Betana wetland or Betana Simar ( ne, बेतना सिमसार) is located in
Belbari Municipality
Belbari, ( ne, बेलबारी) officially known as Belbari municipality, is one of the major suburb of Morang district, Province No. 1. It lies in the eastern Terai region of Nepal. It was officially upgraded to become a municipality in 2 ...
of
Morang district
Morang District ( ne, मोरङ जिल्ला ) is located in Province No. 1 in eastern Nepal. It is an Outer Terai district. It borders with Bihar, India to the South, Jhapa to the East, Dhankuta and Panchthar to the North, and Suns ...
of Nepal. It lies about 15 km East of
Itahari
Itahari ( ne, ईटहरी) is a Municipalities in Province No. 1, sub-metropolitan city in the Sunsari District of Province No. 1 of Nepal. Itahari city is business hub of eastern Nepal. It is the List of cities of Nepal, second most populous ...
. Geographically, the wetland lies at an altitude of about 123 m.
The lake has an area of about 5.5 ha. The forest area is about 175 ha and it is a part of ''
Charkose Jhadi''.
The wetland houses endangered plants and animals such as tortoise, fishes, birds, and indigenous flowers. About 49 species of birds have been reported in the area. The major portion of the forests consists of ''saal'' and ''khair-sisoo'' trees. The wetland region is home to a variety of birds species including
migratory birds
Bird migration is the regular seasonal movement, often north and south along a flyway, between breeding and wintering grounds. Many species of bird migrate. Migration carries high costs in predation and mortality, including from hunting by ...
.
To attract tourists, a zoo has been constructed inside the area along with some other infrastructures.
In 2022, a critically endangered
Black Softshell Turtle
The black softshell turtle or Bostami turtle (''Nilssonia nigricans''), previously placed in genus ''Aspideretes'', is a species of freshwater turtle found in India (Assam and Tripura) and Bangladesh (Chittagong and Sylhet). It was long believed ...
was identified in the Betana Wetland. It had been in existence in the area for long time but was mistakenly taken as some kind of
Peacock Turtle.
Gallery
File:Betana simsar.jpg
File:Deer of betana wetland,Nepal.jpg
References
{{coord missing, Nepal
Parks in Nepal
Morang District