eTA lON Alfred, JR.B., Da' , A.K. and Sanyal, A.K. 2006. Animals of India: Mammals Surv. India, Kolkat : 1-236

NVI5-Zool.

Publish d : February, 2006

ISBN 8 -8 71 094-0

,© Govt. of India, 2006

publication may e reproduced, stored . or . d, in any form ,o r by any me,on mec a cal, IPhotocop n , r ording or otherw se witho permissIon 'o f the publisher.

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Publish d at th ENV S entre by the Director, Zoological Survey of India, M-Block, ew Alipor olkata '700 053 and funded by the Ministry of Env' onment & orest, Govt. of dia. Printed at Cal,c ut a pro Graphics, Kol ata~700 006. I

The perissodactyls are medium to large sized mammals 'whose I~ are elongate and foot provided with odd number of toes, each sheathed in comified hOOV,e 5. The hooves which encase the toes appear like a single hoof cleft in two. The main axis of the fool passes between third and the fourth toes and the third one is the longest on a I four feet. These odd toed hoofed mammals include the families Equidae (hones, as&es and zebras), Tapiridae (tapirs) and Rhinocerotidae (rhinoceros) comprising of 18 species throu,g hout the world. Indian perrisodactyls ,are represented by tiwe spedes under two

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As mentioned earlier, this family includes horses, asses and zebras. In equids only the third toe of eac foot is functional and encased in a large solid hoof. The wild ho£SeS and zebras do ot occur in India. Only two species of wild asses are found in this country.

_an, Equus onager Also called the Indian WIld Ass; slightly larger than domestic ass, height at shoulder I.I-1.2m; rufescent grey to fawn or pale chestnut above and w -te below; mane erect and dark brown and continued as a dark bOWD stripe ,a long the back to the r()()t of the ' ~_ en crusted .,_. b arren t saIt tail·, inb'ab·'t s fIa, arid land having flat grass covered expanses,' known as 'bets'; a graze ,a nd feeds mainly on grasses of the bets; diurnal in habit; also raids wheat and millet fields during rught.

Kulan, Equus onager

Dismoution : lnd,ia : Rann of Kutchch in Gujarat. Elsewhere: Russia, Ukraine, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Turkmenia, U,z bekistan.

Conservation status: IUCN : VU; IWPA ': Sch. I, Part I; RDB : EN; CITES: Appendix I.

g, quus kiang Also known as the nbetan WIld Ass; larger in size and, darker and redder in colour than the IndianWtld Ass; height at sho der 1.35-1.40 ; its dorsal sbipenarrower

extending from the neck till the base of tail; hooves large, like those of horse; found in the high cold plateau hill and valley; diurnal in bab·t; ,grazes on grass and sedge,.

Distribution : India : Ladakh in Jammu & Kas mir and in Sikkim usually at high elevation. Elsewhere ,: China, Nepal and TIbet,. Conservation status: IWPA : Sch. I, Part I; ROB : EN; CITES : Appendix II; CAMP: VU (Nationally), DO (Globally). Klang, .Equus IrIang

Contrast to equids, rhinos ha'v e three toes on forefeet and three on hind feet ,a lthough only thethint toe of the foot is functional. Their heavy build, short stumpy., thick skin thinly ,clad with hair ,o r naked and one or two homs on the tip ,o f n~ make them distinctive.. Only five species of Rhinoceros survive now throughout the globe. Out of these, only one is found in India.

, The largest of aU living species of Rhinoceros of the globe and ,p erhaps 't he largest land IIUlIIUilal next to the elephant with 3-3.15 m in head and body length and height at shoulder 1.7-1.85m; one-homed as its Pop'War name implies and hide hairless; colour of the body blacldsh grey, headboat-shaped, skin divided into large shields by heavyfoldl before ,a nd behind shoulders, in front of thighs ,a nd on buttocks, fold in ,front of shoulder not continued right ,a cross the back; skin studded 'w ith ,r on'vex tubercles ,o n shoulders, thighs and buHocki; inhabits grass jungle and prefers swampy ground; both diurnal and noctumal; a grazer, feeds on grass.

Dis,tnlnltimr : .IndiR : Assam and West Bengal; introduced in Dudhwa National Park, Uttar Pradesh. Elsewltm : Cambodia, Indonesia, 'Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand and Vietnam.

Conseroation status : lUeN : EN; IWPA : Sch. I, Part I; RDB : EN; IC~ : Appendix ,I; CAMP : EN (NationaUy), DO (Globally).

Greeter O:ne-homed Ahlnoceroa. "b'noc.tOe unlcornl.