Sakteng Wildlife Sanctuary


Sakteng Wildlife Sanctuary is a wildlife sanctuary located mostly in Trashigang District and just crossing the border into Samdrup Jongkhar District, Bhutan. It is one of the country's protected areas. It is listed as a tentative site in Bhutan's Tentative List for UNESCO inclusion.

Flora and fauna

The sanctuary represents the easternmost temperate ecosystems and landscapes of Bhutan, and is part of the Eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests ecoregion. It protects several endemic species including the eastern blue pine and the black-rumped magpie.
Sakteng Wildlife Sanctuary was created in part to protect the migoi, a yeti-like cryptid whose existence has not been scientifically confirmed, but in which the local population strongly believes. The migoi are believed to haunt the northern part of the area.

Territorial Dispute

The area including Sakteng Wildlife Sanctuary made news in June 2020 when the Chinese government claimed it was a territory disputed between China and Bhutan. Bhutan rejected the assertion, and denied that China had every laid claim to the area in the past. In July 2020, BRO was tasked with building new strategic roads to connect eastern Bhutan to westen Tawang area such as Lumla-Trashigang road through Sakteng Wildlife Sanctuary.