Nawabganj Bird Sanctuary, renamed in 2015 Shahid
Chandra Shekhar Azad
Chandra Shekhar Tiwari ( (23 July 1906 – 27 February 1931), popularly known as Chandra Shekhar Azad, was an Indian revolutionary who reorganised the Hindustan Republican Association (HRA) under its new name of Hindustan Socialist Republican ...
Bird Sanctuary,
is a bird sanctuary located in
Unnao district
Unnao district is a district of Uttar Pradesh state in northern India. The city of Unnao is the district headquarters. The district is part of Lucknow Division.
As of the 2011 census, Unnao district has a population of 3,108,367, making it ...
on the Kanpur-Lucknow highway in
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
consisting of a
lake
A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...
and the surrounding environment. It is one of the many
wetlands
A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...
of Northern India. The sanctuary provides protection for 250 species of
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 ...
mostly from
CIS
Cis or cis- may refer to:
Places
* Cis, Trentino, in Italy
* In Poland:
** Cis, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, south-central
** Cis, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, north
Math, science and biology
* cis (mathematics) (cis(''θ'')), a trigonome ...
(or formerly
USSR
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
) countries, but the numbers have been dwindling since the 1990s, most having relocated to newer areas in Himachal and Rajasthan. The sanctuary also houses a deer park, watchtowers and boats.
Birds
The avian population here comprises a mix of residents as well as migratory birds. The birds migrate across
Himalayas
The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 ...
from
Tibet
Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...
,
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
,
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
and
Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part of ...
during winters. Some of these birds fly over 5000 km and above 8500 meters high to reach here. Some of the major migratory birds during the season are
greylag goose
The greylag goose or graylag goose (''Anser anser'') is a species of large goose in the waterfowl family Anatidae and the type species of the genus ''Anser''. It has mottled and barred grey and white plumage and an orange beak and pink legs. A ...
,
pintail,
cotton teal
The cotton pygmy goose or cotton teal (''Nettapus coromandelianus'') is a small perching duck which breeds in Asia, Southeast Asia extending south and east to Queensland where they are sometimes called white-quilled pygmy goose. They are among t ...
,
red-crested pochard
The red-crested pochard (''Netta rufina'') is a large diving duck. The scientific name is derived from Greek language, Greek ''Netta'' "duck", and Latin ''rufina'', "golden-red" (from ''rufus'', "ruddy"). Its breeding habitat is lowland marshes a ...
,
gadwall
The gadwall (''Mareca strepera'') is a common and widespread dabbling duck in the family Anatidae.
Taxonomy
The gadwall was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his landmark 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''. DNA studies have shown that ...
,
shoveller
The shovelers or shovellers are four species of dabbling ducks with long, broad spatula-shaped beaks:
* Red shoveler, ''Anas platalea''
* Cape shoveler, ''Anas smithii''
* Australasian shoveler, ''Anas rhynchotis''
* Northern shoveler, ''Anas c ...
,
coot
Coots are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family, Rallidae. They constitute the genus ''Fulica'', the name being the Latin term for "coot". Coots have predominantly black plumage, and—unlike many rails—they are usually ...
and
mallard
The mallard () or wild duck (''Anas platyrhynchos'') is a dabbling duck that breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa, and has been introduced to New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Arge ...
. Some major local migratory and residential birds are
sarus crane,
painted stork
The painted stork (''Mycteria leucocephala'') is a large wading bird, wader in the stork family. It is found in the wetlands of the plains of tropical Asia south of the Himalayas in the Indian Subcontinent and extending into Southeast Asia. Thei ...
,
peafowl
Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera '' Pavo'' and ''Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female peafowl are refe ...
,
white ibis,
dabchick,
whistling teal,
open-bill stork,
white-necked stork
The Asian woolly-necked stork or Asian woollyneck (''Ciconia episcopus'') is a species of large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It breeds singly, or in small loose colonies. It is distributed in a wide variety of habitats including ...
,
pheasant-tailed jacana
The pheasant-tailed jacana (''Hydrophasianus chirurgus'') is a jacana in the monotypic genus ''Hydrophasianus''. Like all other jacanas, they have elongated toes and nails that enable them to walk on floating vegetation in shallow lakes, their p ...
,
bronze winged jacana,
purple moorhen The purple swamphen has been split into the following species:
* Western swamphen, ''Porphyrio porphyrio'', southwest Europe and northwest Africa
* African swamphen, ''Porphyrio madagascariensis'', sub-Saharan continental Africa and Madagascar
* Gr ...
