A total of 9,000 more waterbirds were recorded during the second Annual Waterbird Census 2021 at the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary.
In 2020, a total of 64 waterbird species with more than 15,000 individuals were recorded during the first Annual Waterbird Census 2020 at the wildlife sanctuary, Aaranyak said.
“This year, a total of 58 waterbird species with more than 24,000 individuals were recorded,” the NGO said in a statement.
The second annual census at the wildlife sanctuary was successfully conducted on Sunday jointly by the Assam forest department and premier biodiversity conservation NGO, Aaranyak.
“The main objective of the census was to count waterbird species in order to generate data on birds and monitoring of these species for long term conservation,” the statement said.
The census was successfully conducted with active involvement of about 30 participants comprising staff members from the state forest department, members and staffs of Aaranyak, students and faculty member of Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Guwahati.
Representatives from other conservation organizations, local volunteers and birders also participated in the census.
Udayan Borthakur, a senior scientist with Aaranyak, coordinated the census and briefed the participants on the field procedures, it said.
Mukul Tamuli, range officer, Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary, coordinated various aspects of the census procedure.
Udayan Borthakur, Aaranyak’s senior scientist Dr. Bibhuti P. Lahkar,TISS faculty member Dr. Namita Brahma, Naba Choudhury of Bonoriya; Binod Deka and Nripen Nath of Maibong Eco Resort led 6 different teams that conducted the census.
Zizina Resorts and Pobitora Gypsy Safari Association offered helping hands in organizing the event, it further said.