Fakim Wildlife Sanctuary and Saramati area, India

Site Details

Assessment Details

Site Overview

KBA status: confirmed

Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance because it meets one or more previously established criteria and thresholds for identifying sites of biodiversity importance (including Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas, Alliance for Zero Extinction sites, and Key Biodiversity Areas) KBA identified in the CEPF Ecosystem Profile of the Eastern Himalayas Hotspot (2005). Taxonomy, nomenclature and threat category follow the 2002 IUCN Red List.

Global KBA criteria:

Year of assessment: 2005

National site name: Fakim Wildlife Sanctuary and Saramati area

Central coordinates: Lat: 25.81 Long: 94.96

System: Terrestrial

Altitude (m): 2,000 to 3,842

Area of KBA (ha): 84,784

Protected area coverage (%): 0

Text account

Year of compilation: 2004

Site description:

The Fakim Wildlife Sanctuary (642 ha) is on the slopes of Saramati Mountain. Fakim-Saramati is c. 30 km from the nearest township Pungro, which lies in Kiphire sub division of Tuensang district. The Sanctuary was constituted for the protection of Blyth’s Tragopan Tragopan blythii. The topography of the whole Sanctuary is montane, with undisturbed pristine forest. Several nullahs and streams intersect the area. Saramati Mountain is on the Indo-Myanmar international boundary and is an extensive wilderness with excellent subtropical and temperate forest (Choudhury 2002).

Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA:

MAIN THREATS: Hunting. Fakim-Saramati, within the Saramati Mountain range, is a large tract of forest bordering Myanmar. The entire range has not been fully explored yet and it is a likely habitat for many important species of Indo-Malayan origin, including the Sumatran Rhino. The area is not accessible by road, so it is protected naturally. Hunting by tribals is the main threat.

Habitats

IUCN Habitat	Coverage level	Coverage %	Habitat detail
1. Forest	-

Threats

Threat level 1	Threat level 2	Threat level 3	Timing	Scope	Severity	Impact
5 Biological resource use	5.1 Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals	5.1.1 Intentional use (species being assessed is the target)	Ongoing	Affects the minority of the population (<50%)	Causing or likely to cause very rapid declines (>30% over 10 years or three generations; whichever is the longer)	High

Biodiversity elements triggering KBA criteria

Taxonomic Group	Scientific name	Common name	Legacy Criteria
Birds	Aceros nipalensis	Rufous-necked Hornbill	Y
Birds	Heterophasia gracilis	Grey Sibia	Y
Birds	Syrmaticus humiae	Mrs Hume's Pheasant	Y
Birds	Tragopan blythii	Blyth's Tragopan	Y
Mammals	Panthera tigris	Tiger	Y
Reptiles	Indotestudo elongata	Yellow-headed Tortoise	Y
Reptiles	Manouria emys	Burmese Mountain Tortoise	Y

Recommended citation

Key Biodiversity Areas Partnership (2023) Key Biodiversity Areas factsheet: Fakim Wildlife Sanctuary and Saramati area. Extracted from the World Database of Key Biodiversity Areas. Developed by the Key Biodiversity Areas Partnership: BirdLife International, IUCN, American Bird Conservancy, Amphibian Survival Alliance, Conservation International, Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund, Global Environment Facility, Re:wild, NatureServe, Rainforest Trust, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, World Wildlife Fund and Wildlife Conservation Society. Downloaded from http://www.keybiodiversityareas.org/ on 29/11/2023.