,
lapwing
Lapwings (subfamily Vanellinae) are any of various ground-nesting birds (family Charadriidae) akin to plovers and dotterels. They range from in length, and are noted for their slow, irregular wingbeats in flight and a shrill, wailing cry. A gro ...
,
tern
Terns are seabirds in the family Laridae that have a worldwide distribution and are normally found near the sea, rivers, or wetlands. Terns are treated as a subgroup of the family Laridae which includes gulls and skimmers and consists of e ...
,
vulture
A vulture is a bird of prey that scavenges on carrion. There are 23 extant species of vulture (including Condors). Old World vultures include 16 living species native to Europe, Africa, and Asia; New World vultures are restricted to North and ...
,
pigeon
Columbidae () is a bird family consisting of doves and pigeons. It is the only family in the order Columbiformes. These are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills that in some species feature fleshy ceres. They primarily ...
,
king crow,
Indian roller
The Indian roller (''Coracias benghalensis'') is a bird of the family Coraciidae. It is long with a wingspan of and weighs . The face and throat are pinkish, the head and back are brown, with blue on the rump and contrasting light and dark blu ...
and
bee-eater
The bee-eaters are a group of non-passerine birds in the family Meropidae, containing three genera and thirty species. Most species are found in Africa and Asia, with a few in southern Europe, Australia, and New Guinea. They are characterised by ...
.
Reptiles
The major reptiles found in the sanctuary are
cobra,
viper
The Viperidae (vipers) are a family of snakes found in most parts of the world, except for Antarctica, Australia, Hawaii, Madagascar, and various other isolated islands. They are venomous and have long (relative to non-vipers), hinged fangs tha ...
,
krait
''Bungarus'' is a genus of venomous elapid snakes, the kraits ("krait" is pronounced , rhyming with "kite"), found in South and Southeast Asia. The genus ''Bungarus'' has 16 species.
Distribution
Kraits are found in tropical Asia, from near Ira ...
,
ratsnake and water snakes.
Cobra is the
common name
In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often contrast ...
of various
elapid
Elapidae (, commonly known as elapids ; grc, ἔλλοψ ''éllops'' "sea-fish") is a family of snakes characterized by their permanently erect fangs at the front of the mouth. Most elapids are venomous, with the exception of the genus Emydoceph ...
snake
Snakes are elongated, Limbless vertebrate, limbless, carnivore, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other Squamata, squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping Scale (zoology), scales. Ma ...
s, most of which belonging to the genus ''
Naja
''Naja'' is a genus of venomous elapid snakes commonly known as cobras (or "true cobras"). Members of the genus ''Naja'' are the most widespread and the most widely recognized as "true" cobras. Various species occur in regions throughout Afric ...
''.
The Viperidae (vipers) are a family of
venomous snake
Venomous snakes are Species (biology), species of the Suborder (biology), suborder Snake, Serpentes that are capable of producing Snake venom, venom, which they use for killing prey, for defense, and to assist with digestion of their prey. The v ...
s found in most parts of the world, with the exception of
Antarctica
Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest contine ...
,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
,
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...
,
Madagascar
Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...
,
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
, various other isolated islands, and north of the
Arctic Circle
The Arctic Circle is one of the two polar circles, and the most northerly of the five major circles of latitude as shown on maps of Earth. Its southern equivalent is the Antarctic Circle.
The Arctic Circle marks the southernmost latitude at w ...
.
The common krait (''Bungarus caeruleus''), also known as Indian krait or blue krait) is a
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
of
venomous snake
Venomous snakes are Species (biology), species of the Suborder (biology), suborder Snake, Serpentes that are capable of producing Snake venom, venom, which they use for killing prey, for defense, and to assist with digestion of their prey. The v ...
of the genus ''
Bungarus
''Bungarus'' is a genus of venomous elapid snakes, the kraits ("krait" is pronounced , rhyming with "kite"), found in South and Southeast Asia. The genus ''Bungarus'' has 16 species.
Distribution
Kraits are found in tropical Asia, from near Ira ...
'' found in the
jungle
A jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past recent century.
Etymology
The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''jaṅ ...
s of the
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
n
subcontinent
A continent is any of several large landmasses. Generally identified by convention rather than any strict criteria, up to seven geographical regions are commonly regarded as continents. Ordered from largest in area to smallest, these seven ...
