Geographically, West Bengal is an immensely diverse state. Snow-clad Himalayas in the north and the Bay of Bengal in the south have made the state an unique one. There is no other state in India which has both the Himalayas and sea together. The vegetation changes according to the variation of altitude and topography. Hence, the upper ridges above 2500 metres in the Himalayas in Darjeeling district in northern part of the state have Himalayan Moist Temperate forests of fur, juniper and oak trees. Slightly downwards there exists Montane Wet Temperate Evergreen forest of Rhododendron (R. arborium ), Magnolia, Blue Pine, Hemlock and Deodar. Further down, in the foothills of the Himalayas, in Duars, there are vast stretches of sal ( Shorea rubusta ) and grassy meadows. Coming down to the western part of West Bengal, deciduous forests of sal, mahua, amla, jamun etc. are found in the hilly tracts and plains of Purulia, Midnapore, Bankura and Birbhum. In the extreme south lies the mangrove forest belt of the Sunderbans which comprises Sundari, Golpata, Hental, Keora and many other mangrove species.

In these diverse geographical and floral conditions, West Bengal is rich from the angle of its biodiversity. The state harbours three of the four key or Flagship species of the country, namely tiger, one-horned rhinoceros and elephant. Among other big mammals there are the Indian gaur and leopard. Apart from these big animals, there are many lesser wildlife occurring in the forests of the state. The Himalayan and Duars forests of Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri and Coochbehar districts are hotspots of some endangered and endemic wildlife. Forests of western part of West Bengal also harbours a number of wild animals. In the extreme south, Sunderban's biodiversity is immense.

Some of the lesser animals are discussed:

RED PANDA (Ailurus fulgens) is found in the Singalila National Park which is a high altitude forest of Darjeeling district. The body of Red Panda is covered with soft chestnut coloured fur. The snout and inner ears are white with a prominent white cheek- patch. The furry tail is ringed with light and dark chestnut bands. It prefers mixed forests with dense undergrowth of bamboo and feeds on young bamboo leaves only. The animal has become endangered due to loss of habitat and partly poaching.

CHINESE PANGOLIN ( Manis pentadactyla ) is found in the forests of Duars in north Bengal. Though it is quite rare in India, in China and Southeast Asia it is commonly found. The body of the pangolin is covered with scales and when encountered, it makes a hissing sound and rolls the body like a tough ball. The colour of its body is whitish grey. It prefers grasslands and deciduous forests and feeds on termites and ants. The other pangolin which is more commonly found in West Bengal is the Indian Pangolin (M. crassicandata). It is larger than the Chinese pangolin and pinkish in colour. The Indian Pangolin is found in Duars as well as in the western part of the state, that is Midnapore, Purulia and Bankura.

Destruction of habitat is the primary threat for its conservation.

HIMALAYAN SALAMANDER or NEWT ( Tylototriton verrucosus) is an amphibian which is endemic to the Darjeeling district of West Bengal and Sikkim. It is the only salamader species that occurs in India. In India there is no other amphibian with a tail. No evolution of this creature has taken place since the Jurassic era, hence it is known as a ‘ Living Fossil' . With the tail it looks like a lizard. Himalayan Salamanders are found in and around perennial as well as seasonal pools in the hilly pockets of the Himalayas, between 1,260 and 2,220 metre altitudes. Different habitats where salamanders are found in Darjeeling district are, Namthing Pokhri, Sonada, Margaret's Hope tea garden in Kurseong and Mirik. It hibernates from November till March.

It is becoming endangered due to loss of its habitat.

West Bengal can boast of its lesser cats. An important and endangered member of lesser Faeldae family is Clouded Leopard (Neofelis nebulosa). It is named so because of the grey elliptical marks like clouds on its brownish coat. The tail of the animal is almost as long as its body. It is highly nocturnal and arboreal in nature and feeds on lesser animals and birds. Clouded Leopard is rarely found in the forests of Buxa Tiger Reserve and its adjacent forests up to an altitude of 3000 feet.

Prime threat of conservation of this animal is loss of habitat.

Leopard Cat (Prionailurus bengalensis) is distributed throughout West Bengal and one of the very small members of the cat family. The coat of this cat resembles the Common Leopard, but instead of rosettes it has black patches all over its yellowish brown coat. It is a highly adaptable animal and a good climber of trees. It is comfortable both on land and in water. It is found in the forests of north Bengal and western Bengal covering the districts of Midnapore, Purulia and Bankura. It has been recorded from the Sunderbans also.Poaching and loss of habitat are the threats towards its conservation.

FISHING CAT (Prionailurus viverrinus) is larger than the leopard cat or the jungle cat. It has earth-brown coat with black elongated spots which run in parallel lines.Legs of this cat are shorter in comparison to its body. It is more common in south Bengal than north. Fishing cats occur in the Sunderbans, wetlands of Howrah and Hoogly districts in south Bengal and wetlands in the forests of Duars. It is a wetland-dependent cat and feeds on fish, frogs, lesser mammals and birds.It has become vulnerable due to loss of habitat and fishing activities.

JUNGLE CAT (Felis chaus) is the most common wild cat. It has a greyish brown coat with black striped forelegs. Its ears have short and pointed tufts. Proportionately the tail of the jungle cat is short. It is found in the forests throughout West Bengal near human habitation. It is an efficient hunter and can hunt heavier animals than itself.. It feeds on domestic animals and birds and lesser wildlife.

It is not an endangered animal.

