About Manatees:

• Manatees are large aquatic mammals, and sometimes they’re referred to as “sea cows.”
• They belong to a group of animals called Sirenia. This group also contains dugongs.
• Dugongs and manatees are very similar in appearance and behaviour, but there is one key difference, their tails.
  • Manatees have paddle-shaped tails, and dugongs have fluked tails, giving it a whale-like appearance.
• Habitat: Manatees inhabit shallow, marshy coastal areas and rivers.
• There are three species, or types, of manatee.
  • The Amazonian manatee lives in the Amazon River and in fresh water in South America. This species is only found in freshwater.
  • The African manatee lives in tropical West Africa.
  • The Caribbean manatee is found in Florida and the West Indies.
• Features:
  • Adult manatees may reach a length of 15 feet (4.6 metres) and a weight of 1,660 kilograms. 
  • Females tend to be larger and heavier than males.
  • Dull grey, blackish, or brown in colour, all three manatee species have stout tapered bodies ending in a flat rounded tailused for forward propulsion. 
  • The forelimbs are modified into flippers; there are no hind limbs.
  • In order to breathe, they must swim to the water’s surface for air. 
  • Lifespan: 50 to 60 years
  • They are herbivores. They spend up to eight hours a day grazing and can consume 4 to 9 percent of their body weight in aquatic vegetation daily.
  • Apart from mothers and their young, or males following a receptive female, manatees are generally solitary animals.
• Conservation Status: All three manatee species are listed as ‘Vulnerable’ by the IUCN’s Red List of Threatened Species.

About Thanthai Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary:

• This region is part of the corridor that connects the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve (STR) to the Male Mahadeshwara Hills Tiger Reserve and the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary and plays a crucial role in maintaining a viable tiger population.
• These forests occupy a prominent position in the Eastern Ghats as they merge with the Western Ghat at the Nilgiris.
• The vast landscape is home to diverse flora and fauna, making it an ideal habitat for various life forms.
• The landscape is interconnected to the Kollegal forests of Karnataka and the Nilgiris, creating one of the most diverse habitats in the region. 
• It is one of the tiger corridors identified by the National Tiger Conservation Authority.
• The region is also part of the Nilgiris Elephant Reserve and is home to a healthy population of large herbivores including elephants and the Indian Gaur.
• Also, the landscape is the catchment of the Palar River that drains into the Cauvery River and is a crucial water source for agricultural activities.
• It is also of cultural and historical significance to tribal and local communities who depend on these ecosystems for their livelihoods and traditional practices.

About the New Ramsar site:

• Of the five wetlands added to the Ramsar list, Magadi Kere Conservation Reserve, Ankasamudra Bird Conservation Reserve, and Aghanashini Estuary are in Karnataka and Karaivetti Bird Sanctuary and Longwood Shola Reserve Forest are in Tamil Nadu.
• Ankasamudra Bird Conservation Reserve
• It is a man-made Village Irrigation Tank built centuries back.
• It is an ecologically important wetland and rich in biodiversity.
• It supports more than 1% of the biogeographic population of Painted Stork and Black-headed Ibis.
• Aghanashini Estuary
• It is formed at the confluence of the Aghanashini River with the Arabian Sea.
• The brackish water of the Estuary provides diverse ecosystem services including flood and erosion risk mitigation, biodiversity conservation and livelihood support.
• The wetland helps in traditional fish farming in the estuarine rice fields (locally known as Gazni rice fields), bivalve shell collection and salt production.
• Magadi Kere Conservation Reserve
• It is a man-made wetland which was constructed to store rainwater for irrigation purposes.
• The wetland harbours two vulnerable species, namely the Common pochard and River tern and four near-threatened species, namely the Oriental Darter Black-headed Ibis Woolly-necked Stork and Painted Stork
• It is also one of the largest wintering grounds for the Bar-headed goose.
• Karaivetti Bird Sanctuary
• It is one of the largest inland wetlands of Tamil Nadu and is a significant source of groundwater recharge for the area.
• The Longwood Shola Reserve Forest
• It derives its name from the Tamil word, “Solai”, which means a ‘tropical rainforest’.
• The ‘Sholas’ are found in the upper reaches of the Nilgiris, Anamalais, Palni hills, Kalakadu, Mundanthurai and Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu.
• These forested wetlands serve as habitats for the globally endangered Black-chinned Nilgiri Laughing thrush, Nilgiri Blue Robin and vulnerable Nilgiri Wood-pigeon.

