PATNA, Feb. 9 -- The Bird Survey as part of the Asian Waterbird Census, concluded in Bihar's Kosi region on Sunday with encouraging findings and sighting of some of the rare migratory species. Gopal Sharma, regional head of the Zoological Survey of India (Bihar & Jharkhand) said that the survey over the last three days, 4,982 birds of 92 different species were sighted in the Kosi region. "Detailed analysis will be done. The full report will emerge in June. There were some new species sighted, while some older ones were also not found this time, which is not unusual," he added. Naveen Kumar, state coordinator of the Indian Bird Conservation Network, said that the diversity of bird specie, with around nine migratory ones, was a pleasant experience. "The sighting of Baikal Teal, a rare migratory duck breeding in Siberia and Russia, was quite encouraging. They are known for their erratic movement. They were not seen for the last few years in Kosi region. Even in Bharatpur and Chilka they have not been spotted for years, but we could capture them in camera," said Naveen Kumar, state coordinator of the Indian Bird Conservation Network. He said that Fulvous Whistling Teals, a rare variety, were also seen in large numbers with the commonly found Lesser Whistling Teals. They are seen in Kaizaranga and some other parts of the north-east," he added. The survey, a regular feature initiated by the Bihar government since 2022, has been able to also spot rare species like Gadwall, migratory birds which breed in northern Europe, Asia, and North America and migrate to warmer regions like the Indian subcontinent during winter, Norther Pintail, which travel from Europe, Siberia, and Northern Asia by October and stay till March to escape the arctic winter. Other rare migratory species found included Shoveler. White-eyed Pochard, Garganey, Eurasian Wigeon etc. "The diversity is encouraging. Wherever there is less human intervention, migratory birds come," he added. Bird census data reveals continually increasing migratory bird numbers at protected wetlands, which calls for the need to protect the wetlands, as not all of them are in good shape despite the state being naturally endowed and hosting six Ramsar sites currently. According to ISRO's National Wetland Inventory and Assessment, Bihar, with around 4,000 plus mapped wetlands stretched over nearly 4 lakh hectares, is among India's most wetland-rich states, but encroachment and neglect have taken a heavy toll, prompting conservation measures from the Bihar government. Sharma said that Bihar has 412 listed species of birds, out of which four have become critically endangered, three species are in endangered category, while 10 species are vulnerable and 18 others near threatened. "This is happening due to a variety of reasons, viz. climate change, shrinking habitat, inadequate food availability and very high temperature over a long period of time. Some birds have also fallen to hunting," he added....