. It is a member of the
"big four" species, inflicting the most
snakebite
A snakebite is an injury caused by the bite of a snake, especially a venomous snake. A common sign of a bite from a venomous snake is the presence of two puncture wounds from the animal's fangs. Sometimes venom injection from the bite may occu ...
s on humans in India.
Rat snakes (or ratsnakes) are members – along with
kingsnake
Kingsnakes are colubrid New World members of the genus ''Lampropeltis'', which includes 26 species. Among these, about 45 subspecies are recognized. They are nonvenomous and ophiophagous in diet.
Description
Kingsnakes vary widely in size and ...
s,
milk snake
The milk snake or milksnake (''Lampropeltis triangulum''), is a species of kingsnake; 24 subspecies are currently recognized. ''Lampropeltis elapsoides'', the scarlet kingsnake, was formerly classified as a 25th subspecies (''L. t. elapsoides'') ...
s,
vine snakes and
indigo snake
''Drymarchon'' is a genus of large nonvenomous colubrid snakes, commonly known as indigo snakes or cribos, found in the Southeastern United States, Central America, and South America. Reaching or more in length, they are among the world's larg ...
s – of the subfamily
Colubrinae
The Colubrinae are a subfamily of the family Colubridae of snakes. It includes numerous genera, and although taxonomic sources often disagree on the exact number, The Reptile Database lists 717 species in 92 genera as of September 2019. It is th ...
of the family
Colubridae
Colubridae (, commonly known as colubrids , from la, coluber, 'snake') is a family of snakes. With 249 genera, it is the largest snake family. The earliest species of the family date back to the Oligocene epoch. Colubrid snakes are found on ever ...
. They are medium to large
constrictors and are found throughout much of the
Northern Hemisphere
The Northern Hemisphere is the half of Earth that is north of the Equator. For other planets in the Solar System, north is defined as being in the same celestial hemisphere relative to the invariable plane of the solar system as Earth's Nort ...
. They feed primarily on
rodent
Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are na ...
s and
bird
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...
s.
Different snakes are called water snakes. "Water snake" is also sometimes used as a descriptive term for any snakes that spend a significant time in or near fresh water, such as any species belonging to the family
Acrochordidae
The Acrochordidae, commonly known as wart snakes, Java wart snakes, file snakes, elephant trunk snakes, or dogface snakes are a monogeneric family created for the genus ''Acrochordus''. This is a group of basal aquatic snakes found in Australia a ...
. They should not be confused with
sea snakes
Sea snakes, or coral reef snakes, are elapid snakes that inhabit marine environments for most or all of their lives. They belong to two subfamilies, Hydrophiinae and Laticaudinae. Hydrophiinae also includes Australasian terrestrial snakes, where ...
, which live primarily or entirely in marine environments.
Deer park
A small park for deer has been established in the vicinity of the sanctuary. There are spotted and barking deers in the park. It is one of the main attractions in the sanctuary.
Hospitality
A guesthouse with bedding and lodging is provided inside the sanctuary along with a restaurant and a children park.
Image gallery
Image:Nawabganj Bird Sanctuary, Unnao 02.jpg, Panorama of Nawabganj Bird Sanctuary
File:Birds at Nawabganj bird sanctuary, Unnao 02.JPG, A heron at the bird sanctuary
Image:Nawabganj Bird Sanctuary, Unnao 01.JPG, Watch tower
Image:Nawabganj Bird Sanctuary, Unnao 05.JPG, Wetlands of Bird Sanctuary
Image:Lake at Nawabganj bird sanctuary, Unnao 04.JPG, Wetlands of Bird Sanctuary
Image:Nawabganj Bird Sanctuary, Unnao 06.JPG, Migratory birds in winter
Image:Nawabganj Bird Sanctuary, Unnao 07.JPG
Image:Nawabganj Bird Sanctuary, Unnao 09.JPG
Image:Boating in lake at Nawabganj bird sanctuary, Unnao 01.JPG, Boating in lake
See also
*
Wildlife refuge
A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...
*
Nature reserve
A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...
References
External links
Information on National Parks
{{authority control
Bird sanctuaries of Uttar Pradesh
Ramsar sites in India
Unnao district
Protected areas established in 2019
2019 establishments in Uttar Pradesh