About Green Roofs:

• Green roofs, also known as ‘vegetated roofs’ or ‘living roofs’ — are ballasted roofs consisting of a waterproofing membrane, growing medium (soil), and vegetation (plants) overlying a traditional roof. 
• The layers of green roof systems must, like any roof, accommodate drainage, and stormwater management, and protect the building from the elements with a waterproof membrane.
• But they also must create a growing area and potentially provide support, irrigation, and root protection barriers while staying as light as possible.
• Two types of green roofs exist: intensive and extensive.
• Intensive green roofs are essentially elevated parks. They can sustain shrubs, trees, walkways and benches with their complex structural support, irrigation, drainage, and root protection layers. 
• Extensive green roofs are relatively light. They support hearty native ground cover that requires little maintenance. Extensive green roofs usually exist solely for their environmental benefits and don’t function as accessible rooftop gardens.
• Benefits:
• Green roofs last longer than conventional roofs, reduce energy costswith natural insulation, create peaceful retreats for people and animals, and absorb stormwater, potentially lessening the need for complex and expensive drainage systems.
• On a wider scale, green roofs improve air quality and help reduce the Urban Heat Island Effect, a condition in which city and suburban developments absorb and trap heat.

About Bluetongue disease (BT):

• It is a non-contagious, viral disease affecting domestic and wild ruminants (primarily sheep and including cattle, goats, buffalo, antelope, deer, elk and camels).
• It is transmitted by insects, particularly biting midges of the Culicoides species.
• The virus which causes BT is identified as a member of the Reoviridae family.
• Twenty-four (24) different serotypes have been identified and the ability of each strain to cause disease varies considerably.
• Symptoms: The severity of the disease varies among different species with symptoms being most severe in sheep resulting in deaths, weight loss and disruption in wool growth.
• Geographical distribution
• It has a significant global distribution in regions where the insect vector is present, including Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America and several islands in the tropics and subtropics.
• The virus is maintained in areas where the climate will allow biting midges to survive over winter.
• Transmission and spread
• The insect vector is the key to the transmission of the BT virus between animals.
• Vectors are infected with BT virus after ingesting blood from infected animals.
• Without the vector, the disease cannot spread from animal to animal.
• BT virus transmission can occur throughout the year, particularly during rainy periods.

About Black-crowned Night Heron:

• It is a medium-sized heron with a stocky build.
• Scientific Name: Nycticorax nycticorax
• Distribution: It is found across North America, as well as locally in Central America and the Caribbean.
• Habitat: Most colonies of black-crowned night herons are associated with large wetlands. They inhabit a variety of wetland habitats, such as swamps, streams, rivers, marshes, mud flats, and the edges of lakes.
• Features:
• It has a stocky body with a comparatively short neck and legs.
• It has a black crown, a grey body, and bright, red eyes. 
• Females and males look alike, but females are a little smaller.
• They are social at all times of the year, frequently associating with other species of herons.
• It is a migrating species.
• Diet: It is an opportunistic feeder. Its diet consists mainly of fish, though it is frequently rounded out by other items such as leeches, earthworms, and aquatic and terrestrial insects.
• Conservation Status:
• IUCN Red List: Least Concern

Key Facts about Herons:

• These are any of about 60 species of long-legged wading birds.
• These are classified in the family Ardeidae (order Ciconiiformes) and generally include several species usually called egrets.
• The Ardeidae also include the bitterns (subfamily Botaurinae).
• These are widely distributed over the world but are most common in the tropics.
• They usually feed while wading quietly in the shallow waters of pools, marshes, and swamps, catching frogs, fishes, and other aquatic animals.
• They nest in rough platforms of sticks constructed in bushes or trees near water; the nests usually are grouped in colonies called heronries.

About Sphaerotheca varshaabhu:

• It is a new frog species.
• Sphaerotheca Varshaabhu, meaning a genus of frog which welcomes rain, has been attributed to its behaviour of coming out of burrows during the early showers.
• The newly unearthed amphibian exhibits distinctive characteristics that set it apart from known frog species.
• It has adapted to its urban surroundings displaying behaviours and physical attributes that help it navigate challenges posed by urbanisation.
• The team utilised advanced genetic analysis, morphological studies and bioacoustics to confirm the distinctiveness of this newly discovered amphibian.

Key facts about amphibians

• They are extremely sensitive to changes in the environment and can give scientists valuable insight into how an ecosystem is functioning.
• Amphibians, like frogs, toads and salamanders, are known as indicator species.
• They are both predators and prey; many other animals are affected by them.

