Why in news?
- The Royal Bengal Tiger was captured by trap cameras of a team of Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) which is conducting a study in the sanctuary in collaboration with the Sikkim Forest department.
- It was under a larger project called "Conservation and Use of Five Wetlands in three Himalayan States to secure Habitats of Birds Migrating within the Central Asian Flyway (CAF)."
- This project was sanctioned under the National Mission on Himalayan Studies (NMHS), aims to protect and conserve wetland sites in Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, and Sikkim.
About Pangalokha Wildlife Sanctuary:
- It is located in East Sikkim district and connected to the forests of Bhutan and Neora Valley National Park in West Bengal.
- The Pangolakha Range, extending below the Chola Range, separates Sikkim from Bhutan.
- Vegetation: The Sanctuary has typical alpine-temperate-subtropical vegetation with high altitude lakes around Jelep La.
- Flora: Rhododendron, Silver Fir, Juniper forest and associated ground flora, moss-filled oak forests with dense bamboo thickets etc.
- Fauna: It is home to a diverse range of charismatic species, including red pandas, snow leopards, Himalayan musk deer, Himalayan goral, and Himalayan black bears.
