The White Bellied Heron Annual Population Survey 2023 recorded 27 herons in the country this year. It is an increase of three compared to last year. White-bellied herons are one of the world’s critically endangered birds. According to the report, the overall population trend analysis shows that Bhutan has a slightly increasing trend in the White Bellied Heron population. While the increase is not dramatic, it is attributed to the country’s conservation efforts.
sDuring the five-day annual nationwide population survey conducted by the Royal Society for Protection of Nature in March this year, 24 birds were observed in the wild and three in the conservation centre in Tsirang.
The highest number of white-bellied herons was recorded from Punatsangchhu followed by Mangdechhu and Wangchhu.
In 2020, the number was 27, which decreased to 22 in 2021 and last year increased back to 24. The number bounced back to 27 after two years.
“That increase can be attributed to the RSPN’s continuous effort in conservation. We have been doing a lot of conservation activities to save the species. We can relate to the RSPN’s effort as well as other stakeholders like the Department of Forest and Park Services. We are collaboratively working with them,” said Tshering Tobgay, research officer at RSPN.
Some of the major conservation works include collaboration with the local community residing along the river basin and the establishment of a captive breeding centre for the heron at Changchey in Tsirang.
The white-bellied herons survive in freshwater rivers, streams, lakes, and wetlands in subtropical and temperate forests, up to 2,000 metres in altitude depending primarily on fish.
According to the report, due to its extremely small and declining population, the species has been uplifted to critically endangered since 2008. And the decline is projected to increase in the future. And the decline is projected to increase in the future as a result of the loss and degradation of forests and wetlands and through direct exploitation and disturbance of the habitats.
“So if any activities, any infrastructure development, a lot of other kinds of activity, if you engage along the rivers, definitely there is a threat, including illegal fishing or we can call it as unsustainable fishing,” added Tshering Tobgay.
According to RSPN, the decline in the population will have an impact on the ecosystem.
“We have to realise that every animal, every species, has a role in the ecosystem. If any one of the species gets extinct, there will be a disturbance to the food chain or there will be an impact on the ecosystem. Right now, we may not be able to say that it will have an impact because currently due to limited knowledge, we may not be able to quantify the benefits that heron is having to the ecosystem. But, if it’s going extinct, there will be an impact on the ecosystem,” further added Tshering Tobgay.
The white-bellied heron is the rarest in the world and was first spotted in Bhutan by His Majesty The Fourth Druk Gyalpo in 1975. Under His Majesty’s command, the Royal Society for Protection of Nature since 2003 has carried forward the conservation and protection of the bird.
Devika Pradhan
Edited by Sonam Pem
