Wildlife
Sanctuaries in India
Bharatpur Bird
Sanctuary

Just
176 km. from Delhi is a very special wilderness - the Keoladeo Ghana National
Park, one of the finest water-bird sanctuaries in the world. The 28.73 sq. km.
lake and wetland was artificially created by the Maharaja of Bharatpur in the
19th century. By building small dykes and dams and diverting water from an irrigation
canal, he converted this low lying area into a fine wild fowl shooting preserve.
In a few years, the new wetland surrounded by marginal forests was able to support
thousands of water birds.
mmonly referred to as Bharatpur, the Park is a delight for bird watchers. Over
300 species of birds are found here and raised paths, camouflaged by babul trees
and undergrowth make viewing easy. A quiet ride by boat in the early hours of
the morning is also an unforgettable experience. There are mixed heronries on
the half submerged babul trees and the cacophony isunbelievable as painted storks,
open bills, spoon bills, egrets, cormorants, white ibis and multitudes of others,
tend their young. Jacanas with their iridescent colors and elegant tail feathers
and purple moorhen can be seen delicately treading over the floating vegetation.
While harriers and fishing eagles circle overhead in search of prey, the pied
kingfisher hovers dramatically over the water in a flurry of wings.
There are
varieties of storks and cranes and the local sarus crane is elegant in a
livery of grey and red. Every year Bharatpur waits with coated breath for
the arrival of the Siberian cranes.
There are only two wintering
places for this rare species -one in Iran and the other Bharatpur and these
beautiful birds with their distinctive red beaks and facial patches, fly
over 6400 km from their summer retreats in Siberia, to get to them. In 1996,
there was great jubilation as a couple of Siberian cranes with a young one
made an appearance in Bharatpur after a lapse of three years.
The forests around the lake at Bharatpur harbor the sambar, chital, nilgai,
jackal, hyena, fox, mongoose and porcupine. Occasionally, a fishing cat can
be seen scooping its prey also commonly seen sunning themselves along edge
of the paths or at Python Point.
General Information:
Best Time to Visit: Throughout the Year.
Nearest Town:
Bharatpur (2 km)
How to Get Here: Air: Agra (50 km)
Rail: Bharatpur (2 km)