About New kangaroo lizard species:

• Researchers named the new, scaly reptiles after the Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered of Existence (EDGE) program through the Zoological Society of London.
• The new species Agasthyagama edgeor the northern kangaroo lizard belongs to the Agamidae family.
• A group of scientists discovered the new species from the southern Western Ghats at Kulamavu in Idukki.
• The species is the second one of the Agasthyagama genus after A. beddomii or Indian kangaroo lizard that has been previously reported from Sivagiri hills in Tamil Nadu.
• Features
• A reduced fifth toe makes these reptiles poor climbers and hence do not climb trees like other lizards.
• Instead, they are mostly terrestrial and found in areas with dense leaf litter cover.
• They feed on small insects, this variety of kangaroo lizard runs fast and hides within dry leaves to evade predators.
• It is known to have a maximum snout-vent length of 4.3 cm.

About Snow Leopard:

• It is a large, long-haired Asian cat, classified as either Panthera uncia or Uncia uncia in the family Felidae. 
• Geographic Range:
• Snow leopards live across a vast area in northern and central Asia’s high mountains, including the Himalayan region.
• In the Himalayas, they live in high alpine areas, mostly above the tree line and up to 18,000 feet in elevation.
• They are found in 12 countries, including China, Bhutan, Nepal, India, Pakistan, Russia, and Mongolia.
• In India, it is seen in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.
• Features:
• Measuring from nose to tail, the length of an average adult is 1000 to 1300 mm.
• They have thick grey and yellow-tinged fur, with solid spots on their head, neck, and lower limbs and rosettes over the rest of the body.
• They also have very long, thick tails that they use for balancing on rocks and wrapping around their bodies for protection from the cold. 
• They are solitary, and the only prolonged social contact occurs while females are raising their cubs.
• Conservation status:
• IUCN Red List: Vulnerable
• CITES: Appendix I 
• Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972: Schedule I

About Eravikulam National Park:

• Location: It is located along the Western Ghats in the Idukki district of Kerala.
• It was declared a National Park in 1978.
• The Park covers an area of 97 sq. km.
• The highest peak south of the Himalayas, the Anamudi (2695 metres), is situated on the southern side of the park.
• This is also the land of “Neelakurinji”, the flower that blooms once every twelve years.
• Climate: The park receives heavy showers during the southwest (June/July) and retreating (October/November) monsoons and is one of the wettest areas in the world.
• Vegetation: The major part of the park is covered with rolling grasslands, but several patches of shola forests are also found in the upper part of the valley. 
• Flora:
• Important flora includes Actinodaphne bourdilloni, Microtropis ramiflora, Pittosporum tetraspermium, Sysygium aronottianum, Chrysopogon Zelanieus, etc.
• The shola grasslands are exceptionally rich in balsams and orchids, including the long-thought-extinct variety Brachycorythis wightii.
• Fauna:
• The Nilgiri Tahr, Gaur, Sloth Bear, Nilgiri Langur, Tiger, Leopard, Giant Squirrel, and wild dog are the common species.
• Half of the world population of the endangered Nilgiri Tahr lives here.
• The Atlas moth, the largest of its kind in the world, is seen in this park.
• 140 species of birds, of which 10 are unique to the Western Ghats. More than 100 varieties of butterflies have been recorded here. 

Key Facts about Nilgiri Tahr:

• It is an endangered mountain ungulate endemic to the southern part of the Western Ghats. 
• Scientific Name: Nilgiritragus hylocrius
• Locally, the animal is called ‘Varayaadu’.
• They are known for their gravity-defying skills in climbing steep cliffs, earning them the nickname Mountain Monarch.
• It is the state animal of Tamil Nadu.
• Distribution:
• Their present distribution is limited to approximately 5% of the Western Ghatsin southern India (Kerala and Tamil Nadu).
• Eravikulam National Parkin Kerala has the highest density and largest surviving population of Nilgiri tahr. 
• Habitat: They inhabit the open montane grassland habitatsat elevations from 1200 to 2600 m of the South Western Ghats.
• Features:
• It has a stocky body with short, coarse furand a bristly mane. 
• Both sexes have curved horns, which are larger in the males, reaching up to 40 cm in males and 30 cm in females. 
• Adult males develop a light grey area or ’saddle’ on their backsand are hence called ‘saddlebacks’.
• It has a short grey-brown or dark coat.
• Conservation Status:
• IUCN Red List: Endangered
• Wildlife (Protection) Act of India, 1972: Schedule I

About Laughing gull:

• The bird is known for its unique laughter-like calls which resemble human laughter.
• Habitat: These are a coastal species and are only occasionally seen very far inland.
• Distribution: These birds are mainly found on the Atlantic coast of North America, the Caribbean, and northern South America.
• Diet: They are opportunistic carnivores and scavengers. They eat mainly fish, shellfish, crabs, molluscs, insects, bird eggs, and young birds.
• Features
  • These are medium-sized gulls with fairly long wings and long legs that impart a graceful look when they are flying or walking. They have stout, fairly long bills.
  • They take 2-3 years to gain adult plumage.
• Conservation Status
  • IUCN: Least Concern

What is an estuary?

