Thane Creek

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About Thane Creek:

It is an inlet along the shoreline of the Arabian Sea that isolates the city of Mumbai from the Indian mainland.
The east bank lies in the Thane and Navi Mumbai districts, while the west bank is in the Greater Mumbai district, Maharashtra.
It is Asia’s largest creek, with a length of 26 km.
Thane Creek is fed by numerous freshwater sources (of which Ulhas river is the largest), making the water brackish.
The creek is covered with mangroves on both sides.
Thane Creek is a very important wintering ground for waterbirds. It supports over 1,00,000 birds during winter, including the iconic flamingos.
A major part of the creek has been declared a bird sanctuary called Thane Creek Flamingo Bird Sanctuary (TCFS).

Thane Creek Flamingo Bird Sanctuary (TCFS):

TCFS also referred to as the Airoli Flamingo Sanctuary, is the first flamingo sanctuary in India located along the western bank of the Thane creek.
·It encompasses more than 1600 hectares of mudflats, mangroves, and water bodies.
The area was declared a flamingo sanctuary in 2015 and is home to substantial bird life – both residential and migratory.
TCFS was declared a Ramsar site by the International Wetlands Convention in 2022.
Flora: Avicennia marina, Rhizophora mucronata, Acanthus ilicifolius, Aleuropus lagopoides, Sesuvium protulacastrumetc.
Fauna: Over 205 species of birds have been reported from this area, including Lesser Flamingo, Greater Flamingo, Asian Openbill, White Stork, Pied Avocet, Eastern Golden Plover, etc.

Q1) What is a creek?

A creek is a small river or a rivulet. Creeks have all the characteristics that rivers possess with a few differences between the two. A slender channel flanked by islands may also be called a creek. A creek does not usually drift out into a new channel or form a new branch or even have tributaries.

Source: Tunnel to save mangroves to raise bullet train project cost to ₹10,000 crore