The Sundarban Tiger Reserve (STR) has now also become a haven for birds. Recently, STR authorities made a report on the occasion of their third annual bird festival, which cites 154 sighted species of birds in the reserve — 12 of which are endangered.
The festival, the first of which was in 2023, sees expert bird-watchers gather for two to four days in the forest area in January, and record birds.
In 2023, 145 bird species were recorded. A total of 5,065 birds were seen. In 2024, 145 bird species were recorded, but 8,776 birds were spotted. In 2025, a total of 31,926 birds were recorded — with 51 migratory species and 103 resident species.
A senior STR official said, “Sundarban, the only mangrove tiger habitat, is an abode for avian biodiversity as well. Two important flyways overlap here, the Central Asian Flyway and the East Asia-Australasian Flyway. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is inundated under tidal influx on a daily basis, thereby creating various localized ecosystems and niches like the aquatic, shores, mudflats, and the mangrove forests.”
He said, “Sundarban is also a paradise for kingfisher birds. Pied Kingfisher, stork-billed kingfisher, black-capped kingfisher, brown-winged kingfisher, collared kingfisher, common kingfisher and white-breasted kingfisher (which is the state bird of West Bengal) have nests in Sundarban areas. They eat fish, crab, shrimps, insects, and lizards which are easily available in these areas. Among these kingfishers, the Pied Kingfisher can hover like a helicopter.”
According to the forest department’s report, out of 154 bird species, 45 species of waders, mudflat birds and shore birds were recorded, and eight species of raptors, 91 species of forest birds, three species of waterfowls, and seven species of other birds were recorded.
Chief Wild Life Warden of West Bengal Debal Roy said, “Sundarban is the resting point of the Central Asian Flyway and it is also the convergence area of the Central Asian Flyway and the East Asia-Australasian flyway. So here, huge bird diversity can be seen. However, it is a restricted place… We started to organise this festival so that every year at a particular time, at least bird-lovers can watch birds from the core area of Sundarban.”
About 12 species of threatened birds were spotted during the bird festival which are Eurasian curlew, brown-winged kingfisher, black-capped kingfisher, grey plover, lesser sand plover, terek sandpiper, common redshank, brown-headed gull, black-headed gull, common tern, lesser adjutant and osprey.
In the core area of the Sundarban Tiger Reserve, 100 species of birds were recorded, while 90 were spotted in the buffer area of the reserve forest. Outside the protected area, 129 species of birds were seen by the bird-watchers.
In the Matla forests of the Sundarbans, 108 species of birds were recorded, Kalas recorded 95 species, and Sajnekhali recorded 64 species (the lowest). In the National Park West area, 81 species were recorded, the National Park East area recorded 70 species, and the Basirhat area recorded 73 bird species.