Rare bird sighted in Andhra Pradesh

Sangareddy: A rare bird that was rated as vulnerable species by IUCN (International union for Conservation of Nature) was sighted in the Maredumilli forest area in Andhra Pradesh by seasoned bird photographer from Hyderabad. The bird called Green Avadavat or Green Munia was sighted only once before 2022 across Andhra Pradesh by a local explorer […]

Sangareddy: A rare bird that was rated as vulnerable species by IUCN (International union for Conservation of Nature) was sighted in the Maredumilli forest area in Andhra Pradesh by seasoned bird photographer from Hyderabad. The bird called Green Avadavat or Green Munia was sighted only once before 2022 across Andhra Pradesh by a local explorer Harikrishna near Darakonda in the Visakhapatnam district in 2018. The wildlife photographers had sighted the bird four times in the Maredumilli area during the past five months in 2022.

During the last weekend, members of Hyderabad Birding Pals (HBP) went on exploration to the Maredumilli forest area where seasoned wildlife photographer Sriram Reddy had photographed the beautiful bird and several other photographers had also sighted it. Sriram Reddy has said that the widespread trapping of this wonderful bird had resulted in a serious decline in its population over the years. Since it was among the most preferred cagebird, the bird is being trapped and smuggled out of India to North America and Europe. Though the bird is still commonly sighted in and around Mount Abu in Rajasthan, the local tribals will also trap them for use in traditional medicine. The rapid decline of scrubs and grassland was also said to be one of the reasons for the decline of its population. The bird was never sighted in Telangana until today. However, the wildlife photographers were elated with the frequent sightings of this bird in the Maredumilli area in recent months. Wildlife photographers Raja Bandi, Jimmer Carter and a couple of others have also photographed Green Avadavat this year in the Maredumill area.

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