Ladakh declares snow leopard as its state animal

New Delhi [India], September 3 (ANI): The Ladakh Union Territory administration on Thursday announced snow leopard as its state animal and black-necked crane as its state bird.
Speaking to ANI, Ladakh MP Jamyang Tsering Namgyal said, “Ladakh Union Territory administration has announced snow leopard as its state animal and black-necked crane as its state bird.”
According to Namgyal, the black-necked crane is found in eastern Ladakh’s high-altitude wetlands and marshes.
“It is mostly listed as Near Threatened on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list. These birds arrive in Ladakh in March for breeding and migrate by October end or early November,” he said.
Earlier, the Department of Information and Public Relations Leh tweeted and informed about the decisions.
“The Administration of Union Territory of Ladakh declares ‘Snow Leopard’ & ‘Black Necked Crane’ as the State Animal & State Bird respectively of UT Ladakh,” the department tweeted.
The decision comes after the Centre abrogated Article 370 which gave special status to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, and bifurcated the region into two territories- Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh on August 5, 2019. (ANI)