Himalayan Yak - The Hindu - 29/11/22

Context:
The Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI) has approved the Himalayan Yak as a ‘food animal’.
The move is expected to help check decline in the population of the high-altitude bovine animal by making it a part of the conventional milk and meat industry. Food Animals are those that are raised and used for food production or consumption by humans.
Relevance:
Prelims - Conservation
About:
-The Yak belongs to the Bovini tribe, which also includes bison, buffaloes, and cattle. It can tolerate temperatures as low as-40 degrees Celsius.
-Yaks are highly valued by Himalayan peoples. According to Tibetan legend, the first yaks were domesticated by Tibetan Buddhism founder Guru Rinpoche.
-Yaks are traditionally reared under a transhumance system which is primitive, unorganised and full of hardship.

Habitat:-
-They are endemic to the Tibetan Plateau and the adjacent high-altitude regions.
-The yak-rearing states of India are Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir.

Threats:
-Climate Change
-Inbreeding
Protection Status of Wild Yak (Bos mutus):
IUCN Red list status: Vulnerable
IUCN considers the wild species of yak under Bos mutus, while the domestic form is considered under Bos grunniens.