Siberian Crane

Over 350 species of birds find a refuge in the 29 sq km of shallow lakes and woodland, which makes up the park. A third of them are migrants, many of whom spend their winters in Bharatpur, before returning to their breeding grounds, as far away as Siberia and Central Asia. Migratory birds at Keoladeo include, as large a bird as Dalmatian pelican, which is slightly less than two meters, and as small a bird as Siberian disky leaf warbler, which is the size of a finger. Other migrants include several species of cranes, pelicans, geese, ducks, eagles, hawks, shanks, stints, wagtails, warblers, wheatears, flycatchers, buntings, larks and pipits, etc.

But of all the migrants, the most sought after is the Siberian Crane or the great white crane, which migrates to this site every year, covering a distance of more than half the globe. These birds, numbering only a few hundred, are on the verge of extinction. It is birds from the western race of the species, that visit Keoladeo, migrating from the Ob river basin region, in the Aral mountains, in Siberia via Afghanistan and Pakistan. There are only two wintering places, left for this extremely rare species.One is in Feredunkenar in Iran, and the other is Keoladeo Ghana. The journey to Bharatpur takes them 6,400 kms from their breeding grounds, in Siberia. They arrive in December and stay till early March. Unlike Indian cranes, the Siberian crane is entirely vegetarian. It feeds on underground aquatic roots and tubers in loose flocks of five or six.

Seventeen species of birds, namely, grey heron, purple heron, night heron, large egret, median egret, little egret, cattle egret, large cormorant, Indian shag, little cormorant, darter, painted stork, open-billed stork, black-necked stork, white-necked stork, white ibis and spoonbill are known to breed at Keoladeo heronry and the heronry here, is said to be one of the finest in the world. Talking about the heronries of the world, Roger Tony Peterson wrote, "Perhaps the most impressive spectacle of all is the great assemblage at Bharatpur, near Agra, India, where half a dozen species of herons and egrets nest in association with painted storks, spoonbills, ibises and cormorants..."

What is peculiar to Bharatpur, is that many of the species are specialist feeders, like the Siberian crane. Each helps itself to one ingredient of the wetland soup. Flamingos sieve the water for plankton, spoonbills rake the mud with their lower mandibles for mollusks, tadpoles and weed, while egrets and herons spear their prey, and geese and brahminy ducks graze at the water's edge.

The Keoladeo heronry is full of fervent activity. Besides the avian fauna, a large variety of mammals and reptiles are also common in the park.These include the nilgai, sambar, chital, leopard and the wild boar. A bonus to reptile-lovers are the large rock pythons which can be spotted, sunning themselves, especially at Python Point, beyond the Keoladeo Temple.

The unique mix of marshes, pastures and woodland and the floral communities at Keoladeo is the key to the high density and diversity of flora and fauna.