Delhi bird atlas summer survey records 160 species
New Delhi: The Delhi Bird Atlas Summer Survey, which gives a detailed picture of the vibrancy of avian life across the national capital, has concluded after recording 160 species of birds this summer.
This includes 21 new sightings for the season, including the Greater Flamingo, Black Bittern, Bonelli's Eagle and the vivid Indian Pitta — a delight for both experienced birders and first-time participants.
The data has revealed several patterns, including new seasonal sightings and shifts in distribution — insights that will feed into long-term biodiversity monitoring and conservation planning.
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The species and microhabitats recognised spread across seven clusters and 145 sub-cells.
The survey saw over 200 volunteers and 50 teams combing through Delhi's diverse landscapes, from parks and wetlands to scrublands, residential neighbourhoods, airport zones and even crowded city spaces. In total, the survey yielded almost 600 checklists on the eBird application.
Earlier, during the winter, experts visited over 145 city areas, forming 580 checklists and marking 200 species. Cumulatively, 221 species have been recorded in summer and winter.
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The summer survey started on May 1. The atlas, a citizen science programme, aims to recognise microhabitats within the city. It is being developed in collaboration with experts and several local birders and organisations, including the Delhi Forest Department, Bird Count India, Delhi Bird Foundation, WWF-India, DIAL, Wildlife SOS, and Asian Adventures.
Forest officials said that once the surveys are done across four seasons spanning two years, tech companies working on mapping will be asked to create the map using the overall data.
"Such surveys need to be done more often, and the department of wildlife will publish a preliminary report soon from all the data collected by the survey teams. It will not stop here. We plan to organise more bird walks to train more volunteers for the next season.
Through such exercises, we also aim to bust myths and help conserve our urban wild," said Shyam Sunder Kandpal, Delhi's chief wildlife warden.
"We need more citizen science projects like this one.
The data generated will help policymakers make relevant decisions in such a way that it's balanced and considers urban habitats," said Pankaj Gupta, the regional coordinator of NCR for Bird Count India. Birders pointed out that the data collection is a crucial step in building a robust, long-term understanding of Delhi's avian biodiversity. Among the fascinating insights, birders observed the presence of some winter migrant species during the summer, and several resident species that went unrecorded in winter reappeared in this round of surveys.
"While we missed a few expected species like the woolly-necked stork and river tern, we gathered valuable data from some of the most overlooked spaces such as slums, drains, and garbage dumps, reminding us that even common birds tell important stories," said Akash Gulalia, senior birder and professor at Delhi University. Birders stated that several lesser-known or previously overlooked green spaces outside the city's protected areas were also found to support vibrant birdlife.
"This was far from regular birding — conducted in peak summer across drains, informal settlements, and lesser-known urban pockets. It was physically demanding in Delhi's heat but offered a meaningful opportunity to contribute to structured citizen science and support long-term urban biodiversity monitoring," said Kaushani Banerjee, a Delhi Bird Atlas volunteer.
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