• An estuary is an area where a freshwater river or stream meets the ocean.
• When freshwater and seawater combine, the water becomes brackish, or slightly salty.
• Types of Estuaries
  • Coastal plain estuaries: These are created when sea levels rise and fill in an existing river valley.
  • Tectonic estuaries: It is formed due to the shifting together and rifting apart of the Earth’s crust.
  • Bar-built estuaries: When a lagoon or bay is protected from the ocean by a sandbar or barrier island, it is called a bar-built estuary.
  • Fjord estuaries: These are a type of estuary created by glaciers. Fjord estuaries occur when glaciers carve out a deep, steep valley.

About Hermit Crab:

• Hermit crabs are small crustaceans that lack a shell and must “borrow” one from another animal. 
• They use empty snail shells (e.g., whelk or periwinkle) or other hollow objects as a shelter for partial containment and protection of the body.
• Habitat: Hermit crabs, worldwide in distribution, occur in sandy- or muddy-bottomed marine waters and occasionally on land and in trees. 
• Features:
  • They can grow up to 6 inches long.
  • There are two pairs of antennae and five pairs of legs.
  • They are opportunistic scavengers, feeding on anything they can find.
  • They have tough pincers but a soft body, which they coil up inside their borrowed shell, using their hooked tail to help them to grip on. 
  • They molt (shed their skin) and change shells as they grow.
  • Despite their name, hermit crabs are social creatures and can live together in pairs or groups.
  • They can live for up to 10 years.

About Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve (NBR):

• Location:
  • It is located in the Nilgiri Mountains of the Western Ghats.
  • It encompasses parts of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Karnataka.
• It was the first biosphere reserve in India, established in 1986.
• The total area of the reserve is 5,520 sq. km. It is the largest protected forest area in India.
• The Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary, Wyanaad Wildlife Sanctuary, Bandipur National Park, Nagarhole National Park, Mukurthi National Park, and Silent Valley are the protected areas present within this reserve.
• Vegetation: It harbours a wide spectrum of ecosystem types, such as tropical evergreen forests, Montane sholas and grasslands, semi-evergreen forests, moist deciduous forests, dry deciduous forests, and thorn forests. 
• Climate: The annual rainfall of the reserve ranges from 500 mm to 7000 mm, with temperatures ranging from 0°C during the winter to 41°C during the summer.
• Tribal Population: Tribal groups like the Todas, Kotas, Irullas, Kurumbas, Paniyas, Adiyans, Edanadan Chettis, Cholanaickens, Allar, Malayan, etc., are native to the reserve.
• It is India’s first biosphere reserve under UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere Programme.
• Flora:
  • About 3,300 species of flowering plants can be seen here. Of the 3,300 species, 132 are endemic to the NBR.
  • Some of the plants entirely restricted to the NBR include species of Adenoon, Calacanthus, Baeolepis, Frerea, Jarodina, Wagatea, Poeciloneuron, etc.
• Fauna:
  • It includes the largest known population of two endangered animal species, namely the Nilgiri Tahr and the Lion-tailed macaque and the largest South Indian population of elephant, tiger, gaur, sambar, and chital.

About Emperor Penguin:

• It is the largest of all the different kinds of penguin species.
• Scientific Name: Aptenodytes forsteri
• Distribution:
  • They are found throughout the Antarctic continent and sub-Antarctic islands.
  • In breeding months (April to November), emperor penguin colonies are found between 66° and 78° south latitude along the Antarctic coastline.
• Habitat: It is the most ice-adapted of any penguin species, inhabiting pack ice and surrounding marine areas. They spend their entire lives on Antarctic ice and in its waters.
• Features:
  • Adults are coloured black and white with areas of orange and yellow on the head, neck, and breast. 
  • They are approximately 120 cm tall and weigh around 40 kg.
  • They have wingspans ranging from 76 to 89 cm.
  • They gain and lose weight rapidly during breeding and feeding seasons. On average, females tend to weigh less than males.
  • They have two layers of feathers, a good reserve of fat, and proportionally smaller beaks and flippers than other penguins to prevent heat loss.
  • They also huddle close together in large groups to keep themselves and each other warm.
  • They are capable of diving to depths of approximately 550 metres (1,800 feet) in search of food; they are the world’s deepest-diving birds.
  • They breed in the winter. 
  • Lifespan: 15 to 20 years
• Conservation Status:
  • IUCN Red List: Near Threatened

