Migratory Birds Attract Tourists At Pong Dam

Sunil Dutt

With the onset of winter season, migratory birds have started arriving at Pong Dam Lake. About 18, 000 birds of 15 species including Northern Pintail, Headed goose, the common pochard, black-headed goose, the common shelduck and the ruddy shelduck have arrived till now at Pong lake. Last year migratory birds of 95 species were spotted in the dam. This year too, sufficient water level of the dam will play a big role in attracting more migratory birds.  Migratory birds can be seen at Nagrota Suriyan, Nandpur, Bathu di Ladi, Chalwada and different other places also. For the safety and security of these migratory birds, the authorities have set up teams at the Pong Dam. With the arrival of migratory birds at Pong Dam Lake, tourists have also started flocking this place. Pong Dam in Himachal attracts birds from different parts of the high latitude regions, including the Arctic region (Central and North East Siberia), Northern China and Mongolia, and from Eastern Europe. Birds migrating to southern India also utilise Pong Dam wetland as a stopover site, while returning to their northern breeding ground located in the regions outside India. Notably, Pong Dam – a man-made lake created by building a dam to carry water to Rajasthan, was declared a wetland of national importance in 1994. It was accorded international status as a ‘Ramsar Site’ in November, 2002. It’s a resting place for more than one lakh birds, such as common pochard, common teal, bar-headed goose, tufted duck, large cormorant and the ruddy shelduck that visit the lake every year.

Migratory Birds Spotted This Year

* Bar-headed goose

* The common pochard

* Black-headed goose

* The little cormorant

* The ruddy shelduck

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