MUZAFFARABAD, June 17: Well-meaning questions about loss of wildlife in the Oct 8, 2005 earthquake-devastated areas are greeted with quizzical looks: how can you even think of such things when thousands of people perished in one of the country’s worst natural disasters?
And yet preliminary environmental surveys suggest that the calamity-hit areas saw widespread loss of wildlife, not receiving the media’s attention perhaps because it paled into insignificance against the backdrop of colossal loss of human life.
The need for an in-depth survey is underlined by a recent report of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, which says: “There is a need to asses the damages caused by the earthquake on the environment, such as the impact on agriculture and pasture land; trees and forests; wetlands, springs and irrigation system; water quality; ecosystems and biodiversity; protected areas and cultural heritage, etc.”
The NWFP wildlife conservator, Mumtaz Malik, says he agrees with the conclusion of the IUCN report. “It will take us a long time to find out exactly how many animals, especially the protected ones, actually died in the earthquake, but I am most concerned about the destruction of wildlife habitat by landslides that will continue to pose a threat to wildlife in the earthquake-ravaged areas,” he says.
He says that large numbers of pheasants, monkeys, black dear, musk dear and common leopards were killed in the earthquake.
Naeem Awan, assistant game warden at the Pattika trout hatchery and pheasantry in the Muzaffarabad district, says landslides caused considerable damage to the nine game reserves in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, including the 33,437-acre Machiara National park, home to Himalyan Ibex, western horned tragopan pheasants, monal pheasants, chakors and snow cocks.
“Many cages were destroyed by landslides at the recreational park in Pattika, enabling animals like monkeys and gorals to run away. Some pheasants thus set free were apparently eaten up by jackals that abound in the neighbouring forest,” he explains.
According to the annual progress report of the AJK wildlife department, compiled by Mr Awan, at least 25 birds and animals, including two Indian peafowl, were killed in the earthquake at the Pattika recreational park.
However, the good news is that the Dhodhial pheasantry, home to over 40 species of pheasants from all over the world, remained largely unharmed. Currently closed to the general public on account of the bird flu epidemic, the Dhodhial pheasantry is the largest in Asia. It recently acquired a two-year-old leopard (Panthera Pandus) which has received an appropriate name of Sunder (pretty).
