Indian Skimmer

• The endangered Indian Skimmer was spotted along the Ghaghra river at Dudhwa Tiger Reserve.

ABOUT INDIAN SKIMMER

• Indian Skimmer is an unusual looking bird with a striking red, orange beak where the lower bill is longer than the upper bill.
• Also known as Indian scissors bill.
• Characteristics
  • It measures 40 to 43 cm in length and has a wingspan of 110 cm.
  • It feeds by opening its mouth and skimming the top of river water with its lower bill for fish, larvae and shrimps.
  • They breed between February to June and raise one to three chicks per clutch.
• Less than 6,500 Indian Skimmers are left globally.
• Global distribution- North Indian rivers, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, China, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.
• About 20% of the total population nests along river Chambal.
• IUCN red list status- Endangered.

GHAGRA- A SAFE HAVEN

• Ghaghra, a sanctuary for numerous threatened species, serves as one of the last strongholds for the critically endangered gharial and Gangetic dolphin in UP.
• Both Gharial and Indian Skimmer need suitable sandbars to nest.
• Ghaghra has many sand islands all along its length.
• Indian Skimmers are highly threatened species and are extremely vulnerable to habitat loss.
• Threats– Sand mining, agricultural activities, cattle movement and human disturbance are major threats to sandbar habitats of the bird, which are seasonally formed during summers.