Karnataka's Ranganatittu bird sanctuary among new Ramsar sites, first in state

Karnataka got its first Ramsar site on Wednesday after the Ranganatittu bird sanctuary near Srirangapatna was declared a wetland of international importance.

The Ranganatittu bird sanctuary in Srirangapatna, Karnataka, has now been declared a Ramsar site, which means it is a protected wetland of international importance. This is the first Ramsar site in Karnataka.

The Ranganatittu bird sanctuary in Srirangapatna, Karnataka, was declared a Ramsar site, which means it is a wetland of international importance. (Image source: LBB)

Ramsar on Wednesday named 10 more sites from India under its list of wetlands to be conserved as global sites for biodiversity, including Ranganatittu. This took the total number of such sites to 64.

Read: India adds 10 more Ramsar sites

The Union environment ministry lauded the move, writing, “Congratulations to all! #Ramsar declares 10 more sites from India as sites of International importance for the conservation of global biological diversity. This brings the total of Ramsar sites to 64 and the surface area covered by these sites to 1,250,360.41 ha.”

Ranganatittu, located on the banks of the Cauvery, hosts around 170 different species of birds, such as the painted stork, kingfishers, cormorants, darter, herons, river tern, egrets, Indian roller, black headed ibis, spoonbill, great stone plover, and spot-billed pelicans, as per the Karnataka tourism website. A variety of mammals and reptiles can also be spotted, such as the common mongoose, flying fox, palm civet, common otter, bonnet macaque, and the marsh crocodile.

According to reports, there are also 188 species of plants, 69 species of fish, 13 species of frogs, and 30 species of butterflies. The sanctuary is just 128 kilometres away from Bengaluru city.

Other sites included in the list are the Koonthankulam Bird Sanctuary, Gulf of Mannar Marine Biosphere Reserve, Vembannur Wetland Complex, Vellode Bird Sanctuary, Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary and Udhayamarthandapuram Bird Sanctuary, all in Tamil Nadu, the Satkosia Gorge in Odisha, Nanda Lake in Goa, and Sirpur Wetland in Madhya Pradesh.