SPECIES EXTINCTION

July 28, 2019

According to the data tabled in the Lok Sabha by the Ministry of Environment, 4 species of fauna and 18 species of flora have gone extinct in India in the past few centuries.

Fauna extinction in India: 

  • Among mammals, the following are considered extinct in India: 
    • Cheetah (Acionyx jubatus), 

    • Sumatran rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus sumatrensisi), 

    • Pink-headed duck (Rhodonessa caryophyllaceai) and 

    • Himalayan quail (Ophrysia supercililios). 



  • The four animals can be found in other parts of the world. 

  • Factors like “competition, predation, natural selection, and human induced factors like hunting, habitat degradation” are some of the important reasons that have led to these extinctions. 

  • India has about 6.49% of all the fauna species in the world. 

Flora extinction in India: 

  • 18 species of plants — 4 non-flowering and 14 flowering — have gone extinct. 

  • The notable among them are Lastreopsis wattii , a fern in Manipur discovered by George Watt in 1882 and three species from the genus Ophiorrhiza (Ophiorrhiza brunonis , Ophiorrhiza caudate and Ophiorrhiza radican ), all discovered from peninsular India. 

  • Corypha taliera Roxb, a palm species discovered in Myanmar and the Bengal region by William Roxburgh is also extinct. 

  • India is home to 11.5% of all flora in the world. 

Source : The Hindu