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What is the State Animal of...? Animal Emblems of India

 
Janhvi Johorey
By Janhvi Johorey, Psychologist specialized in animal therapy. February 21, 2017
What is the State Animal of...? Animal Emblems of India

The Lion Capital of Ashoka at the Buddhist city of Sarnath was adopted as the National Emblem of India on 26th January 1950. It is adorned with the immortal lines Satyameva Jayate - "truth alone triumphs" in Devanagari - excerpted from the Mundaka Upanishads of the Hindu Vedas. Animals preside over the emblem of India, as the capital shows four lions standing with their backs to a pillar.

However, India also has a national animal; not a statue, but a real species in the flesh. It is the Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris tigris), the largest carnivore in the Indian subcontinent. Project Tiger was launched in April 1973 to protect it, as it is an endangered species. There is also a national marine animal: the South Asian river dolphin (Platanista gangetica) that represents the holy river Ganga, the longest one in India. The national bird of the country is the Indian or blue peafowl (Pavo cristatus), whose hunting is banned.

However, each Indian state has its own state animal, much like in the United States. Are you wondering what is the state animal of...? Stay with us at AnimalWised and discover all about the animal emblems of India.

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What are the state mammals of India?

There are 29 states in India, and each of them has its own state animal or emblem. Learn more about the different state mammals in the table below:

  • Andhra Pradesh: Blackbuck, Indian antelope or kala hiran (Antilope cervicapra)
  • Arunachal Pradesh: Gayal (Bos frontalis)
  • Assam: Indian rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis)
  • Bihar: Gaur or Indian bison (Bos gaurus)
  • Chhattisgarh: Wild water buffalo (Bubalis arnee)
  • Goa: Gaur or Indian bison (Bos gaurus)
  • Gujarat: Asiatic lion (Panthera leo persica)
  • Haryana: Blackbuck, Indian antelope or kala hiran (Antilope cervicapra)
  • Himachal Pradesh: Snow leopard (Panthera uncia)
  • Jammu and Kashmir: Kashmir stag (Cervus elaphus hanglu)
  • Jharkhand: Indian elephant (Elephas maximus indicus)
  • Karnataka: Indian elephant (Elephas maximus indicus)
  • Kerala: Indian elephant (Elephas maximus indicus)
  • Madhya Pradesh: Barasingha or swamp deer (Rucervus duvaucelii)
  • Maharashtra: Indian giant squirrel (Ratufa indica)
  • Manipur: Eld's or brow-antlered deer (Panolia eldii)
  • Meghalaya: Clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa)
  • Mizoram: Sumatran serow (Capricornis sumatraensis)
  • Nagaland: Gaur or Indian bison (Bos gaurus)
  • Odisha: Sambar deer (Rusa unicolor)
  • Punjab: Blackbuck, Indian antelope or kala hiran (Antilope cervicapra)
  • Rajasthan: Camel (Camelus dromedarius)
  • Sikkim: Red panda (Ailurus fulgens)
  • Tamil Nadu: Nilgiri tahr or ibex (Nilgiritragus hylocrius)
  • Telangana: Chital, spotted or axis deer (Axis axis)
  • Tripura: Phayre’s leaf monkey or langur (Trachypithecus phayrei)
  • Uttar Pradesh: Barasingha or swamp deer (Rucervus duvaucelii)
  • Uttarakhand: White-bellied musk deer (Moschus leucogaster)
  • West Bengal: Fishing cat (Prionailurus viverrinus)

In the picture below you can see a fishing cat.

What is the State Animal of...? Animal Emblems of India - What are the state mammals of India?

What are the state birds of India?

  • Andhra Pradesh: Indian Roller (Coracias benghalensis)
  • Arunachal Pradesh: Great hornbill (Buceros bicornis)
  • Assam: White-winged duck (Asarcornis scutulata)
  • Bihar: Indian Roller (Coracias benghalensis)
  • Chattisgarh: Bastar hill myna (Gracula religiosa peninsularis)
  • Goa: Black-crested bulbul (Pycnonotus flaviventris)
  • Gujarat: Greater flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus)
  • Haryana: Black francolin (Francolinus francolinus)
  • Himachal Pradesh: Western trapogan (Tragopan melanocephalus)
  • Jammu and Kashmir: Black-necked crane (Grus nigricollis)
  • Jharkhand: Asian koel (Eudynamys scolopaceus)
  • Karnataka: Indian Roller (Coracias benghalensis)
  • Kerala: Great Hornbill (Buceros bicornis)
  • Madhya Pradesh: Indian paradise flycatcher (Terpsiphone paradisi)
  • Maharashtra: Yellow-footed green pigeon (Treron phoenicoptera)
  • Manipur: Mrs. Hume's pheasant (Syrmaticus humiae)
  • Meghalaya: Hill myna (Gracula religiosa)
  • Mizoram: Mrs. Hume's Pheasant (Syrmaticus humiae)
  • Nagaland: Blyth's tragopan (Tragopan blythii)
  • Orissa: Indian Roller (Coracias benghalensis)
  • Punjab: Northern goshawk (Accipiter gentilis)
  • Rajasthan: Indian bustard (Ardeotis nigriceps)
  • Sikkim: Blood pheasant (Ithaginis cruentus)
  • Tamil Nadu: Common emerald dove (Chalcophaps indica)
  • Tripura: Green imperial pigeon (Ducula aenea)
  • Uttarakhand: Himalayan monal (Lophophorus impejanus)
  • Uttar Pradesh: Sarus crane (Grus antigone)
  • West Bengal: White-throated kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis)

