Two Monal Species Spotted Together at Upper Siang District in Arunachal Pradesh

Itanagar:

Local wildlife enthusiasts have spotted two kinds of monal, a colour pheasant, together in the central Arunachal Pradesh's district of Upper Siang.

The Himalayan monal (Lophophorus impejanus) is widespread from Afghanistan to northeast India, whereas the rarer Sclater's monal (Lophophorus sclateri) is found in southern China and northern Myanmar.

"Sighting the two species of pheasants is a good indicator of the ecology of the area," said Dr. Tamuk, an orthopaedic physician at a private hospital in Assam's Dibrugarh.

A male Sclater's monal, which is classified as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, was also spotted near Komji Lipik at an elevation of 2,850 metres. A male and female Himalayan monal were spotted in Bomeh, 3,700 metres above sea level. 

Komji Lipik and Bomeh, both in the Upper Siang district, are on their way to Mount Eko Dumbing, which is mostly covered in snow for most of the year.

Aside from the monals, the expedition crew documented 80 different bird species. 

"Slater's monal and Himalayan monal were earlier sighted from Sela and Mayodia in Arunachal Pradesh, but this is the first photographic record of these birds in Upper Siang. We could not get clearer photographs as the birds were 1.5 km away and difficult to reach," Dr. Tamuk said.

Sela (western Arunachal Pradesh) and Mayodia (eastern Arunachal Pradesh) are both mountain passes at 4,170 and 2,655 metres above sea level, respectively.

"Sclater's monal is an endemic bird of the Eastern Himalaya, mostly recorded from the junction of India, Myanmar, Tibet and Yunnan province of China. It is a high-altitude bird and rarely comes down below 1,500 metres," said Daniel Mize, an associate professor of biology at Rajiv Gandhi University in Itanagar.

"This pheasant is restricted to Arunachal Pradesh on the Indian side. Its total population is only about 10,000 and is thus listed in the vulnerable category of threatened species and is Scheduled I species of Wildlife Protection Act, 1972," he added.

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