MYSURU: The Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary, which is the first sanctuary in Karnataka which had been declared as Ramsar site, has new visitors. For the first time, the Greater Racket-tailed drongo birds have been found in the sanctuary.
The Greater Racket-tailed drongo, which is called Bhimaraja in Kannada, is usually found in broad-leaved forests, evergreen forest and western ghats in the country. During the census which was conducted in November, the forest officials sighted the birds at the sanctuary. Out of the 27 different species of Drongos in the world, nine were found in India and six species -- Black Drongo, Ashy Drongo, White-bellied Drongo, Bronze Drongo, Greater racket-tailed Drongo and Hair-crested Drongo -- are found in Karnataka.
During the census, the foresters identified 72 different species of birds at the sanctuary including the migratory birds like the Blue-capped rock Thrush, Forest Wagtail, and others. They have also found species of Kingfishers, four species of Heron, Lesser Fish Eagle, Brahminy Kite, River Tern, Oriental Darter, Indian Grey Hornbill, Red-whiskered Bulbul and Common Hoopoe.
As nesting starts from November, Spot-billed pelican, Indian cormorant, Pied kingfisher, Streak throated swallow, Eurasian spoonbill birds have started building nests for breeding. Around 350 more nests were found at the sanctuary. As per the census, more than 3,300 birds can be found at the protected land.
DCF Wildlife I B Prabhugowda said every year more than 3.5 lakh tourists visit the sanctuary. “As the season starts from November, there will be more tourists to visit the sanctuary to watch various species of birds.