Red Panda Photography

Red Panda Photography at Singalila National Park

State : West Bengal  Area : 78.6 sq. km Altitude: 2,300 m Vegetation : Moist Temperate Forest

The Red panda is an elusive and mysterious mammal of Himalayan forest biodiversity. Wild Red panda live in the temperate deciduous forests of the Eastern Himalayas and South Western China , in countries like India, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, and China with bamboo undergrowth at altitudes of 2,400 to 3,900meters. Listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2008 due to the threat of global warming, deforestation & poaching, estimated at 10,000 individuals, with a decreasing population trend.

Red pandas feed mainly on bamboo. They also eat fruits, roots, succulent grasses, acorns, lichens, and even bird’s eggs, insects and small mammals.

In the wild, the red panda prefers a solitary and nocturnal lifestyle. It is mainly active during the twilight period and until the early hours of the morning. During daylight hours, they can be found resting or snoozing above the ground, lying dangled or curled up on tree branches depending on the weather.

Red pandas even have two layers of fur—a soft undercoat covered with coarse hairs—to insulate them from the mountain chill, and they use their long tail as a wraparound blanket.

Singalila Habitat

Spread over 79 sq Km, Singalila National Park in West Bengal is famous for its rich flora and fauna and home to endangered Red Panda.
Habitat: The park's cool, temperate forests with rich bamboo undergrowth are ideal for red pandas, which are solitary, arboreal, and mostly active at dawn/dusk.

History
The Singalila area, located in the Darjeeling district of West Bengal, was purchased by the British government from the Sikkim Durbar in 1882 and notified as a reserve forest under the Indian Forest Act 1878. It was declared a wildlife sanctuary in 1986 and a national park in 1992, following which tourists were allowed. Flanked by Nepal in the west and Sikkim to the north, the national park encompasses a part of the Singalila Ridge, an extension of Kanchenjunga, the third-highest mountain in the world. The ridge separates the mountain ranges of West Bengal from other Himalayan ranges to its west.

Avi Fauna : 

Singalila National Park is also famous for bird watching with more than 350 species of birds have been recorded here so far. This National park is also on the flyway of many migratory birds. Beautiful scarlet minivet, Fire-tailed myzornis, Satyr tragopan, Kalij pheasant, Blood pheasant, White-throated Redstart, Plain-backed Thrush, Rufous-vented tit, Fulvous parrotbills, Golden-breasted fulvetta – the list just goes on!

The 18 species of rhododendron recorded in Singalila National Park offer a feast not just for sunbirds but a whole assembly of avian fauna unique to the landscape. With more than 350 bird species recorded here, including some rare and difficult to spot, this popular destination in the Eastern Himalayas is highly sought by birdwatchers.