Intercepting the illegal capture of migratory birds in south-central West Bengal
- November 5, 2023
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN Topics
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Intercepting the illegal capture of migratory birds in south-central West Bengal
Subject: Environment
Section: Species in news
Illegal trapping and trading of migratory birds:
- For several years, migratory birds are poached during their winter stop at wetlands (beel in Bengali) and open fields in the central-south Bengal districts of Murshidabad, Malda, Birbhum and Bardhaman. These wetlands and fields are covered with nets that turn into death traps. The trapped birds are illegally sold in the market as delicacies.
- Exotic birds are those that are bred in captivity. According to the Wild Life Protection Act in 2022, people can sell exotic birds after obtaining a breeder’s license. But the wild birds cannot be caught, sold, bought or killed. The migratory birds, including short-toed larks, fall under the wild category.
- Larks, which resemble sparrows are called bogari or math chorui in Bengali.
- The majority of the rescued birds were short-toed larks, a migratory species that arrive in India to escape the harsh winters of their native habitats in Mongolia, China and Russia.
- Unprotected wetlands and agricultural fields are the main trapping points for these birds.
- Poaching is mainly from Kandi, Murshidabad, Purba Bardhaman, Kurul, Patan Beel, Khargram and Bharatpur areas. They were booked under various sections of the Wild Life Protection Act, of 1972.
Migratory birds and habitats in south-central West Bengal:
- The 2020 edition of the Asian Waterbird Census, conducted in 142 wetlands in 19 states and union territories in India, recorded the highest number of waterbirds (30,235) in 24 wetlands in West Bengal. Of them, the highest number (3,715) was recorded at Ballavpur Wildlife Sanctuary in Birbhum district.
- Patan beel, a wetland sprawling over more than 100 hectares, in Murshidabad district in central West Bengal. Black-headed ibis and Asian woolly neck were found in Patan beel.
Avian hotspot Murshidabad:
- Murshidabad is one of the epicentres of poaching of migratory birds.
- There are 53 species of birds, of which 17 are migratory, 7 are local migrants and 29 are residential. The ferruginous duck, black-headed ibis, hen harrier and Asian woolly neck are a few of them.
- Most of the rescued birds are Mongolian short-toed larks or Skyes’s short-toed larks, there also were other migratory birds such as oriental skylark, olive-backed pipit, rosy pipit, red-throated pipit, common snipe and cotton pygmy-goose.
- These birds are listed as ‘least concern’ by the IUCN.
- Belun Beel is in Kandi.
- Karul beel, also called Sahapur beel, attracts 5,000-10,000 migratory ducks in the winter and is the largest wintering population of garganey in West Bengal.
Paving a future for protected birdlife in West Bengal:
- In 2000, the Central Inland Capture Fisheries Research Institute proposed a scheme for segregating Belun beel into three parts – one for use as an irrigation reservoir and capture fisheries, another as an aquaculture ponds and another as a bird sanctuary.
Larks:
- Larks are passerine birds of the family Alaudidae.
- Larks have a cosmopolitan distribution with the largest number of species occurring in Africa.
- Only a single species, the horned lark, occurs in North America, and only Horsfield’s bush lark occurs in Australia.
- Habitats vary widely, but many species live in dry regions. When the word “lark” is used without specification, it often refers to the Eurasian skylark (Alauda arvensis).
Kolkata-based Human & Environment Alliance League (HEAL):
- It is a non-profit organization established as a charitable trust in January 2017.
- Our work is focused on biodiversity conservation, mitigation of human-animal conflict and enforcement of wildlife and environmental laws. Our current area of work is South Bengal.
- Conservation strategy:
- Awareness initiatives and conservation-oriented workshops designed to educate people from different sections of society;
- Empowering and training local communities to take up and pursue conservation initiatives;
- Scientific studies to garner data which can be used as a basis for initiating environmental policy changes;
- Documentation and field investigation of wildlife and environmental crimes;
- Liaison with the enforcement agencies for implementation of the law;
- Initiation of public interest litigation (PILs) to seek implementation of environmental and wildlife laws; and
- Engagement with government agencies and policymakers to ensure that they give due priority to the environment and wildlife while formulating practices.