V2I12P71

Avifaunal Diversity and Distribution Patterns in Nandurbar District, Maharashtra, India: A Review of Habitat Associations, Documented Records and Conservation Priorities

Haribhau Machindra Pawar^1*      

Abstract

Nandurbar District in north-western Maharashtra occupies an ecologically important part of the Satpuda landscape, where dry deciduous and teak-bearing forests occur alongside scrub, agricultural land, settlements, streams and seasonal wetlands. This habitat mosaic provides conditions for forest-dependent, open-country, wetland-associated and human-adapted birds. This review synthesizes published local studies and publicly available bird records to assess the current evidence base for avifaunal diversity, habitat association and conservation priorities in the district. The regional eBird checklist lists 228 native and naturalized species for Nandurbar; this is a cumulative occurrence record rather than a standardized estimate of abundance or completeness (eBird, n.d.). A survey in Shahada Tahsil documented 63 species from four sites and highlighted the contribution of ponds, shrub vegetation and dry deciduous forest (Chaudhari & Ishi, 2019). The district also has exceptional conservation significance for the Forest Owlet Athene (Heteroglaux) blewitti. Surveys in ten forest ranges found that the species is associated with semi-open, teak-bearing dry deciduous forest, patchy woodland and hilly terrain, and that forest degradation and illegal tree cutting pose serious threats (Kulkarni & Mehta, 2020). A biodiversity assessment around Prakasha also reported bird species of conservation concern, including the White-rumped Vulture Gyps bengalensis and Painted Stork Mycteria leucocephala, although its broader multi-taxon scope limits its value as a district-wide bird inventory (Rathoure, 2025). Taken together, the literature indicates that Nandurbar’s avifaunal importance is linked to habitat heterogeneity and the persistence of structurally suitable forest and wetland patches. The principal evidence gaps are uneven spatial coverage, inconsistent sampling effort, limited repeated seasonal counts and the absence of a standardized district-wide checklist based on verified observations. Priorities include habitat-specific monitoring, protection of Forest Owlet habitat, maintenance of seasonal wetlands, conservation-friendly agricultural margins and transparent integration of field observations with citizen-science records.

Keywords:

Avifauna; bird diversity; Nandurbar; Satpuda landscape; Forest Owlet; habitat association; wetlands; dry deciduous forest; conservation; Maharashtra