Diversity and abundance of avifauna of manglot wildlife park, Nowshera District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

Abstract

Comprising about 13% of the world avian diversity, Indian sub-continent has approximately more than 2060 species of birds. In Pakistan, there are more or less 660 bird species belonging to 23 orders and 74 families. The abundance and diversity of avian species in a specific habitat can serve as a useful measure of their ecological status. In response to land use changes, 20-25% of pre-agricultural birds have vanished. In the current study, we documented diversity and abundance of the avifauna occurring at Manglot Wildlife Park, District Nowhere, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan from September 2017 to July 2018. Data were collected fortnightly applying Point Count Method. Visits to the study area were made in the morning (6:30 am to 9:30 am) and in the evening (3:30 pm to 6:30 pm). Results showed a total of 51 bird species belonging to 10 orders and 27 families inhabiting the study area, including both summer and winter visitors. The order Passeriformes was found the most abundant with 16 families and 31 species. Besides species belonging to the orders Falconiformes, Galliformes, and Columbiformes were also recorded. Most of the bird species recorded were categorized as least concern (LC), however, the core finding of the study is the occurrence of white-rumped vulture (Gyps bengalensis) in the study area, which is critically endangered and is surviving at only a few places in the country. Species richness was high in winter season than in summer. Similarly, diversity index of avifauna was also high in winter season. The study concludes that Manglot Wildlife Park contains a diverse and rich avifauna, especially the population of white-rumped vulture that needs to be monitored regularly.