Census at Chilika lake counts 9.24 lakh birds
January 14th, 2010 - 2:09 pm ICT by IANSBhubaneswar, Jan 14 (IANS) About 9.24 lakh domestic and migratory birds have been sighted at Orissa’s Chilika Lake, officials said Thursday at the conclusion of a bird census.
The migratory birds are from Siberia, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan and the Himalayas, they said, after conducting a two-day annual bird census in the lake Monday and Tuesday.
“Of the 210 species of birds sighted in the lake, 114 were migratory and 66 were resident birds,” B.P. Acharya, divisional forest officer of the Chilika wild life division, told IANS.
“At least two species of birds were spotted after a gap of five-ten years. Some white tailed sea eagles were sighted in the lake about ten years ago. They were again sighted this year. Five comb ducks were also seen after five years,” he said.
Spread across the districts of Puri, Khurdha and Ganjam along India’s east coast and about 100 km from state capital Bhubaneswar, Chilika is known for its scenic beauty and rich biodiversity.
It was declared one of the six wetlands of international importance for Arctic and Central Asian waterfowl by the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands.
Every year, about a million migratory birds come to the lake in October and return in March.
The most attractive birds sighted in the lake are flamingos, grey and purple herons, egrets, spoonbills, storks and white ibis.
Last year, over 8 lakh birds belonging to 168 species were counted in the lake.
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- HOLD Migratory birds sighted in Orissa lake - Nov 02, 2010
- Over 4.5 lakh migratory birds wintering at Chilika Lake - Jan 12, 2011
- Six lakh migratory birds arrive at Orissa's Chilika lake - Dec 16, 2009
- Thirteen percent decline in birds at Orissa's Chilika Lake - Jan 22, 2011
- Migratory birds sighted in Orissa lake - Nov 04, 2010
- Poachers are back at Orissa's Chilika Lake - Dec 26, 2009
- Migratory birds are flying back home from Odisha - Feb 17, 2012
- Chilika Lake dolphins' numbers rise to 158 - Feb 17, 2010
- Little grass, bar-headed geese skip Pong wetlands - Feb 06, 2011
- Pong wetlands hosting over 100,000 feathered guests (Feb 2 is World Wetlands Day) - Feb 02, 2012
- Birds sighted at Orissa sanctuary drop to only 45,610 - Dec 27, 2010
- Migratory birds nestle in Kodiyakkarai sanctuary in Tamil Nadu - Jan 31, 2010
- Mumbai to host flamingo festival - Apr 12, 2011
- Japan experts to conduct study on Chilika lake dolphins - Mar 13, 2012
Tags: bird census, comb, egrets, forest officer, ganjam, gap, herons, himalayas, migratory birds, orissa, ramsar convention on wetlands, resident birds, rich biodiversity, sea eagles, siberia, species of birds, spoonbills, storks, waterfowl, wild life