One of the most enchanting waterfowl refuges of the world, a Ramsar site and a World Heritage Site, Keoladeo National Park (KNP) is home to rich biological diversity.


Keoladeo National Park is located in Bharatpur district of the state of Rajasthan. Situated 180 Km from Delhi, it lies in the golden triangle of Delhi-Agra-Jaipur - the famous tourist destinations and is well connected by road. Formerly known as Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary, the Park encompasses an area of 29 Sq Km at the confluence of Gambhir and Banganga rivers. The Park has a remarkable diversity of habitats and is an ideal haven for aquatic, semi-aquatic and terrestrial wildlife. Also known as "Ghana" (meaning dense forest), the Park is named after the Keoladeo (Lord Shiva) temple located inside the Park.

The terrain is almost flat with elevations varying from 173 m to 176 m above mean sea level with a gentle slope towards the central depression. The submersible area of about 900 ha is divided into various compartments by earthen dykes in which sluice gates are built at strategic locations to regulate the water supply. The mean annual rainfall is 650 mm. The wetland compartments are surrounded by terrestrial habitat of about 2000 ha except in a small area on the northwest which is contiguous with the agricultural fields of nearby villages.

Modified and managed by man, the Park is divided into a number of blocks in which water is contained by earthen dykes forming a system of freshwater marshes. The blocks are flooded each monsoon via the Ghana canal with water drawn from Ajan Bund. The flow of water through the Park is controlled by sluice gates at strategic points along the course of the canal. All the blocks are usually inundated in about six to eight weeks' time, the excess water passes through Jatoli village outside the National Park and into Bharatpur city's flood control drain. Water remains in the Park till it dries naturally in the scorching heat of summer. KNP is a dynamic and fragil

e ecosystem. It is a man-modified system that requires intervention in the form of a well thought out management programme. The Park needs continuous and effective management of the water itself, of its habitats, and of people.

By virtue of being one of the best birdwatching sites of Asia more than 100,000 visitors come to the park every year. The range of visitors also varies from very serious birdwatchers to school children to general tourist among which nearly 45,000 visitors come from abroad. In addition the location of the park is such that tourist visiting Agra, Mathura and Jaipur invariably stop over at Bharatpur. To top all this and contribute to further diversity of the stakeholders of the park, 11 villages surround the park. So the stakeholder group varies from rickshaw pullers, guides, tour operators, tourists, park staff, the Royal family of Bharatpur and the local community. The location, the characteristics, the importance of the park all makes its requirements very unique as well as very diverse.

Assistance

The intention, thanks to the construction of a Wetlands Interpretation Centre financed from sponsoring funds provided by Daniel Swarovski & Co and the implementation of a nature trail in co-operation with Swarovski Optik, is to make the stay for visitors to the Keoladeo National Park as interesting and informative as possible. The local population is also involved in this nature conservation project supported by Swarovski, the WWF and the Government of Rajasthan: some of them earn their living as guides, rickshaw d

rivers and employees in different areas of the nature conservation centre. The central aim of the Salim Ali Visitor Interpretation Program is to show people - natives as well as tourists - very clearly the importance of conserving the wetlands, and in particular of conserving the water, thus ensuring the continuity of this nature reserve and its immense variety of species. The ceremonial opening of the "Swarovski Salim Ali Centre" on 17 January 2006 took place in the presence of members of the Rajasthan and Tirol Governments, high-ranking officials of the WWF India, and members of the Swarovski advisory board and Swarovski Optik's executive board.

Species

This Park is known world over as a bird paradise, the rich diversity of resident and migratory bids is owing to KNP's unique location. On the one hand, the Park's location to the south of the Himalays means that many migratory birds from the Palearctic region converge here in tens of thousands. On the other hand, the Park's remarkable diversity of habitats attracts a great number of breeding birds. Together, visiting migrants and resident birds, make up for a dazzling variety of birds- in total over 370 species. This place is also home to three species of cranes: The Sarus crane - tallest flying bird, Common crane and Demoiselle crane. Nesting is an unmatched spectacle with around 130 species breeding here. Heronry as a nesting phenomenon can be observed in close quarters during the boat ride. Cormorants, egrets, spoonbills and ibises distributed over more than 100 trees in several parts of the park. Up to 100 nests can be found in an individual large tree.

Winters here are marvelous, with water surfaces covered by 25 species of waterfowl, in huge numbers. The grassland and woody areas of the park are home to kingfishers, bee-eaters, rollers, warblers, and the very attractive paradise fly catcher. Fruit laden trees are inhabited by bulbuls, mynahs, pigeons, doves, babblers and the grasslands by warblers, larks and pipits.