Incredible India: India National Bird and Animal

Part of the On-going series on Indian Rides blog on Why You Should Travel To India Atleast Once In Your Lifetime.
This post is about the Incredible India’s National Bird and Animal.
National Bird:
Symbolic of many qualities – grace, joy, pride, beauty, love and mysticism, the Peacock. It is the sacred bird of the India, protected not only by a religious sentiment but also by parliamentary statute. Peacock has been designated the national bird of India in 1963. It is fully protected under the Indian wildlife Act, 1972.

It is widely found in the Indian sub-continent from the south and east of the Indus river, Jammu and Kashmir , east Assam, south Mizoram and the whole of the Indian Peninsula. The significance of peacock is attached to cultures of India, Far East, Ancient Persia, Greek and religions like Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism.

In Hinduism, the image of the god of thunder, rains and war, Indra, was depicted in the form of a peacock.

The figure of peacock is painted in various Islamic religious buildings.

In Christianity, the peacock was also known as the symbol of the ‘Resurrection of Christ”

In Buddhist philosophy, the peacock represents wisdom.

A reference in the Bible mentions a peacock owned by King Solomon .

The flesh of the bird was said to cure snake venom and many other maladies. Numerous uses in Ayurveda have been documented. Peafowl were said to keep an area free of snakes.

National Animal:

The Tiger as the National Animal of India symbolizes the power, strength, elegance, alertness, intelligence and endurance of the nation. It has been chosen as the National animal due to its grace,strength, agility and enormous power. Today, the tiger advances as a symbol of India’s conservation of itself its wildlife heritage.

Tiger was adopted as our National Animal in place of the Lion in a meeting of the Indian Board for Wildlife held in 1972. Indian tigers are famous all over the world and one of the main attractions for the lovers of wild life. They are the crowning glory and the light of the Indian wild life.

Spotting a tiger is every wildlife lover’s dream and could be the highlight of any wildlife safari.

The average lifespan of tiger is up to 26 years in captivity while about 15 years in wild. Tigers first reached India and northern Asia in the late Pleistocene (old era), reaching Japan and part of Russia. There were 100,000 tigers in India at the beginning of the 20th century. Today India has over half the world’s tiger population, found mainly among 102 national parks, 515 wildlife sanctuaries, 44 conservation reserves and 4 community reserves.

The global wild tiger population is estimated at anywhere between 3,062 and 3,948 individuals. The World Wide Fund for Nature estimates the tiger population at 3,200. However the exact number of wild tigers is unknown, as many estimates are outdated or come from educated guesses.

Please also, check our Wild Life Safari Tour and get closer for an experience.

Photo Credit:  – Indian Rides

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