BUCEROS Vol. 2, No. 3, (1997) RAMSAR SITES basin, a kilometre southeast of Bharatpur (27°13’ ° (Contd. from Vol. 2, No. 2) N & 77 32’ E) at an elevation of 174 m above msl. The Park was designated as a Ramsar site in 1981 and is also the only wetland in India to The two preceding issues of be designated as a World Heritage site. The Buceros had given accounts on five of the wetland is a mosaic of a) freshwater lakes and presently six Ramsar Sites of India. This is- associated marshes (lacustrine) b) freshwater sue deals with the last remaining site, ponds (under 8 ha), marshes, swamps Keoladeo National Park, Rajasthan. Prior to (palustrine), c) water-storage reservoirs, dams, the account on Keoladeo National Park, we and d) seasonally-flooded grassland, savanna, give, in brief, the criteria for identifying wet- palm savanna. (Directory of Indian Wetlands lands of international importance based on 1993, WWF-India & AWB). The habitat and fish fauna, as recommended by the 4th and wildlife of KNP is well documented, mainly 6th meetings (Montreux, Switzerland, 1990 from a decade long study (1980-1990) by the and Brisbane, Australia, 1996) of the Con- Bombay Natural History Society, and much of ference of Contracting Parties to the Conven- the information given in this write-up is based tion on Wetlands (Ramsar, Iran 1971). The on this work. For more information, see Vijayan first three criteria based on i) representative (1991). of unique wetlands, ii) plants and animals, and iii) waterfowl, have been discussed in History Buceros, Vol. 2, No. 1. The evolution of KNP is an example of The specific criteria based on fish man’s ingenuity in modifying a natural ecosys- fauna to consider a wetland to be interna- tem for his own gain, which has in due course tionally important are: benefited not only man himself, but also the wildlife of the surrounding areas. The use of artificial flooding in a natural depression, by im- 1. It supports a significant proportion of in- pounding and controlling water levels, was the digenous fish subspecies, species or fami- turning point in the emergence of the present day lies, life-history stages, species interac- KNP. The main objective of the Maharaja of tions and/or populations that are repre- Bharatpur, some 250 years ago, was to create a sentative of wetland benefits and/or val- refuge for game hunting, protection of the ‘sa- ues and thereby contributes to global bio- cred’ cow from hostile farmers, provision of logical diversity; or grazing land for buffaloes and for protecting the town from deluges, which occurred frequently 2. It is an important source of food for fishes, in those days. During the early years, KNP had spawning ground, nursery and/or migra- the reputation of being a winter resort of wild- tion path on which fish stocks, either within fowl and a duck-shooting jheel. the wetland or elsewhere, depend. After independence, the refuge was threatened by the demand to convert it into agri- KEOLADEO NATIONAL PARK, cultural land. However, the Bombay Natural BHARATPUR (RAJASTHAN) History Society (BNHS), through the efforts of Dr. Salim Ali, managed to impress upon the con- Keoladeo National Park (KNP), formerly cerned authorities the need for declaring the ref- known as the Bharatpur Ghana Bird Sanctu- uge as a bird sanctuary, which was achieved in ary, is one of the most enchanting waterfowl 1956. Subsequently, it was raised to the status refuges in the world. The Park is situated on of a National Park in 1980, which resulted the extreme western edge of the Gangetic (among other developments), in the stoppage of BUCEROS Vol. 2, No. 3, (1997) grazing by livestock in the Park (see box). The The total area of the Park is 29 km2. The Park’s designation as a Ramsar Site (1981) and a terrain is flat with a gentle slope towards the World Heritage Site (1985) have given it the in- centre forming a depression, which forms the ternational recognition that it deserves. main submersible area (c. 8.5 km2 - now reduced to 7.5 km2 according to a study) of the Park. This submersible area has been divided into various unequal compartments by means of dykes. Thick alluvium dominates the area. Patches of saline soil are common in terrestrial areas. The boundary of the Park is demarcated Keoladeo National Park & Buffaloes by a masonry wall and the Park is surrounded by about 18 villages. Buffaloes (and other livestock) were earlier an integral part of KNP. One of the The main source of water to the Park is purposes of setting up the refuge by the Ma- the Ajan Bund reservoir, which receives water haraja of Bharatpur was to protect the ‘sa- from the rivers Banganga and Gambhir. Sev- cred cow’ by the creation of grazing lands eral earthen bunds and sluice gates help to con- - otherwise