India

Keoladeo National Park

WHS Score 2.78
rate
Votes 48 Average 3.06
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Votes for Keoladeo National Park

1.5

  • Afshin Iranpour
  • Lucio Gorla

2.0

  • Carlo Sarion
  • Dorejd
  • Joyce van Soest
  • lichia
  • Little Lauren Travels
  • Philipp Leu
  • Solivagant

2.5

  • Clyde
  • Els Slots
  • Frederik Dawson
  • Jakubmarin
  • Jon Opol
  • Juropa
  • Luke LOU
  • Mikko
  • nan
  • Ralf Regele
  • Richard Stone
  • Tony H.

3.0

  • Bernard Joseph Esposo Guerrero
  • Christravelblog
  • Elisabeth Fransisca Situmorang
  • Hanming
  • Jezza
  • Kevin McFarland
  • Tarquinio_Superbo

3.5

  • Alexander Lehmann
  • Craig Harder
  • PabloNorte
  • Philipp Peterer
  • Shandos Cleaver
  • Svein Elias
  • YAO WEI
  • Zoë Sheng

4.0

  • Daniel Gabi
  • David Marton
  • Francky D'Hoop
  • John Smaranda
  • _johsch_
  • Lukasz Palczewski
  • Randi Thomsen
  • Wojciech Fedoruk

4.5

  • Stanislaw Warwas
  • Travelure

5.0

  • Fede1203
  • Ludvan

Keoladeo National Park comprises a wetland that is important for migratory waterfowl.

Located in the middle of the Central Asian migratory flyway, it is an important wintering place for birds from colder regions in the North, such as Siberia and China. 375 bird species have been recorded here; among them the rare Siberian crane, which is now considered extinct in the property. The wet areas in the park rely on water supply from a reservoir.

Community Perspective: birders love(d) it, but the more skeptical Nan notes that “the wetland that forms the national park is an artificial creation by the English to attract birds for... hunting”.  Keoloadeo is accessible by bus from Agra. The park is best visited during the monsoon when the birds start nesting.

Site Info

Official Information
Full Name
Keoladeo National Park (ID: 340)
Country
India
Status
Inscribed 1985 Site history
History of Keoladeo National Park
1985: Inscribed
Inscribed
WHS Type
Natural
Criteria
  • x
Links
UNESCO
whc.unesco.org
All Links
UNESCO.org
Related Resources
News Article
  • Oct. 7, 2014 economictimes.indiatimes.com — Keoladeo National Park faces survival threat
  • Sept. 13, 2012 deccanherald.com — Birds head back to Keoladeo Park
  • Dec. 17, 2009 timesofindia.indiatimes.com — The Keoladeo National Park is in the danger of losing its Unesco World Heritage Site status if the state government fails to build a drain to bring water into the reserve.
  • Jan. 23, 2008 timesofindia.indiatimes.com — After a threat by Unesco to drop the Bharatpur bird sanctuary from its world heritage list, . Rajasthan government is scrambling to bring 300 million cubic feet of water from Goverdhan drain to Keoladeo National Park.
  • Feb. 26, 2007 today.reuters.com — Drought-ridden Indian bird park loses its birds: Years of poor monsoon rains have left most of this World Heritage site near Bharatpur in the desert state of Rajasthan dry and cracked, while local farmers insist on getting most of what little rain water is dammed to irrigate their fields.This has forced most of the thousands of migratory birds that would once spectacularly descend on Keoladeo every year for the winter to make alternative arrangements elsewhere.

Community Information

  • Community Category
  • Wildlife habitat: Fauna
Travel Information
Agra and Delhi hotspot
Recent Connections
View all (19) .
Connections of Keoladeo National Park
Trivia
History
Ecology
  • Bird Migrations
    OUV: wetland of international importance for migratory waterfowl, where birds migrating down the Central Asian flyway congregate before dispersing to other regions

    See datazone.birdlife.org

  • Turtles and tortoises
    7 species
  • Pelicans
    "Due to its strategic location in the middle of Central Asian migratory flyway and presence of water, large congregations of ducks, geese, coots, pelicans and waders arrive in the winter." (Official description)
  • Swamps and Marshes
    "mosaic of grasslands, woodlands, woodland swamps and wetlands" (OUV)
  • Over 300 bird species
    "Some 375 bird species have been recorded from the property" (crit X)
  • Critically endangered fauna species
    Siberian Crane - rapidly declining due to Three Gorges Dam in China; they used to winter in Keoladeo but may be extinct there; plus White-rumped vulture, Indian vulture

