Consider the following statements: 1. Toothless mammals such as pangolins are not found in India. 2. Gibbon is the only ape found in India. Which of the statements given above is are correct?

Statement 1 is incorrect: toothless mammals of the order Pholidota (pangolins) occur in India — the Indian pangolin (Manis crassicaudata) is documented across the subcontinent and within protected-area networks of India [1]. Statement 2 is correct: gibbons (specifically hoolock gibbons) are regarded as the only apes occurring in India; two species of hoolock gibbons have been reported from the northeastern forests (Assam, Nagaland, eastern Brahmaputra region), and authoritative sources note the gibbon as India’s sole ape [2]. Therefore, only statement 2 is correct (option 2).

Sources

1. [1] https://www.threatenedtaxa.org/index.php/JoTT/article/view/8805
2. [2] Environment, Shankar IAS Acedemy .(ed 10th) > Chapter 12: Animal Diversity of India > Do you know? > p. 192