DHANAURI

After travelling for two hours, passing the concrete building complexes and riding over bridges, we reached Dhanauri wetland. As I stepped outside the car, I could spot egrets, herons, ibis and many others right there on the village fields. On reaching the wetland, I was bedazzled by the number of waterbirds present there and could foresee a great bird watching experience ahead of me.

From the brightly colored waterbirds like Purple Swamphen, Common Pochard and Painted Stork, to the tall and magnificent Sarus crane, the avifaunal diversity was wondrous to see. We saw many migratory visitors like the Northern Pintail, Mallard, Greylag Goose and a few more feeding together in a small pool in the middle of the wetland.

A chance encounter with a small herd of Nilgai was an added bonus to the visit.

Once you reach Dhanauri, its best to park your vehicle at an open spot and walk around the wetland, looking for birds. The wetland seems to have perfected the balancing act of maintaining a healthy ecosystem. I have been here over a dozen times and in every season, this wetland has something new to offer. The winter months, the wetland is dominated by migratory birds. 

In the hot summer months, you will find a lot of resident birds such as scrubland birds such as paddyfield warblers and Pipits, Oriental Skylarks, Indian Bushlarks, Pied Bushchats Ashy prinia, Drongos and Black-winged Kites, Shikras to name a few. Come monsoon and the Black-breasted Weaver and munias start to build their nests. Of course, in the monsoon getting here is a little tricky !!

What makes Dhanauri wetland and its surrounding area really special is that there is a significant population of the tallest flying birds in the world, the sarus crane. At nearly six feet in height, this majestic bird is a very common sight in and around the area. 

During the summer months (Apr-Aug), visitors may witness the mating ritual dance of the males, where they bow in to the females and jump high up in the air to woo them. It is possible to see over 50-60 sarus cranes in a day during this season. Unaware of their alluring beauty, you will also find the pheasant-tailed jacanas walk the marshes of Dhanauri.

Sadly, since the time I first visited Dhanauri to today, evidence of human disturbance has grown manyfold. There is now a new road construction that cuts through the wetland, garbage dumping which was non-existent three years ago is now a visible sight. There is a new housing unit coming up and recently I heard that the new Jewar airport which is being built, requires land and the government has identified Dhanauri …..

I know I will visit Dhanauri again and again. Dhanauri gives me the best of birding. The marshlands as well as the scrublands. I would rank it a 9/10