(IN) Captive breeding project for Kashmiri Hangul

May 9, 2008

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SRINAGAR: Kashmir's endangered red deer faces extinction without a captive

breeding programme that will start this summer in the scenic Himalayan

region, Indian wildlife officials said on Friday.

The antlered deer, known as the hangul, were once a major attraction in the

mountain-ringed forests of Dachigam near Srinagar.

" The population of hangul as per the latest census has come down from 228 to

160 in the past four years, " Jammu & Kashmir's wildlife warden Rashid Naqash

said.

The " cervus elaphus hanglu " is the only surviving sub-species of the red

deer family in the world, he said.

Some 5,000 of the animals, also known as the Kashmir stag, roamed the region

in the late 1940s. " It is a gradual decline but we are concerned and

worried, " Naqash said after the release of a new state wildlife census.

He said his department had begun long-term measures to try to save what he

called " the pride of Kashmir. "

The wildlife department was " all set to go for captive breeding within a

month or two " to save the deer, Naqash said. " By this, we will be able to

prevent the animals' extinction. "

The deer will be bred at the Shikargah conservation reserve in Tral, 40

kilometres (28 miles) south of Srinagar. " The main threat to hangul is from

predators, leopards in particular, " said Naqash, noting that excessive

livestock grazing, habitat degradation and forest fires also stress the

population.

A 10-year-old hunting ban and the insurgency have led to a boom in the

populations of animals such as leopards and bears.

Crackdowns on gun ownership at the start of the rebellion, and the risk of

being caught in the cross-fire between militants and troops, have largely

kept poachers out of the forests in the Himalayan region.

The latest census was conducted in Dachigam and adjoining areas during the

first week of March by state wildlife officials and experts from the

Wildlife Institute of India (WII).

The WII monitors the hangul, records group numbers as well as the age and

sex of the deer, and threats to fawning grounds.

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