GUWAHATI: A Pallas’s fish eagle tagged in Mongolia has chosen the Kaziranga National Park in Assam as its breeding ground for the past five years.
The male eagle with a numbered ring was recorded by Dr Sachin Ranade, a scientist from the Bombay Natural History Society, at the World Heritage Site on March 16.
Named Ider, it was tagged by Dr Batmunkh of the Wildlife Science and Conservation Center at the Buuntsagaan Lake in central-western Mongolia on August 21, 2020.
Ranade, who visited Kaziranga for a survey, told The New Indian Express that the bird with the ring had raised his curiosity, for he himself tagged some Pallas’s fish eagles in 2013 and he was looking for them.
“After checking the global registry, I learnt Dr Batmunkh had tagged it. I contacted him and he confirmed it. The bird had two chicks and I saw them. It was a wonderful experience,” Ranade said.
To a query, he said Batmunkh tracked the eagle all along and told him it had been visiting Kaziranga for the past five years.
“Mongolia to Kaziranga is their flight path. They are hunters and they don’t need a flock. They travel on their own but at a close distance,” said Ranade who watched each and every eagle meticulously at Kaziranga and photographed them.
Ider has returned to Kaziranga every year for breeding, changing nesting locations only once. During the non-breeding season, from June to September, it has consistently visited the Buuntsagaan Lake.
“The endangered Pallas’s fish eagle, tagged in Mongolia, has made Kaziranga its breeding ground for 5 straight years, putting Assam on the map of epic bird migrations. Witnessed these winged wonders,” Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma posted on X.
“This development not only highlights the importance of Kaziranga as a critical habitat for migratory birds but also positions Assam as a significant location in the global narrative of bird migrations. The Chief Minister expressed pride in witnessing these magnificent creatures, emphasising the need for continued conservation efforts to protect such endangered species,” Kaziranga field director Sonali Ghosh said in a statement.
Pallas’s fish eagle (haliaeetus leucoryphus) is considered a poorly studied fish eagle across its entire range. The species was considered locally common across central and southern Asia. However, during the 20th century, the species range retracted significantly and is believed to be largely absent from its former stronghold areas such as the Caspian and Kazakhstan.
Due to declining population size, it was classified as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature in 2016. The conservation status was further downgraded to “endangered” in 2021. The number of mature individuals in the wild is estimated to be from 2,500 to 9,999.