Record number of migratory birds visits Valley

Srinagar, Feb 07: Proper regulation and low freezing of the water bodies in January has beckoned a “record number” of migratory birds to Kashmir Valley.

Talking to The Kashmir Monitor, Wild Life Warden (WLW), Wetlands, Abdul Rouf Zargar, said the management of water bodies was essential for the migratory birds to come to the Valley.

“The preparations for the arrival of migratory birds start in September. Usually, in January, the wetlands freeze because of cold conditions, but this year, less freezing was observed, proving beneficial to the migratory birds,” he said.

Zargar said birds visit the shallow water body Hokarsar as well as the deep water bodies such as Dal Lake.

He asked the civil society and the NGOs to work for the preservation of wetlands.

“We have been working to remove the encroachments. Recently, the Wildlife Department launched an anti-encroachment drive to remove the encroachments in various wetlands,” he said.

The valley wetlands received 7.75 lakh migratory birds in 2017, with Shalbough wetland receiving 4 lakh and Dal Lake receiving 1.25 lakh of them.

In 2016, the Kashmir wetlands received only 5 lakh migratory birds.

The migratory birds have been arriving from Central Asia, Siberia, China, and Europe.