UPSC Prelims 2022 Q47: Identify the Non-Bird — Fauna Explained
Which of the following is not a bird?
- Golden Mahseer
- Indian Nightjar
- Spoonbill
- White Ibis
Answer: (a) Golden Mahseer
Statement-wise explanation
- a: correct — The Golden Mahseer (Tor putitora) is a freshwater fish of the carp family (Cyprinidae), not a bird. It lives in fast-flowing rivers of the Himalayan Indus, Ganga and Brahmaputra basins, from Pakistan through northern India, Nepal and Bhutan. People call it the 'tiger of Indian rivers'. The IUCN Red List rates it Endangered (2018 assessment), mainly because of overfishing and habitat change from dams.
- b: incorrect — The Indian Nightjar (Caprimulgus asiaticus) is a bird of the nightjar family. It is active at night, has a short tail, and lays its eggs on bare ground without building a nest. It lives in open country across South and Southeast Asia. BirdLife International rates it Least Concern.
- c: incorrect — The spoonbill is a wading bird. Its long bill flattens into a spoon shape, which it sweeps from side to side through shallow water to catch food. India's species, the Eurasian Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia), belongs to the ibis and spoonbill family (Threskiornithidae) and is rated Least Concern. It is common in winter at wetlands such as Keoladeo and in Gangetic plain lakes.
- d: incorrect — In India, 'White Ibis' means the Black-headed Ibis or Oriental White Ibis (Threskiornis melanocephalus). It is a white wading bird with a black head and a down-curved bill. It belongs to the same family as the spoonbill. BirdLife rates it Near Threatened because of drained wetlands and disturbance at its breeding colonies.
How to eliminate
Three of the names tell you the kind of animal. 'Ibis' and 'Spoonbill' are well-known wetland wading birds that appear in news on bird sanctuaries and Ramsar sites. A 'Nightjar' sounds like a bird active at night, and it is one. 'Mahseer' has no bird-like word in it, and many readers will recognise it as a famous game fish of Himalayan rivers. So even partial knowledge points to one answer. If you are unsure, remember this: mahseer = fish (genus Tor). Also watch for other species whose names sound like a different kind of animal, such as the 'Indian flying fox' (a bat) or the 'snow leopard' (a cat, not a true leopard).
Know more
Fauna names that mislead. UPSC often lists a mix of species and asks for the odd one out: which is not a bird, not a mammal, not found in India. Common names often hide the animal's group, so learn the group along with the name.
| Species | Group | Family / note | IUCN status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Mahseer (Tor putitora) | Fish | Carp family; Himalayan rivers | Endangered |
| Indian Nightjar (Caprimulgus asiaticus) | Bird | Active at night; nests on bare ground | Least Concern |
| Eurasian Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia) | Bird | Ibis and spoonbill family; wetland wader | Least Concern |
| Black-headed (Oriental White) Ibis (Threskiornis melanocephalus) | Bird | Ibis and spoonbill family; wetland wader | Near Threatened |
Why mahseer matters. Mahseers (genus Tor) are large freshwater fish found in clean, fast, well-oxygenated rivers. Their decline signals river damage from dams, sand mining, dynamite fishing and pollution. The Golden Mahseer is a flagship species for Himalayan rivers. Under Namami Gange, mahseer fingerlings have been released into the Ganga ('river ranching') along with Indian major carps and hilsa. A related species, the hump-backed mahseer of the Cauvery (Tor remadevii), is rated Critically Endangered.
Ibis and spoonbill family. Both are colonial waterbirds. They nest in mixed heronries alongside storks and herons, and they depend on shallow wetlands. Their numbers are monitored through the Asian Waterbird Census. They are among the species that help a wetland qualify as a Ramsar site.
Tip: Expect these groups to be mixed up in questions: birds (nightjar, spoonbill, ibis, bustard, florican), fish (mahseer, hilsa), mammals (dugong, pangolin, flying fox) and reptiles (gharial, monitor lizard).
NCERT Concepts to Revise
- IUCN Red List: Each of the four species has a Red List status; knowing the categories helps in follow-up questions on these animals.
- Threatened species: Two of the four listed species carry a threatened or near-threatened label, a common follow-up angle in UPSC fauna questions.