In the picture below you can see an Indian roller.

What is the State Animal of...? Animal Emblems of India - What are the state birds of India?

Unity in diversity: the pride of India

Andhra Pradesh, the southernmost state, has the Indian Roller as the state bird. The largest populations of this bird are found in this country, hence their name: several states have chosen it as the state bird. The state mammal is the Bbackbuck. In Assam, the white-winged wood duck and the Indian rhinoceros are the state bird and mammal respectively. In Arunachal Pradesh, the state animal is the gayal or mithun and the bird is the great hornbill.

Bihar has the gaur as the state animal, but it seems to be considering the Ganges South Asian river dolphin and the ox. The state bird is the Indian roller. Chattisgarh, the middlemost state has the hill myna as the bird and the wild water buffalo as the animal.

Goa's state bird is the black-crested bulbul, while the state animal is the gaur. The Indian bison or gaur is the largest species of wild cattle in the world, even bigger than the endangered wild water buffalo. Here you can learn more about the differences between buffaloes, water buffaloes and bison. Gujarat has the greater flamingo as the state bird and the Asiatic lion as the state mammal.

The blackbuck is Haryana's state animal too, while its state bird is the black francolin. The snow leopard is Himachal Pradesh's state animal. The Western tragopan is the state bird.

In Jammu and Kashmir, the hilly state, the hangul or Kashmir stag is the state mammal and the black-necked crane is the bird. The Indian elephant, a subspecies of the Asian elephant, is the state animal of Jharkhand, Karnataka, and Kerala. The koel is the state bird of Jharkhand while the Indian roller is Karnataka's state bird. The great hornbill is Kerala's state bird.

The yellow-footed green pigeon may be replaced by the forest owlet in Maharashtra as the state bird. Madhya Pradesh has the barasingha as the state mammal and the Indian paradise flycatcher as the state bird. The Sangai deer is an endangered type of brow-antlered deer found in the forested northeastern state of Manipur. Its state bird is the Mrs. Hume's pheasant. For Meghalaya, the medium sized cloud leopard is the state animal while the Hill Myna is the state bird. In Mizoram, another Northeastern state, the animal emblem is the serow while the state bird is the Mrs. Hume's pheasant.

Nagaland's Blyth's tragopan is the state bird, while the gayal or mithun - a type of gaur - is the state mammal. In Odisha, while the sambar deer is the state animal, the Indian roller is the state bird. Punjab shares the blackbuck as a state animal, but its state bird is the Northern goshawk.

While Sikkim's state mammal is the red panda, the bird is blood pheasant. The great Indian bustard and the camel are the emblems of Rajasthan, the desert state. Telangana has announced the spotted or axis deer as state animal, while the Indian roller - yet again - is the bird. It is the newest state in India, established in 2014.

For Tamil Nadu, the animal emblems are the emerald dove and the Nilgiri tahr, while the state animals of Tripura are the green imperial pigeon and the Phayre's langur. For Uttarakhand, the musk deer is the state mammal and the bird is the Himalayan monal. Uttar Pradesh's state bird is the sarus crane, and the state animal is the barasingha. West Bengal's state animal is the fishing cat, while the bird is the white-breasted kingfisher.

In the picture below you can see a gaur.

What is the State Animal of...? Animal Emblems of India - Unity in diversity: the pride of India

As you can see, the animal emblems of India are varied and colorful. Which one is your favorite? What is the state animal of where you live? Tell us in the comments section!

Don't miss the following articles and discover the amazing diversity of this country:

If you want to read similar articles to What is the State Animal of...? Animal Emblems of India, we recommend you visit our Facts about the animal kingdom category.

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