Singalila National park

About the National Park-

• It is located on the Singalila Ridge at an altitude of more than 7000 feet above sea level, in the Darjeeling district of West Bengal. 
• It is bordered on the north by the state of Sikkim and on the west by the country of Nepal.
• The park is part of the Eastern Himalayas. The Singalila Ridge, which runs roughly North to South and separates Himalayan West Bengal from the other Eastern Himalayan ranges to the west of it. 
• The park was declared a wildlife sanctuary in 1986, and was made an Indian national park in 1992. 
• The region had long been used as the trekking route from Manebhanjang to Sandakphu (the highest peak of West Bengal) and Phalut. 
• Rammam river and Srikhola River flow through the park.
• Because of the park’s range in altitude, it includes three separate biomes, ranging from subalpine to subtropical, and three corresponding ecoregion:
  • The Eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests ecoregion, of the temperate coniferous forests biome
  • Eastern Himalayan broadleaf forests ecoregion, of the temperate broadleaf and mixed forests biome
  • Himalayan subtropical pine forests ecoregion, of the subtropical coniferous forest biome
• Thick bamboo, oak, magnolia and rhododendron forest between 2000 and 3600 m cover the Singalila Ridge. 
• Sandakphu is known as the “mountain of poisonous plants” due to the large concentration of Himalayan cobra lilies (Arisaema) which grow there..
• The park has a number of small mammals including the red panda, leopard cat, barking deer, yellow-throated marten, wild boar, pangolin and pika. Larger mammals include the Himalayan black bear, leopard, clouded leopard, serow and takin.
• The park is a birder’s delight with over 120 species recorded including many rare and exotic species like the Himalayan Vulture, scarlet minivet, kalij pheasant etc.
• The endangered Himalayan newt frequents the region and congregates around the lakes of Jore Pokhri and Sukhiapokhri and nearby lakes to reproduce.
• The number of red pandas has been declining in the wild, even in the Singalila and Neora Valley National Parks, the two protected areas where the endangered mammal is found in the wild in West Bengal. 
• Recent studies estimate that there are 38 of them in Singalila and 32 in Neora.

About Red pandas-

• Red panda, also called lesser panda, red cat-bear, or red bear-cat is reddish brown, long-tailed, raccoon-like mammal, about the size of a large domestic cat.
• Its scientific Name is Ailurus fulgens.
• Red pandas are made up of two subspecies — the Himalayan red panda (Ailurus fulgens fulgens), which resides in the mountains of northern India, Tibet, Bhutan, and Nepal, and the Chinese red panda (A. fulgens styani), which lives in China’s Sichuan and Yunnan provinces. 
• According to a study by the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) India is home to both the (sub) species and the Siang river in Arunachal Pradesh splits the two phylogenetic species.
• It is also the state animal of Sikkim. 
• It subsists mainly on bamboo and other vegetation, fruits, and insects. 
• Once classified as a relative of the giant panda, it is now usually classified as the sole member of the family Ailuridae.
• Its feet have hairy soles, and the claws are semi-retractile and has an extra thumb for feeding and climbing.
• It is nocturnal and may live alone, in pairs, or in family groups. 
• Categorised as an endangered species as per IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, red pandas are shy, solitary and arboreal animals and considered an indicator species for ecological change. 
• They are also one of the most iconic species in terms of their importance to global conservation.