The state of West Bengal is located in the eastern part of India. It has sea beaches, hill stations, wildlife sanctuaries, national parks and pilgrimages, which have beautified this state. These, along with Victoria Memorial, Sunderbans, St. Paul`s Cathedral, etc draw a plethora of tourists here. West Bengal also has bird sanctuaries, which provide protection to the flora and fauna in the state.
Chintamoni Kar Bird Sanctuary
Chintamoni Kar Bird Sanctuary is situated in South Kolkata near Narendrapur Ramkrishna Mission. It was established in the year 1982. It was opened for public visitation by the government of West Bengal and acquired it from private owners in October, 2005. The sanctuary was renamed Chintamani Kar Bird Sanctuary in honor of Chintamoni Kar, a person who had fought many years to bestow the status of "Kayaler Bagan" upon the sanctuary. Some of the common birds found in the sanctuary are rufous woodpecker, spotted dove, black-hooded oriole, cinereous tit, little cormorant and common emerald dove. Some of the common spiders spotted in the sanctuary are garden spider, tent web spider and dark wolf spider. The sanctuary is adorned with butterflies like common jezebel, tawny coster, common leopard and grey pansy.
Kulik Bird Sanctuary
Kulik Bird Sanctuary, also known as Raiganj Wildlife Sanctuary is situated near Raiganj in Uttar Dinajpur district about 30m above sea level. It was established in the year 1985 and is spread over an area of about 1.3 square kilometers. The core area is about 0.14 square kilometers and the rest is buffer area. The bird sanctuary houses 164 species of birds and is adorned with 70,000 to 80,000 migratory birds every year. It is important to note that this sanctuary provides shelter to about 32 to 40 percent of the current population of Asian Openbills of South Asia. To enhance the tourism aspect of the sanctuary, Raiganj Kulik Park close to the sanctuary has been constructed. Funds have been collected. A Nature Interpretation Centre has also been constructed with the aim to showcase the important features of the sanctuary through models, charts and photograph.
Rasikbil Bird Sanctuary
Rasikbil Bird Sanctuary is located on the foothill of Sintura Range of the Eastern Himalayas, in Cooch Behar district of West Bengal. Geographically, this bird sanctuary is a marshland or swamp. It is spread over an area of about 175 hectares. Some of the birds which have been spotted in the sanctuary are cormorants, storks, ibis, spoonbill, kingfisher and parrots. Other aspects of the sanctuary are aviary and tortoise rescue center, python house, leopard house, crocodile rehabilitation center and deer park.
