Yaya Tso Lake : Ladakh’s First Biodiversity Heritage Site
Yaya Tso Lake was declared Ladakh’s first biodiversity heritage site under the Biological Diversity Act.
- The Biodiversity Management Committee, the panchayat of Chumathang village, along with the SECURE Himalaya Project recently resolved the issue and declared Yaya Tso Lake a biodiversity heritage site.
- Lake Yaya Tso is known as a bird’s paradise for its beautiful lake located at an altitude of 4,820 metres in Ladakh.
- It is a nesting habitat for a large number of birds and animals, such as the bar-headed goose, black-necked crane and brahminy duck
- It is also one of the highest breeding sites of the black-necked crane in India.
Secure Himalaya project:
- It is funded by the Global Environment Facility.
- It supports the government’s efforts for the conservation of snow leopard and its habitat by developing and implementing a landscape-based approach for Himalayan ecosystems, and addresses key issues of habitat degradation, threatened livelihoods and illegal trade in wildlife.
- It was launched in 2017.
