Coffee table book on Himalayan wildlife launched

`Wildlife of the Himalayas and the Terai region` contains rare articles, paintings and lithographs of Himalayan wildlife from the British period, BNHS said in a release here.

It has reproductions of lithographs and paintings of Himalayan birds, plants and animals by eminent old time European artists and naturalists such as John Gould, J Forbes Royle, J D Hooker, Nathaniel Wallich, E C Stuart Baker, T C Jerdon, R Lydekkar, Prater and many others.

BNHS has reproduced 100 to 150 years old lithographs of colourful flora and fauna found at various altitudes, ranging from Terai and Duar swamps and grasslands at the base of the Himalayas, Shivalik range and middle Himalaya to the snow capped peaks and Ladakh and Tibetan plateaus.

The book has myriad species of birds and their rare paintings, including Derby`s Parakeet, Long-tailed Minivet, Chestnut-headed Tesia, Spotted Forktail and Large-billed Barbet.

The book, fifth coffee table book from BNHS, an NGO which undertakes nature conservation research, was released in Delhi on Wednesday by MP Karan Singh.