Ravindra Chaudhari Ravindra Chaudhari, professor and head, PG Department of Zoology and Research Centre at Shri Shiv Chhatrapati College, Junnar, has been appointed as a member of the Maharashtra State Biodiversity Board. The board will mainly work towards the documentation of flora and fauna across Maharashtra.
The state has a number of biodiversity hotspots, prominent ones being the Western Ghats, the Satputa ranges, the Lonar lake to name a few.
“It has been observed that many species are going extinct and remain undiscovered or undocumented. There is a greater and urgent need to first identify species and initiate efforts to conserve such endangered species,” said Chaudhari.
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The members of this board, over the next three years, will survey and document the species not only from the hotspots but also outside of these protected areas.
“The periphery or adjoining areas too are rich in biodiversity, but often face greater threat. The board’s efforts will be to reach out to school and college students and to the general public to create awareness,” added Chaudhari.
Aparna Watve, Varad Giri, Rahul Mungikar, and Amit Sathiye are the other newly appointed board members. Maharashtra being a large state, equally large diversity is expected.
“With rich biodiversity and limited time, the challenge will be creating a catalog and identification of species scientifically,” the newly appointed members said.