The riot of pink plumage that adorns the Sewri-Mahul creek in the city could be lost forever, if steps for its conservation are not taken soon.
A recent study by the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) reveals that at least 10 important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs), including the Sewri-Mahul Creek, are in serious danger. Besides the Sewri-Mahul Creek, the Great Indian Bustard sanctuary in Solapur is also on the list. Others endangered biodiversity areas are from Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh and Andaman and Nicobar.
The grassland of the Great Indian Bustard Sanctuary is home to the critically endangered Great Indian Bustard. The report states that their population in the sanctuary has declined from 27 in 2006 to 12 in 2012. It had only three birds in 2013.
Most of these IBAs provide for ecosystem services such as water supply for drinking and agriculture, tourism potential and natural pest control, if managed in a sustainable manner. BNHS studies have shown that the areas, which cover habitats such as coastal and inland wetlands, grasslands and forests, are at the greatest risk of losing their key biodiversity.
The reason for the loss of biodiversity and habitat has been attributed to the destruction and disturbance due to infrastructure development, wrong anti-people conservation policies, indiscriminate livestock grazing beyond traditional pastoral lands, industrial and sewage pollution, indiscriminate agricultural expansion including use of pesticides, rapid urbanisation and poaching.
The findings have been published in the new report titled ‘Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas: A Global Network for Conserving Nature and Benefiting People’. The BNHS has been working closely with UK-based BirdLife International - as its India partner, which has helped in the findings.
Dr Raju Kasambe, project manager, IBA programme, BNHS, said, “Unfortunately in India, nearly 50 per cent of the IBAs are not getting any sort official recognition from the government agencies. These are the areas, which need utmost and urgent protection, if we are really serious about saving the threatened species of birds in India. Our future generations will not pardon us for destroying the important habitats of birds in such a callous manner.”
