Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary

{{Short description|Mangrove habitat and bird sanctuary in Goa, India}}

{{For|the other Salim Ali bird sanctuary|Thattekad Bird Sanctuary}}

{{Infobox protected area

|name = Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary

|alt_name = Dr. Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary

|iucn_category =

|photo = Salim_Ali_Sanctuary.jpg

|photo_alt =

|photo_caption = Entrance of the sanctuary

|photo_width =

|map = India Goa

|map_alt =

|map_caption = Map of Goa, India

|map_width =

|mark = Lightgreen pog.svg

|location = Chorão, Goa, India

|nearest_city = Panaji

|coordinates = {{coord|15.5146|N|73.8575|E|region:IN-GA|format=dms|display=inline,title}}

|coords_ref =

|area = {{Convert|178|ha|acre|abbr=on}}

|established = 1988

|visitation_num =

|visitation_year =

|governing_body =

|world_heritage_site =

|url =

}}

Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary is an estuarine mangrove habitat, which is declared as the bird sanctuary, and located on western tip of the Island of Chorão along the Mandovi River, Goa, in India. The sanctuary is named after Salim Ali, the eminent Indian ornithologist.

The sanctuary and island are accessed by a ferry service running between Ribander and Chorão. The sanctuary has a paved walk that runs between mangroves of Rhizophora mucronata, Avicennia officinalis and other species.

Description

File:Salim_ali_sanctuary_walkway.jpg

The size of the sanctuary is {{Convert|178|ha|acre|abbr=on}}. The area is covered by low mangrove forest.

Flora and fauna

File:India Goa Chapora River Colony of Birds.jpg

Several species of birds have been recorded and the common species include the striated heron and western reef heron. Other species that have been recorded include the little bittern, black bittern, red knot, jack snipe and pied avocet (on transient sandbanks).{{cite journal|author=Borges, S.D. & A.B.Shanbhag|title=Additions to the avifauna of Goa, India|journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society|volume=104|issue=1|year=2007|pages=98–101}} The sanctuary is also host to mudskippers, fiddler crabs and other mangrove habitat specialists. A species of crustacean Teleotanais indianis was described based on specimens obtained in the sanctuary.{{cite journal|journal=Species Diversity|volume=18|year=2013|pages=237–243|title=Description of a new mangrove root dwelling species of Teleotanais (Crustacea: Peracarida: Tanaidacea) from India, with a key to Teleotanaidae|author1=Larsen, Kim |author2=Gobardhan Sahoo |author3=Zakir Ali Ansari |name-list-style=amp |url=http://drs.nio.org/drs/bitstream/2264/4435/1/Species_Diversity_18_237a.pdf}}

Media

File:Mangrove_crab_01.JPG|un-id'ed Crab

File:Mangrove_crab_02.JPG|Porcelain fiddler

File:Mangrove_mudskipper.JPG|Mudskipper

File:Mangrove_crab_04.JPG|un-id'ed Crab

File:Rhizophora_mucronata13.JPG|Rhizophora mucronata fruit

File:Rhizophora_mucronata11.JPG|Rhizophora mucronata leaves

See also

References

{{reflist}}