    See www.iucnredlist.org

  • Eagles
    Greater Spotted Eagle and Imperial Eagle (Official description)
  • Otters
    smooth-coated otter
Damaged
World Heritage Process
  • Perfect Inscriptions
    1985
  • Inscribed on a single criterion only
    x. to contain the most important and significant natural habitats for in-situ conservation of biological diversity, including those containing threatened species of outstanding universal value from the point of view of science or conservation.
Human Activity
  • Hunting or harvesting of Birds
    Duck Shooting. The Wetland area was maintained primarily as a duck shooting preserve of the Maharajahs of Baratpur.
  • Irrigation and drainage
    Ajan Bund
  • Royal Hunting Grounds
    The park was a hunting ground for the Maharajas of Bharatpur, a tradition dating back to 1850, and duck shoots were organised yearly in honor of the British viceroys. In one shoot alone in 1938, over 4,273 birds ....were killed
WHS on Other Lists
Timeline
  • Holocene
    The unique habitat is the result of the Ajan Bund built in the 18th Century.
WHS Hotspots
News
economictimes.indiatimes.com 10/07/2014
Keoladeo National Park faces survi…
deccanherald.com 09/13/2012
Birds head back to Keoladeo Park
timesofindia.indiatimes.com 12/17/2009
The Keoladeo National Park is in …
Recent Visitors
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Community Reviews

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First published: 19/05/21.

Nan

Keoladeo National Park By Nan

Keoladeo National Park (Inscribed)

Keoladeo National Park by Nan

When you hunt for WHS there are sites you pick up along the road, but that you didn't really plan for. Keoladeo and nearby Fatipur Sikri to a lesser extent were such sites for me.

The principal town of the area, Agra, featured high on my travel bucked list for India: As every other tourist to India, I wanted to see the Taj Mahal. With this fix point set it followed that I should also visit the sites of the area, including a national park renown for birds.

Now, I am not much of a birder, rather the opposite. And India tends to be highly settled with very little original nature left. In this case even more so, as the wetland that forms the national park is an artificial creation by the English to attract birds for... hunting. So what to make of this national park?

The hunting is over, but the birds still stop here during their migration to and from the Himalayas. And plenty of birds there were. All trees were lined with them. Add to this that the national park was covered in fog, so my visit had a mystic quality to it. Personally, I enjoyed Keoladeo more than the Taj. But dont' listen to me.

As a final, sad note, I have to state that the park is in danger. The water feeding the wetland is scarce and it may dry up. In addition, on my walk I found several protected areas …

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First published: 07/09/12.

Clyde

Keoladeo National Park

Keoladeo National Park (Inscribed)

Keoladeo National Park by Clyde

I visited this WHS in January 2012. This sanctuary is a birdwatcher's paradise. I spotted several birds such as rollers, kingfishers, herons, treepies, owls, barbets, babblers, crested serpent eagles, painted stork, etc. I was also lucky to see hyaenas, marsh deer, nilgai, grass snakes, etc. A real nature haven!

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First published: 18/07/05.

Anonymous

Keoladeo National Park

Keoladeo National Park (Inscribed)

Keoladeo National Park by Clyde

A wonderful relaxing place to visit on the Agra / Fattpur Sikri road. Stop off, bring your binoculars, and see the wonderful variety of birdlife in the quiet enviorns of the park. The park is a manageable size, and any but the most avid birder (they prefer that name rather than twitcher) will have seen their fill in a few hours. The wetalnds and the tree lined paths can make this a cooler respite from the heat of travellign around Rajastan.

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First published: 01/05/05.

Anonymous

Keoladeo National Park

Keoladeo National Park (Inscribed)

Keoladeo National Park by Clyde

Well the visit to the Keoladeo Bird Sanctuary was the most exciting event that had happened to my life in the recent past. the spottings were numerous and i even saw a live python at an arms lenght.This park has got so many fragile ecosystems which are at peril b'cos of the lack of water in the wetlands. Hope at least this monsoons would be kind to this bird paradise.

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