The Forest Department will carry out a synchronised census of terrestrial birds in reserve forests and reserve lands in Tiruchi Forest Division as part of a Statewide exercise to be held on March 2 and 3.
The census will be carried out involving front-line staff of the Forest Department, bird experts, and volunteers. The participants would be split into teams to carry out the census of terrestrial birds within the limits of the Tiruchi Forest Division.
The Tiruchi Forest Division has 86 reserve forests and four reserve lands in its jurisdiction. The reserve forests are in Thatchankurichi, Nedungur, Veeramalai, Thatchamalai, Sobanapuram, and Naganallur. The preparatory exercise and the training session for the front-line staff of the Forest Department regarding the terrestrial bird census would be conducted on March 2. The actual census would take place on March 3 between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m., said a Forest Department official.
Bird experts would be involved in the census which is to be done simultaneously at the State level. The ways of conducting the census, identification of terrestrial birds so as to record them, will form part of the training session to be conducted ahead of carrying out the census, the official said.
A similar synchronised census on terrestrial birds was carried out in Tiruchi Forest Division last year during which terrestrial birds of different species, including Indian scops owl, short toed snake eagle, rosy starling, Asian brown flycatcher, and Indian white eye were recorded. The objective of carrying out the census is to ascertain if there was any habitat loss for terrestrial birds in Tiruchi Forest Division and prepare action plan accordingly to protect them, the official added.
The census of terrestrial birds is to be done more than a month after the Statewide synchronised census of wetland birds was carried out by the Forest Department in 18 locations in Tiruchi Forest Division . A total number of 136 bird species were recorded in various wetlands falling under the Tiruchi Forest Division limits during the two-day State-wide synchronised wetland bird census 2024 that was conducted in late January.
