Panaji: Twelve species of birds in Western Ghat`s region of Goa have been categorised as threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
According to Parag Rangnekar, a senior member of Indian Bird Conservation Network (IBCN) "Of these 12, two are critically endangered, six are vulnerable and four are nearly threatened."
Bird species including white-backed Vulture, long-billed Vulture, Malabar Pied Hornbill, Nilgiri Wood Pigeon and Great Pied Hornbill are among those who may be facing extinction from forests around Goa.
The reasons, he said, are diverse.
"In case of vultures it has been the veterinary drug, diclofenac, which has been responsible but the major cause in most cases is loss of habitat," he said.
Environmentalists say that protecting these bird species has become a priority since loss of their habitat is a major cause of this situation.
"Specifically for vultures, banning diclofenac completely is the need. Long-term approach is also of creating awareness and educating the masses about the role birds play in our lives of pollination, seed-dispersal, control on insect and vermin population, scavenging and others," he said.
While Union Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) has designed breeding centres for vultures through Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), there are no specific programmes for any other threatened bird.
IBCN, he said, has been in the process to provide good habitat to few of the threatened species, while for some which are migratory in habit, efforts have to be taken in their breeding sites.
Goa has 461 recorded species which also includes migratory birds and there are 10 species, which are endemic to the Western Ghats and not found anywhere else in the world.
PTI
