The synchronized wetland bird census conducted by the Department of Forests commenced in Villupuram, Kallakurichi, and Cuddalore districts on Sunday, January 28, 2024.
As many as 30 teams, each comprising a subject expert, four students, and Forest Department personnel participated in the census conducted in 18 wetlands including Kazhuveli sanctuary, Yedayanthittu estuary, and Oussudu sanctuary in Villupuram district, six wetlands including Pichavaram mangrove forests in Cuddalore district and 28 wetlands in Kallakurichi district.
Forest personnel from Villupuram and Cuddalore districts guided the student volunteers drawn from colleges in Mayiladuthurai and Tiruchi districts and Pondicherry University.
The annual census is being done by the Forest Department in coordination with the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) with technical support from the Universal Eco Foundation, a Puducherry-based biodiversity conservation organisation, and Kuyili (Hope for Birds) in Kallakurichi district.
The volunteers were briefed about the methodology of counting birds, at an induction programme before the census.
According to District Forest Officer Sumesh Soman, “The main objective is to obtain annual information of waterbird populations including those migrating from the cold Arctic breeding grounds to the wetlands in the region, the status of wetlands, and encourage interest in waterbirds and wetlands among the public and thereby promote conservation.”
He added, “The data collected from census is used as a management tool for Sanctuary/ Wetland reclamation and management. The data would be useful to compare the waterbird population trends between different years. Water samples will be collected on Monday and water quality parameters will be assessed in the laboratory. The Synchronised Terrestrial Birds census is scheduled for March 2 and 3 this year.”
Mr. Soman said the synchronized census covered the brackish wetland in Pichavaram forests and backwater and saltpans in Yedayanthittu estuary, Kazhuveli, and Oussudu bird sanctuaries and other water bodies and tanks in the three districts.
The volunteers would submit their field data by 11 a.m. on Sunday. After checking and cross-checking the data, a final report would be compiled by the Forest Department to initiate conservation initiatives.
Forest department officials said that over 150 species and 26,668 individual birds were recorded during the census in Villupuram district last year.
