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How do you cross the Brahmaputra River? If you are a pygmy hog or a hoolock gibbon, you don’t. Each species, along with several others, is restricted to opposite sides of the river that defines this ecoregion. Semi-evergreen forests and grasslands flank the river and provide elephants, rhinos, tigers, and wild water buffalo with the food and shelter they need to survive and reproduce.
As the Brahmaputra winds its way through the Indian state of Assam and westward to Bhutan, it deposits rich soils as it goes. From June to September, the southwest monsoon rains are funneled into the ecoregion, dumping up to 118 inches (300 cm) of water. Together, the rains and the rich soils create a lush wildlife habitat--and an area that was once one of the most productive in the Indian subcontinent.
Swamp deer, hispid hares, and a rich variety of other animals join India’s largest elephant population on the muddy river plains. Asiatic black bears live in the mountains, and sloth bears amble through the grasslands. Even the elusive clouded leopard has been spotted there. The trees are home to a number of primates, including the stump-tailed macaque and the golden langur, whose fur seems to glow in the light of the setting sun.
The valley has been densely settled by humans and cultivated for thousands of years, resulting in widespread habitat loss and degradation. Approximately one-quarter of the habitat remains intact, but it is subject to forest clearing by local people and livestock grazing. Hunting of rhinoceros and tigers is also common. For more information on this ecoregion, go to the World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report. All text by World Wildlife Fund © 2001
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