A STUDY OF WATERBIRDS DIVERSITY IN SELECTED WETLANDS OF UTTARAKHAND (WESTERN HIMALAYAS), INDIA

Wetlands are one of the most important parts of our ecosystems to maintain the ecological balance. An attempt was made to understand the status of waterbirds in wetlands of Himalayan foothills. The present study was conducted from November 2017 to March 2018. The study was carried out in Bheemgoda Barrage and the adjacent Ganga Valley area at Haridwar and Asan Barrage at Dehradun. A total of 47 species of water birds from 16 families were recorded during the study period. Out of these, 30 winter visitor and 17 residents' avian species were reported. The family Anatidae is the most dominant family with the maximum number of species (11), and its relative diversity index was also found to be the highest (relative diversity index = 23.40) as compared to others. Species Richness was found highest (6.5) at Missarpur Ganga ghat wheres in Bheemgoda Barrage and Asan conservation reserve species richness was recorded (5). A similar trend was observed in value of Birds species diversity was highest (2.2) in Missarpur Ganga Ghat as compared to Bheemgoda Barrage (1.6) and Asan conservation reserve (1.4). The feeding analysis of avian species showed that maximum number of species were Omnivorous (26 species) followed by insectivorous (11 species), carnivorous (10 species). Four species such as River Lapwing, Black Necked Stork, River Tern, and Painted Stork were under the Near Threatened category, and one species, namely Pallas Fish Eagle, is endangered according to the IUCN Red data book was recorded in the study sites. The present study provided baseline information about the waterbirds of these wetlands.