The high altitude wildlife areas of western Arunachal Pradesh

Conservation status
its very dark coloration and habitat characteristics suggested that it was the Moupin
pika Ochotona thibetana.
Hunting
At least 18 of the 34 species we recorded were reported to be actively hunted, mostly
for local meat consumption (Table 1). A majority of the people of the dominant
Monpa tribe do not eat squirrels, red panda Ailurus fulgens, other carnivores, or
primates, although macaques are frequently killed to prevent crop damage (Appendix
2). Wild pigs Sus scrofa are killed for meat, and also to prevent crop damage. Snow
leopard Uncia uncia and dhole Cuon alpinus are killed in retaliation against livestock
depredation. Herders in the entire region reported frequent losses of livestock to the
dhole. In the Lower Nyamjang Chu Valley, the villagers contribute and pay cash
rewards to hunters for killing wild predators. In the Mago Chu Valley and higher
West Kameng, people reported livestock losses to the dhole in winter and to the snow
leopard in summer, when livestock are taken to the higher altitudes. Carnivore skins
were reported to be traded locally. Wildlife trophies are often given away as presents
to visiting dignitaries (politicians and bureaucrats), or bartered with the soldiers of the
Indian army. Artifacts made from barking deer Muntiacus muntjak antlers and serow
N. sumatraensis horns are being sold in Government-run handicrafts emporia in the
district headquarters of both Tawang and West Kameng.
Bears Ursus thibetanus and musk deer Moschus chrysogaster are actively
hunted for gall bladders and musk pods respectively, apparently catering to the larger
illegal market in wildlife products. The trade in wildlife products has local links with
middle-men from Assam, as well as from Bhutan and China, though we were unable
to assess the magnitude of this trade. We recorded two instances where hunters we
interviewed had sold a common leopard Panthera pardus skin to traders in China, and
another hunter reported selling bear gall bladder to traders in Bhutan. Most ungulate
We recorded widespread hunting of wildlife, including the endangered snow leopard Uncia uncia (left),
musk deer Moschus chrysogaster (centre, above), and serow Nemorhaedus sumatraensis (centre, below).
Hunters use arrows (right) tipped with poison from Aconitum sp., an alpine herb.
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