Rare Himalayan Thar Spotted After 20 Years in Dalhousie

In a significant development for wildlife conservation, the elusive Himalayan serow has been recorded in Himachal Pradesh's Dalhousie forest division. Forest personnel captured the rare mountain ungulate on video during a routine patrol on August 2nd. This sighting marks the first authenticated visual evidence of the Near Threatened species in the area in nearly two decades.

The footage was obtained in the Dalhousie catchment forests, adjacent to the Kalatop-Khajjiar Wildlife Sanctuary. This documentation confirms the presence of the Himalayan serow, a species occasionally preyed upon by snow leopards, in the catchment forests, despite local accounts of its existence. The finding is particularly important as the serow was thought to have vanished from the Dhauladhar range's high-altitude forests.

This discovery underscores the rich biodiversity and ecological value of the Dalhousie catchment forests. Conservation efforts will now focus on continued camera trapping and surveys to assess the serow population and identify critical habitats for long-term protection. The Himalayan serow, listed as Near Threatened due to habitat loss and hunting, is a shy, forest-dwelling ungulate preferring steep, dense terrain, making confirmed sightings exceptionally rare.