A large number of spiny babblers have been seen in areas such as Shaktikhor, Upardanggadhi, Jyandhala, Kaule and Chisapanitar along the Mahabharat Range in the district, according to them. [break]
A 16-member team of bird experts inspected these areas over the last six days and found spiny babblers and their nests in the local forests, informed Bashu Bidari, a member of the inspection team who is also coordinator of Nepal Bird Experts Associations.
“During our six-day monitoring, we found that the bird was now more abundant in the Mahabharat Range than in past years. The mountain range is gradually changing into the best habitat for the rare bird species,” he said.
He went on to say that due to lack of a proper field survey, it has been difficult to estimate the exact number of spiny babblers.
The bird inspection team carried out a field survey in the northern areas of the district for four days in the first phase. Likewise, the team examined the Mahabharat Range area of Chitwan National Park (CNP) over the remaining two days.
The spiny babbler loves to stay in the hills and away from other bird species. Given the conducive atmosphere, there is no better habitat for the bird, said Tika Giri, another bird expert in the inspection team, adding, “I was mesmerized by the presence of the bird in the area.”
“We saw several flocks of spine babbler. We also found up to 25 nests in the area. This clearly hints that the population of the bird in the area has increased considerably,” he said.
He also said the presence of the bird has increased the touristic importance of the hill areas of the district. The government should protect the area and developed it as a habitat for this bird which is unique to the country.
“Rising human encroachment and slash and burn agriculture should be checked to develop the area as a sanctuary for the bird,” suggest bird experts.
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