The most beautiful bird in India
India is a bird-rich country with about 1250 species
recorded, representing about 13% of all avian
species found in the world. Such richness is a result of the diversity
of habitats, the tolerance and caring of its people, and the great
number of protected wild places in one of the most populous areas on
earth.
All birds are beautiful, but some seem to have more visual appeal to
us than
others. India's great bird diversity means that we have an abundance
of avian stars amongst them. Which is the most beautiful Indian bird
is then a valid question, and one that begs an answer.
The best way to settle this debate was to receive
independent feedback - a lot of it! And that is what we set
ourselves to do. As a first step we decided to short-list 10 of the
most beautiful birds resident in India. The short-listing was done by an independent panel of 38 birders who
have considerable 1st hand field experience in India. The panel chose a representative cross-section of key species
that inhabit our area. Their choice is presented in the following
pages.
We then put up the
selected birds for open voting and received 544 responses during
November 2010. All the birds received support, but the clear leaders
were the:
Himalayan Monal
Fire-tailed Myzornis
Asian Paradise-flycatcher
Indian Peafowl
and the winner with 100 (18%) votes was the:
Himalayan Monal
The Fire-tailed Myzornis was a close second.
The voting to select the 'Most Beautiful Bird in India'
is now closed, but the presentation remains available for all to
enjoy.
In conclusion, it goes without saying that these are not the only
striking birds around us. Picking a top 10 is never about which
bird to include but which to leave out. Beauty does lie in the
eye of the beholder, and this is even more appropriate for birds and
like. So it is certain that some of these birds may not even make your
list. But it is good to make a start – if for nothing else but to know
more about the birds in our country, to appreciate them, and to
support them in their fight for survival.
Sumit K. Sen
Series
Editor
Notes: i)
Pressing 'NEXT' on each page will take you on a round tour of the
entire exhibition.
ii) Best viewed at 1024x768 screen resolution.
iii) Bird ranges are marked in
green
in accompanying maps
