The most beautiful bird in India
India is a bird-rich country with about 1250 species recorded, representing about 13% of all avian species found in the world. Such richness is a result of the diversity of habitats, the tolerance and caring of its people, and the great number of protected wild places in one of the most populous areas on earth.
All birds are beautiful, but some seem to have more visual appeal to us than others. India's great bird diversity means that we have an abundance of avian stars amongst them. Which is the most beautiful Indian bird is then a valid question, and one that begs an answer.
The best way to settle this debate was to receive independent feedback - a lot of it! And that is what we set ourselves to do. As a first step we decided to short-list 10 of the most beautiful birds resident in India. The short-listing was done by an independent panel of 38 birders who have considerable 1st hand field experience in India. The panel chose a representative cross-section of key species that inhabit our area. Their choice is presented in the following pages.
We then put up the selected birds for open voting and received 544 responses during November 2010. All the birds received support, but the clear leaders were the:
Himalayan Monal
Fire-tailed Myzornis
Asian Paradise-flycatcher
Indian Peafowl
and the winner with 100 (18%) votes was the:
Himalayan Monal
The Fire-tailed Myzornis was a close second.
The voting to select the 'Most Beautiful Bird in India' is now closed. But, you can still vote for the species that appeals to you the most.
In conclusion, it goes without saying that these are not the only striking birds around us. Picking a top 10 is never about which bird to include but which to leave out. Beauty does lie in the eye of the beholder, and this is even more appropriate for birds and like. So it is certain that some of these birds may not even make your list. But it is good to make a start – if for nothing else but to know more about the birds in our country, to appreciate them, and to support them in their fight for survival.
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