E.M. Manoj
The Hindu, Jan 28, 2011
KALPETTA: The Malabar Ornithological Survey 2010-11, the first ever comprehensive study on avifauna in north Kerala, has proved that the Wayanad part of the Western Ghats is a critical habitat for endemic as well as endangered birds.
White-bellied Blue Flycatcher (female)
The team sighted 200 species, including 14 of the 16 endemic species
and two critically endangered species, during the two-month survey in
Wayanad district.
C. Sasikumar, ornithologist and the team's principal investigator, told TheHindu on Tuesday that the Vellarimala-Chembra regions were of high conservation value because of its unique biodiversity.
Nilgiri Flycatcher
“We found an excellent population of black-chinned laughing thrush,
an endemic and endangered bird species, whose presence is mostly
confined to the Vellarimala and Brahmagiri mountains of Wayanad region,”
he said.
The residents
Indian White-backed Vulture
Other endemic birds reported from the region include the
Black-and-Orange Flycatcher, Rufous-bellied Shortwing, Nilgiri
Flycatcher, Wayanad laughing thrush, Small Sunbird, Malabar Grey
Hornbill and White-bellied Blue Flycatcher.
Black-chinned Laughing Thrush
Among them, the Black-and-Orange Flycatcher, the Nilgiri Flycatcher
and the Shortwing were strictly confined to the high altitude region,
especially the shola forests, according to C.K. Vishnudas, team member.
The team sighted some rare species, including the Scaly Thrush, Oriental
Dwarf Kingfisher, Black-capped Kingfisher, Olive-backed Tree Pipit,
Speckled Piculet, Nilgiri Wood Pigeon, Mountain Hawk-Eagle and Jerdon's
Baza.
The team also found Brown-rock Pipit on the Chembra mountain, the first record of the species from north of the Palghat Gap, P.A. Vinayan, another team member said. Rufous-bellied Shortwing, a sister species of the White-bellied Shortwing, a species seen south of the Palghat Gap, was a candidate to be labelled new species, based on some recent DNA studies, he said.
Black-and-Orange Flycatcher
The region had become a critical habitat of the highly endemic and
threatened bird species of northern Kerala, Mr. Sasikumar said. The team
intended to suggest in their report that the government declare the
Vellarimala and Chembra regions as a national park to conserve the
birds. A few months ago, a team of scientists of the M.S. Swaminathan
Research Foundation, Kalpetta, discovered 14 new species of plants in
the region
Unique habitat
Mr. Sasikumar said the mountain ranges, situated 3,000 to 7,000 feet above the sea level and spread over 200 sq. km., were unique and incomparable to any other part of the Western Ghats.
The Hindu, Jan 28, 2011
KALPETTA: The Malabar Ornithological Survey 2010-11, the first ever comprehensive study on avifauna in north Kerala, has proved that the Wayanad part of the Western Ghats is a critical habitat for endemic as well as endangered birds.
White-bellied Blue Flycatcher (female)
C. Sasikumar, ornithologist and the team's principal investigator, told TheHindu on Tuesday that the Vellarimala-Chembra regions were of high conservation value because of its unique biodiversity.
Nilgiri Flycatcher
The residents
Indian White-backed Vulture
Black-chinned Laughing Thrush
The team also found Brown-rock Pipit on the Chembra mountain, the first record of the species from north of the Palghat Gap, P.A. Vinayan, another team member said. Rufous-bellied Shortwing, a sister species of the White-bellied Shortwing, a species seen south of the Palghat Gap, was a candidate to be labelled new species, based on some recent DNA studies, he said.
Black-and-Orange Flycatcher
Unique habitat
Mr. Sasikumar said the mountain ranges, situated 3,000 to 7,000 feet above the sea level and spread over 200 sq. km., were unique and incomparable to any other part of the Western Ghats.