SMOOTH-COATED OTTER ( Lutrogale perspicillata) is the commonest otter of West Bengal as well as India. It has a chocolate-brown coat with paler underparts. It is distinguished from other otters by its ‘V' shaped nostrils. It is distributed from northern to southern Bengal. Smooth-coated otters are common in Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary, Jaldapara National Park and Buxa Tiger Reserve in northern West Bengal and wetlands of South and North 24-Parganas, Howrah, Hoogly and Nadia districts of southern West Bengal. It is a wetland-dependent animal and feeds mainly on fishes and mollusks.It is becoming endangered due to poaching and loss of habitat.

CLAWLESS OTTER (Amblonyx cinereus) is a rare otter of West Bengal. It is named so because it has a very short spiky claws. It also has ‘V' shaped nostrils and the coat is pale brown with a white face. Clawless otters occur in the wetlands inside the forests of north Bengal and in the Sunderbans in the south Bengal. Like other otters it also feeds on fishes.

It is endangered due to loss of habitats.

LARGE INDIAN CIVET (Viverra zibetha) is the commonest of all civets of West Bengal. Its coat is buff with distinct black spots on the flanks. The tail is thick, banded in black and white. The face of this civet resembles the face of a dog. There are white and black patches in the collar. It is found all over West Bengal near human habitation, even in the heart of Kolkata city. Though it feeds on fruits and berries, it causes damages to domestic livestock. Conservation problems of this animal is urbanization and its destructive habits which damages domestic birds like chicken,ducks and cage birds. SMALL INDIAN CIVET (Viverricula indica) is much smaller and less stocky than the large Indian civet. Its coat varies from yellowish brown to grey and lines of black spots run throughout its body. It has a distinctive horizontal black throat patch. The tail of the animal is ringed in black. It is less harmful to domestic animals than the large Indian civets. It is distributed all over West Bengal in the forested and cultivated areas close to human habitation. The causes of population depletion of the small Indian civet is road mishaps and destruction of habitat.

SMALL INDIAN MONGOOSE ( Herpestes javanicusi )

Among the three species of mongoose which are available in West Bengal, the small Indian is the most common one. It is a brown animal with golden speckles. The fur is short and silky. It is distributed from the north to the south of West Bengal.

MARSH MONGOOSE ( Herpestes palustris )

It is almost similar to the small Indian mongoose in appearance, except the pointed and blackish snout, slim and less thick tail. It is considered to be an endemic animal to the wetlands of eastern Kolkata.

GREY MONGOOSE ( Herpestes edwardsii )

It much bigger and robust than its other two counterparts. The coat is more grey than small Indian and marsh mongoose. It is well known for its ability to fight with snakes.

GANGETIC RIVER DOLPHIN (Platanista gangetica) is the only freshwater dolphin of the country. It has a distinctive long beak and colour of the upperparts of the body is grey and underparts are white. It has a flexible neck which helps to turn its neck in right angle. It feeds on fish of the rivers. Mostly Gangetic Dolphins are found in the river Ganga. From the ghats of the Hoolgy river in Kolkata and dockyard Haldia it can be seen throughout the day. Pollution and the siltation of the Ganga is the primary threat to their existence.

TREE SHREW ( Crocidura attenuata ) is medium sized grayish brown shrew with thick brown tail. It is found in the wooded areas of northern and western parts of West Bengal.

Primary threat to its conservation is loss of Habitats.

OLIVE RIDLEY TURTLE ( Lepidochelys olivacia ) is a sea turtle which comes to the coastal West Bengal and found from sandy beaches of the Sunderbans to the shorelines of the Midnapore district. It arrives to lay eggs in these coasts from November to early March. Soon after laying eggs, the females go back to sea and after six weeks hatchlings come out from the nests and begin the journey of life. The primary threats of their conservation is intensive trawling and fishing activities in sea.

RIVER TERRAPIN ( Batagur baska ) is a highly endangered species of freshwater turtles which is only found in southern part of West Bengal, specially in the Sunderbans.It has a hard and light pinkish shell and a black face. It has become endangered due to poaching for its meat.

HISPID HARE ( Caprolagus hispidus ) is a rare species of wild hare which occurs in the Duars belt of north Bengal. The bristles of this animal is coarse and the tail is much shorter than common Indian hare. The coat is brownish with white underparts. Very little is known about its habits. It has become highly endangered due to loss of habitats. Other than the animals discussed above, there are Jackals ( Canis aureus ) which are quite common. But Bengal Fox ( Vulpes bengalensis ) has been endangered and status of the animal is not studied in recent times. In the forests of the northern and western part of the state there are Indian porcupines ( Hystrix indica ), Malayan Giant Squirrels (Ratufa bicolor) in the forests of Duars in northern Bengal, Five-Stripped Squirrels( Funambulus pennantii) , distributed throughout the state, Ferret Badgers ( Melogale moschata ) in Duars, Wild Boar (Sus scrofa), distributed throughout the state, Sloth Bears (Melursus ursinus) in western part of West Bengal, Himalayan Black Bear (Ursus thibetanus) in higher regions of north Bengal, many species of primates, rodents and bats distributed all over the state.

     

Most of the animals discussed above are more or less endangered due to shrinkage of habitats and poaching. Usually these species are found in the wildlife sanctuaries and national parks. But many of those also occur in habitats which do not fall under any sanctuary and park. Due to intensive conservation, strict implementation of Wildlife Protection Act and Joint Forest Management policies practiced by the Forest Department, these animals are still surviving in wild in West Bengal, yet more research, studies and involvement of NGOs are required in order to maintain a healthy and steady population of the lesser known animals.