11 new migratory species at Najafgarh Jheel, greens call for more protection

GURUGRAM: The sighting of 11 new winter migratory bird species at Najafgarh Jheel, this month, led to an overall increase of 145% in the number of migratory birds and 84% in the number of bird species at the lake from 2016.
A total of 3,231 birds have been spotted, so far, at Najafgarh Jheel, in the 2017 Census. The bird count was 1,317 in 2016. As many as 11 new species —six Mallards, two Western Marsh Harriers, 12 Curlew Sandpipers, four Little Stints, seven Temmincks’ Stints, 11 Ruffs, five Greylag Geeses, 15 Pied Avicets, 15 Whire-tailed Lawpwings, 20 gulls, 101 European Cranes and 14 Ruddy Shelducks — have been spotted at Nahafgarh Jheel in the past 20 days.

According to Asian Waterbird Census (AWC) of 2017, 40 species of winter migratory birds had been reported from Najafgarh Jheel till January 20. Now, the number of species has gone up to 51. On the other hand, 33 species were reported in 2016 and 38 species in 2015.

“The number of bird species and birds reported at Najafgarh Jheel is definitely way more from previous years. Some species, such as Curlew Sandpiper, are uncommon in NCR. Also, many species that have been spotted in other parts of NCR are now coming to Najafgarh. We are surprised to see increasing bird diversity at Najafgarh Jheel, even in February, despite the wetland getting drier. This calls for an urgent need to protect the wetland,” said T K Roy, AWC Delhi state coordinator and ecologist.

Some forest officials agreed that the bird diversity at Najafgarh Jheel was better than at other wetlands in Delhi and NCR. “This year, everybody is surprised to see so many bird species at Najafgarh as compared to other wetlands, including Asola and Sultanpur. It is due to availability of food at the lake, especially for carnivores,” said a forest official, requesting anonymity.

The 40 species recorded earlier at the lake included Bar-headed Geese, Graylag Geese, Black-tailed Godwit, Greater Flamingo, Black-winged Stilt, Common Teal and Northern Shoveler. Some species listed as threatened in the IUCN red-list have been spotted at Najafgarh, including Wooly-necked Stork, Painted Stork, Black-headed Ibis and Black-necked Stork.

As part of the International Waterbird Census of Wetlands International, AWC carries out water bird Census in 27 countries in Asia and Australasia, once a year in January. The Census is being carried out at six important wetlands in NCR — Okhla Bird Sanctuary, Surajpur Wetland, the Najafgarh drain and jheel, the Yamuna river, the Sanjay Lake and National Zoological Park.