Sangai (Manipur brow-antlered deer)

Keibul Lamjao is a wetland environment of open water and floating mats called phumdi, made of vegetation, soil and organic matter. UNESCO’s tentative-list description says the park contains the largest area of Loktak’s phumdi and provides habitat to the Sangai. The Wildlife Institute of India notes that the deer is adapted to these floating meadows, unlike the other Eld’s deer subspecies. This close association makes the condition and extent of the wetland habitat central to its conservation.

A 2021 study in Environmental Monitoring and Assessment modelled present and future habitat suitability for the Sangai in Keibul Lamjao National Park using MaxEnt. It reported that isothermality and precipitation in the wettest quarter were important model variables. Under the study’s RCP 2.6 and RCP 8.5 climate scenarios for 2050 and 2070, the model projected declining area in the high-suitability class and increasing area with no suitability. These are model projections rather than observations of future outcomes; the authors state that the results may inform management and protection.

Conservation work in Keibul Lamjao has included population estimation, habitat and phumdi monitoring, genetic and health research, protection measures and outreach with surrounding communities. The Wildlife Institute of India and Manipur Forest Department have also pursued the development of a conservation-breeding centre and the establishment of another wild population, intended to reduce reliance on one isolated population. In its 2022–2023 annual progress report, the Wildlife Institute of India reported a Sangai population estimate of 76, with an estimated range of 51–101, from a survey conducted in March 2023; this is a dated estimate, not a current census. The report describes point counts with a double-observer approach and ongoing work on drone-based monitoring.