Field trip to Gharana wetland organized by Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Jammu

Department of Environmental Sciences organized a one-day field tripto Gharana wetland Jammu. The purpose of the trip was to acquaintthe students withdifferent varieties of resident and migratory birds visiting the area during winter and to provide them with hands-on training on various monitoring techniques tostudy thewater quality and biological aspects of the wetlands. Pertinent to mention that Gharana wetland is home to more than ninety species of resident as well as migratory birdsand is located along the Central Asian Flyway. It is a notified wetland conservation reserve under the Jammu and Kashmir Wildlife Protection Act (1978) and has international recognition as one of the important bird areas (IBAs) in the world, declared by BirdLife International (UK) and the Bombay Natural History Society.Some of the birds seen by the students included flocks of bar-headed Geese, northern pintails, northern shovelers, white-breasted ibis, herons, cormorants, coots, and water hens, to name a few.ProfessorPiyushMalaviya, Head,Department of Environmental Sciencesin his inaugural remarks said that such field trips are essential for students to obtain practical knowledge of the subject whichcomplements the theoretical knowledge gained during classroom teaching. Mr. Ashish Mahajan, Range Officer Wetlands, Department of Wildlife Protection, Government of J&K interacted with the students and briefed them about various conservation measures adopted by the Department of Wildlife for the management of Gharana wetland. He informed thatthe count and the diversity of both the migratory and resident birds have shown a tremendous increase this year. Dr. DeepikaSlathia, Teacher Inchargeof the trip along with Ms.TseringDolkar, Ms. Shivali Sharma and Mr. Mohinder Kumar guided the students about various water quality monitoringtechniques and discussed about the habitat, behaviour patterns and habitat preferences of the birds visiting the area. The students used high-power binoculars to observethe activities of the birds in the wetland.The students also interacted with the locals to understand their perspective regarding the management measures taken by the Department of Wildlife Protection, Govt. of J&K and sensitized them regarding the importance of the wetland in the area. The students also visited the Suchetgarh Border. A total of 25 students along with the faculty members, participated in this educational trip.