Global bird count: At 518, state tops India species list
Times of India | 17 February 2026
Kolkata: For the fourth year in a row, Bengal has recorded the highest number of species during the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) across 37 states and union territories in the country.
The exercise, one of the largest birding events in the world, was conducted between Feb 13 and 16, and of the 1,083+ species recorded in India, Bengal topped the list with 518 species.
This is a preliminary list that was still being compiled till reports last came in, said Santanu Manna of Birdwatchers' Society (BWS) and also the Bengal coordinator of the event.
The number of uploaded checklists (a list of birds that one can see, hear, or identify) from Bengal, is 2,012 compared to 2,542 in 2024. Kerala topped India in terms of checklists with 12,702+ entries.
The overall species in India rose this time to 1,083 from 1,068 last year.
Birbhum topped Bengal list with the most number of species — 219. Birbhum is followed by South 24 Parganas and Malda with 201 and 180 species, respectively. In terms of checklists, South 24 Parganas emerged as the top district in the state with 359 checklists, followed by Malda (311), and Kolkata (218).
Among the key sightings this year are that of snowy-browed flycatcher (normally a hill species) and smew in Malda by Sayanta Basak, common starling in Baruipur by Sujit Kumar Mandal. The Hodgson's bushchat, recorded in Bolpur both before and during GBBC, is an important record from Bengal, said Kanad Baidya of BWS.
"Under the four-day event that started in 1998 by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society, birdwatchers go out, count birds, and upload the data on e-bird — an online database of bird observations," said Sujan Chatterjee of Birdwatchers' Society.
Asked why the number of species is hovering around the 500+ mark for the past few years, Chatterjee said more people listing around Kolkata, the dates clashing either with Madhyamik or HS may be some of the reasons. "More camps, campus bird walks are being held to encourage citizens, including students, and ignite the passion of birding among them," he added.
The top observers on the species list are Subhra Pakhira (273), Baharuddin Sk (245) and Sayanta Basak (169). "Each district submitted at least three checklists. Number of species recorded in every exercise in past four years is 382, while number of species recorded only this year is 6. Number of species recorded during the last four years but not this year is 25," said Manna. Among the campuses in Bengal covered during the exercise are IIM Joka, Presidency University, Durgapur College, Bijoygarh Jyotish Ray College and Shyampur Siddheswari Mahavidyalaya in Howrah.