars dwell in the forests of Karnataka.

Bannerghatta National Park and Annekal reserve forest is an important elephant corridor connecting the forests of Tamil Nadu with those of Karnataka. Dandeli and Anshi national parks in Uttara Kannada district are home to the black panther and normal variety of leopards and significant populations of Great Indian Hornbill. Bhimgad in Belgaum district is a proposed wildlife sanctuary and is home to the endemic critically endangered Wroughton's freetailed bat. the Krishnapur caves close by are one of only three places in the country where the little-known Theobald's tomb bat is found. Large Lesser False Vampire bats are found in the Talevadi caves.

• Reptiles- The snake family Uropeltidae of the reptile class is almost entirely restricted to this region.
• Amphibians- The amphibians of the Western Ghats are diverse and unique, with more than 80% of the 179 amphibian species being endemic to the region. Most of the endemic species have their distribution in the rainforests of these mountains. The endangered Purple frog was discovered in 2003 to be a living fossil. This species of frog is most closely related to species found in the Seychelles. Four new species of Anurans belonging to the genus Rhacophorus, Polypedates, Philautus and Bufo have been described from the Western Ghats.
• Fish – 102 species of fish are listed for the Western Ghats water bodies. Western Ghats streams are home to several brilliantly coloured ornamental fishes like Red line torpedo barb, Red-tailed barb, Osteobrama bakeri, Günther's catfish and freshwater puffer fish Tetraodon travancoricus, Carinotetraodon imitator and marine forms like Chelonodon patoca (Buchanan-Hamilton, 1822); mahseers such as Malabar mahseer.
• Birds- There are at least 508 bird species. Most of Karnataka's five hundred species of birds are from the Western Ghats region. Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary is located at the northern end of the Malabar ranges and the southern tip of the Sahyadri ranges and bird species from both ranges can be seen here.

There are at least 16 species of birds endemic to the western Ghats including the endangered Rufous-breasted Laughingthrush, the vulnerable Nilgiri Wood-pigeon, White-bellied Shortwing and Broad-tailed Grassbird, the near threatened, Grey-breasted Laughingthrush, Black-and-rufous Flycatcher, Nilgiri Flycatcher, and Nilgiri Pipit and the least concern Malabar Parakeet, Malabar Grey Hornbill, White-bellied Treepie, Grey-headed Bulbul, Rufous Babbler, Wynaad Laughingthrush, White-bellied Blue-flycatchers and the Crimson-backed Sunbird.

• Great Indian Hornbill

• Great Hornbill from Valparai

• Malabar Barbet

• Golden-Backed Woodpecker

• Blue-winged Parakeet

• Crested Hawk Eagle

• Peacock

• Crested Serpent Eagle

• Green Bee Eater

• Longtailed Shrike

• Magpie Robin

• Nilgiri Pipit

• Red Vented Bulbul

• Red Whiskered Bulbul

• Insects- There are roughly 6,000 insect species from Kerala alone. Of 334 butterfly species recorded from the Western Ghats, 316 species have been reported from the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve.
• Molluscs- Seasonal rainfall patterns of the Western Ghats necessitate a period of dormancy for its land snails, resulting in their high abundance and diversity including at least 258 species of gastropods from 57 genera and 24 families.

• Lion-tailed macaque

• Tiger at Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary

• The endemic land snail Indrella ampulla

• Phallus indusiatus fungus found in Sahyadri range

• Creatures in Kundadri Hills]]