Context
Two white winged wood ducks, one of the most endangered bird species globally, were imported from a Czech zoo and housed in the Assam state zoo in Guwahati.
Key-points
- The white winged wood duck, one of the most endangered bird (duck) species, was once distributed across the South East Asian countries and northeast India.
- Now only 800 to 1,000 survive globally of which about 450 are believed to be in India, Bangladesh and Myanmar.
- In Assam, the birds are found in key protected areas like Nameri National Park, Dibru Saikhowa National Park and the recently upgraded Dihing Patkai National Park.
About
- The white winged wood duck has a black body, a white head that is thickly spotted with black, conspicuous white patches on the wings and red or orange eyes.
- White Winged Wood Ducks scientific name is Cairina scutulata.
- Its average length is about 81 cm.
- The sexes are more or less alike, the male having more gloss on the plumage, and being much larger and heavier.
- It mostly resides in dense tropical evergreen forest and is known to prefer inaccessible swampy areas formed by numerous rivers, streams, etc.
- The duck is generally found in pairs or in small parties of four to six, though parties of more than 10 are also recorded.
- It loves shade and spends most of the day in secluded jungle pools, occasionally perching on the trees during the day.
- Conservation Status: It is registered as endangered species on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) red list of threatened species and Appendix T in CITES.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
- IUCN is a membership union uniquely composed of both government and civil society organisations.
- It was created in 1948, it is the global authority on the status of the natural world and the measures needed to safeguard it.
- It is headquartered in Switzerland.
- The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of plant and animal species.
- It uses a set of quantitative criteria to evaluate the extinction risk of species. These criteria are relevant to most species and all regions of the world.
- The IUCN Red List Categories define the extinction risk of species assessed. Nine categories extend from NE (Not Evaluated) to EX (Extinct). Critically Endangered (CR), Endangered (EN) and Vulnerable (VU) species are considered to be threatened with extinction.
- It is recognized as the most authoritative guide to the status of biological diversity.
- It is also a key indicator for the SDGs and Aichi Targets.
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