CURRENT AFFAIRS

Detailed explanation-1: -A snow leopard. Ladakh on Wednesday adopted two endangered species, snow leopard and black-necked crane, as State animal and State bird, two years after it was carved out as a separate Union Territory (UT) from the erstwhile State of J&K.

Detailed explanation-2: -Snow leopard (schan in Ladakhi) is the jewel of Ladakh. It is estimated that there are more than 200 snow leopards habiting in the Hemis National Park.

Detailed explanation-3: -What are the state birds and animals of Ladakh? The state animals and birds will be the snow leopard (Panther unica) and black-necked crane (Grus nicricollis), respectively. Snow leopards and black-necked cranes are two endangered species.

Detailed explanation-4: -The Ladakh region is a high-altitude cold desert, where the snow leopard survives on a prey base of bharal (blue sheep), ibex and marmots.

Detailed explanation-5: -Amongst the species of animals found in Ladakh, the ibex is a major attraction. Other than this, Ladakh is amongst few places in India for snow leopard sighting. Bharal (blue sheep), Tibetan urial sheep (shapo), marmot, Tibetan argali sheep (nyan), and Tibetan wild ass are some of the commonly seen species in Ladakh.