Atapaka Bird Sanctuary

About Atapaka Bird Sanctuary

• It is situated on the Kolleru Lake in the Indian state Andhra Pradesh.
• It isn the home to a vast repertoire of birds. It is especially known for sheltering Pelicans.
• It spans over an area of 673 square kilometres with wet land marsh habitat extending across two districts namely West Godavari and Krishna.
• Atapaka Bird Sanctuary falls under Kaikalur forest range.
• The common species that can be found in the sanctuary include Cormorants, Common Redshanks, Pied Avocets, Black-winged Stilts, Red-crested Pochards etc.

Key facts about Kolleru Lake

• It is the largest freshwater lake in India.
• It is located in Andhra Pradesh between the Krishna and Godavari deltas and covers an area of 308 km².
• The lake serves as a natural flood-balancing reservoir for these two rivers.
• The lake is fed directly by water from the seasonal Budameru and Tammileru streams, and is connected to the Krishna and Godavari systems by over 68 inflowing drains and channels.
• It serves as a habitat for migratory birds.
• The lake was notified as a wildlife sanctuary in November 1999 under India’s Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, and designated a wetland of international importance in November 2002 under the international Ramsar Convention.

Q1) What is the Ramsar Convention?

It is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of Ramsar sites. It is also known as the Convention on Wetlands. It is named after the city of Ramsar in Iran, where the convention was signed in 1971.

Source: Over 1.50 lakh migratory birds visited sanctuaries, wetlands in Andhra Pradesh this winter, say forest officials