- International Journal of Pure and Applied Zoology (2014) Volume 2, Issue 1

Temporal Variations of Shorebirds and Benthic Community, Traditional Saltpans of East Coast of Southern India

Seasonally the saltpans are acting as alternate foraging habitats for shorebirds. We have estimated the density of shorebirds and benthic organisms from November 2012 to October 2013. The birds were estimated by total count and the invertebrates were sampled at 20 cm depth which used for foraging by shorebirds. Totally 44 water birds /shorebirds were recorded, in which the Little Stint was the maximum density than the other species recorded among the months in different saltpans. Maximum bird density was recorded during the month of January 2013 and minimum density was noted during the month of October 2013. There was a positive relationship between the density of bird species and benthic organisms (P<0.05). From this study, it is inferred that the management of saltpans at coastal wetlands, is a significant approach to the conservation of birds especially migratory shorebirds.

Author(s): J. Pandiyan, B. Naresh and R. Nagarajan

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