Migratory birds throng Sultanpur Sanctuary after long gap

Chandigarh, Nov 5 (UNI) After several years, Sultanpur Bird Sanctuary in Gurgaon district wears a busy look once more with the arrival of 5,000 migratory birds of various types.

This number was expected to increase considerably by the end of the season, a spokesman for the Haryana Tourism said today.

He said six species had arrived so far from European countries, Siberia and Central Asia and sanctuary officials were hopeful that 100 odd varieties that used to flock to the park few years back might be seen again.

The spokeman said inside the park, the Haryana Tourism ran a tourist complex that had air-conditioned as well as general rooms.

The facilities available there included bar, restaurant, and cottages for the guests, he added.

He said Sultanpur Lake was the point around which the Sultanpur Bird Sanctuary had been developed. ''The lake is a picnic for the visitors and tourists with boating facilities. The lake has a good number of reptiles and it attracts a lot of migratory birds during winters,'' he said.

The spokesman said the Sultanpur Bird Sanctuary was a home to a large range of birds, both resident and migratory. ''Migratory geese and Siberian cranes spend the winter in Sultanpur and there are also the demoiselle cranes, ruddy shelducks, pelicans, flamingoes, bar-headed geese, grey lags, gadwalls, mallards, pochards, shovellers and teals,'' he noted.

Local species included plovers, red-wattled lapwings, herons, cormorants, white ibises, spoonbills and painted storks. Other wildlife in the park included blackbuck, nilgai, hog deer, sambar, wild dog or dhole, caracal, wild cat, hedgehog, mongoose, striped hyena, Indian porcupine, rattle/honey badger, leopard, wild pig, and four horned antelope, he added.

He said the Sanctuary was one of the haunts of late birdman Dr Salim Ali. Innumerable bird watchers come here to observe bird antics. There were hideouts, watch towers and a museum for those keen on a serious study.

UNI MA GL HT1842