INDIA AS A MEGA DIVERSITY NATION

THE GREAT VARIETY OF ECOLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILING IN INDIA ALLOWS IT TO SUPPORT AN ENORMOUS DIVERSITY OF WILD LIFE, INCLUDING, HOT DESERT FORMS, LIKE THE WILD ASS AND THE COLD DESERT FORMS, LIKE THE TIBETAN ANTELOPE; ANIMALS OF OPEN SCRUBLAND, LIKE THE RHINOCEROS; ANIMALS OF THE DECIDUOUS FORESTS LIKE THE WILD GAUR AND OF THE TROPICAL RAIN FORESTS, LIKE THE LION-TAILED MACAQUE.


THE UNIQUE BIO-GEOGRAPHIC POSITION OF THE INDIAN SUBCONTINENT IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE GREATER DIVERSITY IN INDIA'S WILDLIFE. INDIA LIES AT THE CONFLUENCE OF ETHIOPIAN, PALAEARCTIC AND INDO- MALAYAN FAUNAS AND POSSESS A NUMBER OF INTERESTING COMPONENTS FROM EACH OF THESE REALMS AS WELL AS SEVERAL INDIGENOUS VARIETIES. THE ETHIOPIAN ELEMENT IS REPRESENTED BY THE CHINKARA, THE HYENA AND THE RATEL; THE PALAEARCTIC BY THE LYNX, WOLF, HANGUL; THE CHINESE, BY RED PANDA AND MUSK DEER AND THE INDO-MALAYAN BY THE HOOLOCK GIBBON, THE ELEPHANT, THE GOAT ANTELOPE AND THE MOUSE DEER. THE ENDEMIC VARIETIES INCLUDE MELURSUS(SLOTH BEAR), ANTELOPE (BLACK BUCK), TETRACERUS (FOUR-HORNED ANTELOPE) AND BOSELAPHUS (NILGAI).


THE PRESENCE OR ABSENCE OF AN ANIMAL OR PLANT IN A CERTAIN REGION IS DETERMINED  BY ECOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL FACTORS. POPULATIONS OF ORGANISMS CAN BE ESTABLISHED IN A REGION ONLY IT THE RANGE OF CONDITIONS PREVAILING THERE. ANIMALS AND PLANTS THEN ARE LIVING INDICATORS OF THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THEIR ENVIRONMENT. THEIR RANGES MARK THE PLACES IN WHICH ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS ARE SIMILAR. AT THE SAME TIME, THE EVOLUTION  AND DISTRIBUTION OF SPECIES CASTS LIGHT UPON THE GEOLOGICAL EVOLUTION OF VARIOUS PARTS OF THE EARTH, AND UPON THE COURSE OF GLOBAL CHANGES IN CLIMATE AND VEGETATION.