the animals would stray into tain and regulate the water levels in the Park. crop fields and earn the ire of farmers. The water gradually dries up during May-June, leaving only small pools in the deeper areas. However, after the upgradation of the Sanctuary into a National Park, grazing was The climate of the area is subtropical, stopped in 1982 after demands from con- characterised by distinct summer, monsoon and servationists. This step affected about 7000 winter seasons. The rainy season is from late heads of buffaloes and cows. Since the ban, June till October, averaging 662 mm. January feral cattle (a few hundred) account for the is the coldest month, with mean minimum tem- major part of the total herbivores of the perature of 6°C. Showers may also occur in Park, besides other wildlife like Nilgai, winter. Summer sets in mid March, and maxi- Sambhar and Cheetal. mum temperatures average 45°C (June). The removal of the primary consumer (buf- The vegetation of the Park can be di- faloes) from the wetland system was not vided into two major habitats - wetland and ter- without its impacts. One of these was the restrial. The forest vegetation, a relic of dry subsequent excessive growth of a perennial deciduous forest, is a mosaic of scrub, grass- grass, Paspalum distichum, which caused land and woodland. It has xerophytic and semi- several changes in the aquatic habitat, af- xerophytic species consisting predominantly of fecting many bird species. Experiments Acacia nilotica, Prosopis cineraria, Salvadora were conducted to control the overabun- oleoides and Capparis decidua communities. dance of this grass by methods such as bull- Mitragyna parvifolia occurs in patches. The dozing, controlled burning, harvesting etc., grass cover is dominated by Vetiveria but the problem still persists. The solution zizaniodes, Demostachya bipinnata and now suggested by scientists is controlled Cynodon dactylon. grazing by buffaloes, which is not without controversy, can create management prob- In the wetland area, the grass Paspalum lems, and has legal ramifications. distichum is dominant and widespread. Sedges such as Scirpus tuberosus and Cyperus rotundus General description of KNP occupy the border areas. The aquatic species include Nymphaea nouchali, N. stellata, BUCEROS Vol. 2, No. 3, (1997) Nelumbium, Lemna, Azolla and Ipomoea 86, 10 in 1990-91 and 5 during 1992- aquatica. Submerged plants such as Hydrilla, 93. The birds did not comes to Najas, Vallisneria, Ceratophyllum and Bharatpur during 1993-94 and 1994- Potamogeton are also present. The exotic weed 95, but were present again during Eichhornia crassipes is kept under check annu- 1995-96 (4 birds) and 1996-97 (3 ally by manual removal. birds). Besides the decline in num- bers, the conditions in the Park are said to have become unsuitable for Wildlife the crane due to the excessive spread and growth of the grass Paspalum Birds: Of its wildlife, the Park is best known distichum after the ban on grazing by for its birdlife. Ornithologically, the Park is sig- buffaloes. nificant because of its strategic location as a stag- ing ground for migratory waterfowl, its multi- During 1992-93, two Siberian tude of birds, especially during winter, and as Crane chicks, reared in captivity, the breeding grounds for many bird species. It were released at Bharatpur. It was is extremely important as it is the only regular hoped that these birds would follow wintering area in India for the endangered Sibe- the wild Siberian Cranes that come rian Crane (see box). The major groups of birds in winter and add to the population represented in the aquatic area, in order of abun- of wild birds. If successful, more and dance, are Anatidae, Rallidae, Phalacrocoracidae more birds could be reared for the and Ciconiidae. same purpose. However, the chicks did not mix or migrate back with the wild birds and were taken back into captivity. During January 1994, four The Siberian Crane in additional chicks were released with Bharatpur the earlier two birds. The experiment ended in a failure again, as no wild The Siberian Crane Grus Siberian Cranes arrived that winter leucogeranus is a highly endangered and the released birds either disap- crane of the world. There are three peared or died after some time. Four populations of this species: the west- more birds were introduced during ern, presently of 8-14 birds, that win- 1996-97. According to latest reports ters in Iran, the eastern, of about (August 1997), one of the birds was 3000 birds that winters in China, and found dead, two others have wan- the central, of 3 birds that winters in dered to areas outside the Park, and India. KNP is the only known win- only one bird still remains in the tering ground for the central popula- Park.