Water Birds in India

Water Birds in India

Water birds are birds that live in water. The aquatic habitats could either be fresh water or marine. These birds rely on the water body for their food. These water habitats can be reservoir, marshes, ponds, lakes etc. Based on the different type of habitats and their preferred prey the birds get adapted accordingly. Aquatic habitats are often rich in food sources as water is the cradle of life. From fish to frogs, snakes to eels anything that fits the mouth of a bird is prey. Small waders like plovers go behind worms , insects which are abundant in tidal mudflats. 

The water birds in Tidal mudflats are mostly the shore birds , herons and kingfishers. The Tidal mudflats are exposed during the low tide and many invertebrates are left behind from ocean. So the birds use that time to feed their food. Western Reef Egret, Dunlin, Spotted Redshank, Eurasian Oyster Catcher, Lesser Sand Plover, Great Thick Knee, Eurasian Curlew, Ruff, Common Green Shank, Black-tailed Godwit, Pallas's Gull, Ruddy Turnstone, Little Stint are few birds that can be seen in Tidal Mudflats.

Rivers and Streams are fresh water habitats that come from rains or melting snow. Their uniqueness is the steady flow of water, so birds are adapted to the slow streams and the giant torrents in himalayan streams. Main food for birds in this terrain or fishes. Few eats insects and crustaceans also which are abundant in rivers and streams. Crested Kingfisher, Grey wagtail, River Tern, River lapwing, Plumbeous water redstart, Common Kingfisher, Pallas's Fish Eagle, Blue Whistling Thrush, Little Forktail, Brown Dipper, White Wagtail, Brown-headed Gull are few birds seen in rivers and streams.

Marshes and Lakes are another best habitat for water birds. They are low water regions with no trees. They are ideal for wading birds and reeds are the major vegetation in marshes. They are good hiding habitat for birds too. Also prey population is very good in marshes, so birds take advantage of this habitat. Eurasian Spoonbill, Woolly-necked stork, Black-necked stilt,Painted Snipe, Pied Avocet, Yellow Bittern, Gadwall, Moorhen, Pheasant-tailed jacana, Purple heron are few birds that are seen in Marshes and Lakes. 

Mangroves are found along the coast of India. The roots of Mangrove trees are above the water and that supports wide varieties of life. From Mudskippers to Crabs, the prey population is abundant for birds. The birds that can be seen in Mangroves are Black-capped Kingfisher, Pond heron, Common Redshank, Great Egret, Brown-winged Kingfisher, Brahminy Kite.

Estuaries is the coastal body of brackish water. Because of the tidal action, the prey is rich in Estuaries. Main birds in Estuaries are the flamingos. Flamingos are filter feeders, so they use the shallow water to filter the plentiful shrimp found estuary. Terns fly above and below to catch the fishes in estuary. Birds found in estuary are Lesser-Crested Tern, Lesser Flamingo, Eurasian Whimbrel, Slender-billed Gull, Caspian Tern , Painted Stork , Intermediate Egret , Pied Kingfisher, Dalmatian Pelican and the list goes on. 

Aquatic habitats are very important for bird population and most of the water habitats are taken over by humans which affect the bird population tremendously. Most of the water birds now live in polluted water habitats and there is a steep decline in population of water birds. The Government should take necessary actions to protect the water habitats and help in conserving this wide variety of water birds.