About Wandering albatrosses:

• It is the world’s largest flying bird, with a wingspan reaching an incredible 3.5 metres.
• These birds are oceanic nomads: they spend most of their 60 years of life at sea and only come to land to breed.
• These are found almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere.
• Their playground is the vast Southern Ocean— the region between the latitude of 60 degrees south and the continent of Antarctica.
• Marion Island and Prince Edward Island together support about half of the entire world’s wandering albatross breeding population.
• Habitat: They breed on several subantarctic islands, which are characterised by peat soils, tussock grass, sedges, mosses, and shrubs.
• Conservation status
  • IUCN: Vulnerable
• Threats: The most likely cause is longline fishing, as they become hooked and will drown, as well as the ingestion of plastics, which kills both chicks and adults.

About Agulhas long-billed lark:

• It is a small passerine bird.
• It builds nests on the ground mainly in Renosterveld fynbos, a type of vegetation filled with grasses and wild spring flowers.
• It is a South African endemic species restricted to the Agulhas plains.
• These are generally “little brown birds” that are often difficult to identify.
• These larks prefer to nest in Renosterveld.
• Habitat: It appears to have adapted quite well to its modified habitats, like farmlands, although its distribution is patchy for unknown reasons.
• Distribution: Its restricted range is centred on the Agulhas arable farmlands, from east of the Hottentots-Holland mountain range to Mossel Bay.
• Conservation status
  • IUCN: Near-threatened 
• Threats: Land use changes or any freak occurrence could be detrimental to the whole species and to other species that depend on this vegetation.

What is a passerine bird?

• A passerine or passeriform is a member of the order Passeriformes, the largest order of birds, containing more than half of all species.
• They are also known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds.
• Passerines are all terrestrial, found on all continents except Antarctica.

About Great Indian Bustard:

• It is a bustard found on the Indian subcontinent. 
• Scientific Name: Ardeotis nigriceps
• It is among the heaviest of the flying birds.
• Distribution: The species has a current viable population of 100- 150 individuals in India and mainly survives in the Thar Desert of Rajasthan that holds about 100 individuals.
• Habitat: It inhabits dry grasslands and scrublands.
• Features:
  • It is a large bird with a horizontal body and long, bare legs, giving it an ostrich-like appearance. 
  • The sexes are roughly the same size, with the largest individuals weighing 15 kg (33 pounds). 
  • It can easily be distinguished by its black crown on the forehead, contrasting with the pale neck and head.
  • The body is brownish, and the wings are marked with black, brown, and grey.
  • They breed mostly during the monsoon season, when females lay a single egg on open ground. 
  • Lifespan: 12-15 years
  • These birds are opportunistic eaters. Their diet ranges widely depending on the seasonal availability of food. They feed on grass seeds, insects like grasshoppers and beetles, and sometimes even small rodents and reptiles.
• Conservation Status:
  • IUCN Red List: Critically Endangered
  • Wildlife (Protection)Act, 1972: Schedule 1
  • CITES: Appendix 1

About Bhitarkanika National Park:

• Location: It is located in Kendrapara district in the state of Odisha.
• The national park that is sprawling across 672 km² of mangrove swamp is situated on a delta formed by rivers, namely Brahmani, Baitarani, and Dhamra.
• Proximity to the Bay of Bengal makes the soil of the area enriched with salts; the vegetation and species of the sanctuary are those that are mainly found in the tropical and subtropical intertidal regions.
• It is home to a multitude of mud huts, creeks, backwaters, and estuaries.
• The area was designated as the Ramsar Site in 2002.
• Flora: 
  • It houses various species of mangrove spread across its forest region, marshy lands, creeks, etc. 
  • Thespia, casuarinas, sundari, and indigo bush grasses are some of the other varieties of flora that flourish in the area.
• Fauna:
  • Bhitarkanika has one of the largest populations of endangered saltwater crocodiles in India.
  • Gahirmatha Beach, which forms the boundary of the park in the east, is the largest colony of Olive Ridley Sea Turtles.
  • Other mammals include monkeys, jackals, common langurs, otter, sambar deer, jungle cats, fox, Mongoose, wolfs, fishing cats, hyenas, etc.