Keoladeo National Park

Keoladeo National Park Latest News

Migratory birds such as stork cranes, pelicans, painted storks, and bar-headed geese returned to the Keoladeo National Park after heavy rains in the monsoon.

About Keoladeo National Park

• It is situated in the Bharatpur district of Rajasthan.
• It was earlier known as Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary.
• It is recognised as one of the world’s most important bird breeding and feeding grounds. 
• It was founded in the late 19th century as a hunting preserve by Suraj Mal, the maharaja of the Bharatpur princely state, and became a bird sanctuary in 1956. 
• Declared a national park in 1981, it was renamed Keoladeo for the ancient temple in the park dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva.
• It has an area of 29 sq.km.
• It is the only one of its kind in India which is enclosed by a 2-meters boundary wall to fend off encroachments.
• It is a Ramsar site and also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 
• Vegetation: 
  • Woodlands, swamps, and wet grasslands cover a large part of the park.
  • The vegetation here is of a dry deciduous type, with medium-sized trees and shrubs found inside its forest. 
• Flora: Some of the trees which can be commonly spotted inside the park are kadam, jamun, babul, kandi, ber, kair, and piloo.
• Fauna: 
  • It is home to a range of mammals and reptiles—including pythons and other snakes, deer, sambars, blackbucks, jackals, monitor lizards, and fishing cats.
  • It is strategically located in the middle of the Central Asian migratory flyway.
  • It is home to more than 360 species of permanent and migratory birds. 
  • During the annual period of migratory visitors (about October to March), birds from throughout the world can be found in the park.
  • Among those wintering in the park are waterfowl from Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, China, and Siberia, including species such as gadwalls, shovellers, common teals, tufted ducks, pintails, white spoonbills, Asian open-billed storks, Oriental ibises, and the rare Siberian crane.

Source: ETVB

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