A sandy and saline area is the natural habitat of an Indian animal species. The animal has no predators in that area but its existence is threatened due to the destruction of its habitat. Which one of the following could be that animal?

The correct answer is B) Indian wild ass (Equus hemionus khur). It lives in the saline, sandy and marshy plains of the Rann of Kutch in Gujarat, mainly the Little Rann, where it has few natural predators. Its survival is threatened because salt works, encroachment and changes to the seasonal flooding of the Rann shrink its habitat.

• Indian wild buffalo is wrong. The wild buffalo is a forest and wetland animal of Assam and central India, not a desert species.
• Indian wild boar is wrong. It is a widespread omnivore of forests, scrub and grassland, not a specialist of saline sand.
• Indian gazelle (chinkara) is wrong. It inhabits dry scrub and grassland in the Thar, but it is not tied to saline habitat and does face predators such as wolves and jackals.

The core concept is habitat specialisation in the Indian desert and semi-arid zones. The Wild Ass Sanctuary was set up in 1972 and the species is protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. For Mains, the case links to conservation versus industrial salt production and the ecology of the Rann.

Trap: aspirants often pick the gazelle because it is the classic desert animal. The question's clues, saline habitat and absence of predators, point to the wild ass.