PESHAWAR - Once there was a time that district Buner was famous for  wildlife due to its unique landscape consisting of rugged and vegetated mountains and farm spots, a suitable habitat for wildlife with distinct characteristics but due to growing population and deforestation in the area the wildlife and hunting of animals has been suffered badly.

Wild species found in the district include brown rock pipit, wildcat, jackal, griffon vulture and falcon. These wild birds and animals found in and around district Buner provide a range of services to the human existence. They can be valuable subjects for modern scientific research and source of hunting for local people.

There are several areas where wild plant and animal species benefit local population which include economic, medical, scientific, aesthetic, recreational, and ecological purposes.

The growing population and deforestation is the main issue which has disturbed wildlife in the area, most of the wild birds and animal migrated to Swat and Shangla forests in northern areas of Buner. There is not enough food, water or shelter for all of them. Many of the animals die when fire erupts in the mountains.

Whenever, farmers spray chemicals on their crops to save them from pests, plants also get affected from these acidic sprays.

Factories, automobiles, trucks and planes release chemicals into the air. The exhaust from their engines contains tiny particles of toxic chemicals that fall on plants, on the ground, and into the water. When wild birds and animals consume the affected plants and water, they catch the disease.

Hunting or trapping wild animals, is practiced in selected season, however, the trend is going to be diminished as now there is shortage of hunting birds and animals in Buner mountains owing to the growing deforestation.

There was a time when wild animals and birds were available in abundance in the area and the tourists frequently used to visit the mountains of Ilum and Dwa Sara to enjoy natural scenes in this part of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. The thing which has contributed in the growing deforestation process is lack of gas facility and people mostly relying on forest wood for domestic fuel.

It is direly needed to stop the growing rate of deforestation in the area and provide alternate sources of energy in the form natural gas to facilitate the people and protect ecosystem of the area.