Data Zone
Country/territory: India
IBA criteria met: A3 (2004)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here
Area: 67,500 hectares (675.00 km2)
| IBA conservation status | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year of assessment (most recent) | State (condition) | Pressure (threat) | Response (action) |
| 2003 | not assessed | high | not assessed |
| For more information about IBA monitoring, please click here | |||
Site description (2004 baseline)
The Pin Valley National Park is located in the Spiti subdivision of Lahaul and Spiti districts. High mountain ranges and narrow river valleys are typical of the area, where flat land is uncommon. According to the biogeographic classification of Rodgers and Panwar (1988), Pin Valley lies in the Northwest Himalayan Zone. The Sutlej River divides it into two provinces namely, northwest and west. Spiti is a typical mountain desert, massive glaciers covering a major portion of the Park. There is no major lake in the Park. The mountainsides are bare, except for a few mountain folds where some vegetation manages to grow in protected niches. The terrain and the climate are antagonistic to the growth of forests in this area. The precipitation is mostly in the form of snowfall. The general topography is highly rugged, with high altitude barren areas and an arid climate. The drainage system is made up of six rivulets namely Kidul Cho, Khaminger, Debsa, Kilung, Pin and its tributary. The former four rivers join to become the Parahio River in the main valley. Glaciers feed all these rivers. Light tremors occasionally occur in the Park, as Lahaul-Spiti district lies in a major earthquake prone area, i.e., the alpine Himalayan mountain system. This Park adjoins the buffer zone of the Great Himalayan National Park to the west and shares its southern boundary with Rupi-Bhabha Sanctuary (another IBA). The valleys of the Park are highly disturbed because of the high incidence of grazing. Pin Valley NP is a typical cold desert ecosystem. According to the classification of Champion and Seth (1968), the vegetation comes under Dry Alpine Scrub and Dwarf Juniper. Cretagunus sp., Berberis sp. and Lonicera sp. are the important shrubs. A few thorny trees and bushes are found in the vicinity of the villages.
Key biodiversity
AVIFAUNA: Not many studies have been done on the avifauna of the National Park, since it is situated at high altitude and also because of its cold desert type of climate. The site falls under the Biome-5 (Eurasian High Montane). The key habitats of the site are scrub and open habitats at and above the tree line, including alpine and subalpine scrub and grassland; inland cliffs and rocky slopes and also montane wetlands and some gravel and sand plains where Himalayan Snowcock Tetraogallus himalayensis, Tibetan Partridge Perdix hodgsoniae, Ibisbill Ibidorhyncha struthersii and other species of Biome-5 are found.
OTHER KEY FAUNA: The Pin Valley NP has most of the mammal species typical of the cold desert of Ladakh and Tibet: Snow leopard Uncia uncia, Himalayan Ibex Capra ibex, Bharal Pseudois nayaur, Lynx Lynx lynx, Fox Vulpes vulpes, Tibetan Wolf Canis lupus chanco, Himalayan Marmot Marmota bobak, Woolly Hare Lepus oiostolus and Mouse hare Pika Ochotona roylei.
Acknowledgements
Key contributor: IBA Team.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Pin Valley National Park (India). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/pin-valley-national-park-iba-india on 26/12/2024.