GS TIMES STAFF
The white-bellied heron has been sighted for the first time in a high-altitude area in India. Two individuals of the birds have been sighted at an elevation of 1,200 metres above sea level at Walong in Anjaw district in Arunachal Pradesh. For the first time the species has been recorded at such a height in India.
- The rare bird has been spotted in Bhutan, Myanmar (breeding) and India. The bird is possibly extinct in Bangladesh and has been confirmed to be extinct in Nepal.
- In India it has been sighted in the Manas National Park in Assam as well as in the Namdapha Tiger Reserv and Kamlang Tiger Reserve in Arunachal Pradesh.
- It is marked as Critically Endangered in the IUCN Red List. According to the IUCN Red List, the bird’s global population is somewhat between 50 and 250.
- The white-bellied heron is listed as a Schedule 1 species in India’s Wild Life Protection Act, 1972.
References:
- Maheswaran, Gopinathan & Mondal, Himadri. (2014). First nesting record of White-bellied Heron Ardea insignis in Namdapha Tiger Reserve, Arunachal Pradesh, India.. BirdingAsia. 21. 13-17.
- Times of India: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/itanagar/search-for-tigers-leads-to-critically-endangered-white-bellied-heron/articleshow/69110512.cms
- https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/guwahati/arunachal-pradesh-rare-white-bellied-heron-spotted-in-anjaw-district/articleshow/82352890.cms
- http://www.wiienvis.nic.in/Database/ScheduleSpeciesDatabase_7969.aspx
