Vertebrate diversity at Margalla Hills National Park, Pakistan

The Margalla Hills National Park (MHNP) in Islamabad, Pakistan, is an important site for the conservation of many plants and animals. The present study aimed to determine the status of fauna diversity and richness, and environmental threats to the animals. A field study was conducted and the point count method was used to determine vertebrate diversity. The survey showed that the MHNP is home to 117 species of birds, 27 reptiles ? including species such as the saw-scaled viper, Russell?s viper and the Indian cobra - and 30 mammalian species, such as barking deer, wild boar, golden jackal, red fox, Asiatic leopards, monkeys, fruit bats, and pangolins. The results showed a maximum count of 9,076 birds of 117 species belonging to 48 families. According to the Islamabad wildlife management board, one of the unique species, the grey goral (Nemorhaedus goral), has become extinct at the MHNP as no single specimen has been recorded since 2018. It was also been observed, however, that the numbers of the endangered species of common leopard (Panthera pardus) and pangolin (Manis crassicaudata) have increased, possibly due to the wildlife management board?s strategy for conservation. Nevertheless, greater conservation and protection of wild fauna at the MHNP is still needed. During the visits, threats such as habitat degradation, climate change, and over hunting were recorded, but focus on the implementation of approved legislation and better managerial practices to protect the unique diversity was observed.巴基斯坦伊斯兰堡的马拉加拉丘陵国家公园（Margalla Hills National Park，MHNP）是众多动植物的关键保护栖息地。本研究旨在探明该区域的动物群多样性与丰富度现状，以及野生动物面临的各类环境威胁。研究团队开展了实地调研，采用样点计数法（point count method）对脊椎动物多样性进行调查。结果显示，马拉加拉丘陵国家公园共栖息有117种鸟类、27种爬行动物（涵盖锯鳞蝰、罗素蝰与印度眼镜蛇等物种）以及30种哺乳动物，包括赤麂、野猪、金豺、赤狐、亚洲豹、猴类、果蝠与穿山甲。本次调查共记录到隶属于48个科的117种鸟类，个体总数达9076只。据伊斯兰堡野生动物管理委员会消息，其中一种特有物种灰斑羚（Nemorhaedus goral）已在该公园内绝迹——自2018年起未再采集到任何个体记录。不过研究同时观测到，濒危物种普通豹（Panthera pardus）与印度穿山甲（Manis crassicaudata）的种群数量有所上升，这可能得益于伊斯兰堡野生动物管理委员会推行的保护管理策略。尽管如此，马拉加拉丘陵国家公园仍需进一步加强野生动物的保护工作。调研期间还记录到栖息地退化、气候变化与过度捕猎等多重威胁，但目前已开始重视落实已批准的相关立法及更完善的管理举措，以保护该区域独特的生物多样性。