ZIRO, 5 Jan: The annual Asian waterbird count (AWC) commenced at Siikhe Lake here in Lower Subansiri district last Saturday as part of the nationwide census being conducted from 3-18 January.
The bird census in Ziro is being jointly carried out by the Arunachal Pradesh Birding Club and the Ziro Bird Walk, covering key wetland and farmland habitats, including Siikhe Lake, the
Pigey Poro traditional farmland, the Yasibo wetland areas, the Myochi wetland areas, Tarin fish pond, Khogo Kley side, and the Siiro wetland areas.
The AWC is coordinated globally by the Wetlands International, in collaboration with eBird, aiming to monitor waterbird populations and assess the health of wetlands.
On the second day of the census, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests N Tam joined the field team,lending support to the ongoing conservation initiative.
A notable highlight of the first day was the re-sighting of the Mandarin duck at Siikhe Lake. The migratory species has been recorded at the lake every year since 2022, reaffirming the ecological significance of the wetland.
Other important species documented during the count included the northern lapwing, the grey lapwing, and the Indian pond heron.
