Bonal Bird Sanctuary, sometimes spelled Bohnal Bird Sanctuary (), is a bird sanctuary and wetland near Bonal village in the
Shorapur
Shorapur, is a city and taluka in Yadgir district in the Indian state of Karnataka and a historical place. Surapura was the land of the famous prince of Surapura aasthana, Raja Venkatappa Nayaka, the young rebel freedom fighter against British ...
taluk
A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluk, or taluka () is a local unit of administrative division in India and Pakistan. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administrative ...
of
Yadgir district
Yadgir District is one of the List of districts of Karnataka, 31 districts of Karnataka state in southern India.This district was carved out of Kalaburagi district as the 30th district of Karnataka on 10 April 2010. Yadgir town is the administr ...
in
Karnataka
Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...
state,
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. It is the second largest bird sanctuary in the state, after
Rangantittu Bird Sanctuary in
Mandya
Mandya is a city in the state of Karnataka. It is the headquarter of Mandya district,
Sugar factories contribute to the major economic output. It is also called Sugar City (Kannada: ''Sakkare Nagara'') because sugarcane is a major crop grown ...
, and around 21 species of birds have been recorded here, including the
purple heron
The purple heron (''Ardea purpurea'') is a wide-ranging heron species. It breeds in Africa, central and southern Europe, and southern and eastern Palearctic. The Western Palearctic populations migrate between breeding and wintering habitats whe ...
,
white-necked stork,
white ibis White ibis may refer to several birds:
* American white ibis, ''Eudocimus albus''
* Australian white ibis, ''Threskiornis molucca''
** Solomons white ibis or Solomon Islands white ibis, ''Threskiornis (molucca) pygmaeus''
* Asiatic white ibis, an al ...
,
black ibis,
brahminy duck, and
bar-headed goose
The bar-headed goose (''Anser indicus'') is a goose that breeds in Central Asia in colonies of thousands near mountain lakes and winters in South Asia, as far south as peninsular India. It lays three to eight eggs at a time in a ground nest. It ...
.
[
]
History
The sanctuary has its origins in thetank of bonal, a water conservation tank built by the 17th century ruler of Shorapur, Pam Naik, later during the British Raj
The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent,
*
* lasting from 1858 to 1947.
*
* It is also called Crown rule ...
, Meadows Taylor, the British administrator at Shorapur, extended it to 1,600 acres with 12 feet average depth, as he mentions in his autobiography, ''The Story of My Life''. It was one of largest amongst the twelve such water tanks built in the drought prone region, and gradually started attracting migratory birds. Most of these tanks were using were also used for fishing, and numerous families were dependent on it. In 1998, heeding to calls by conservationists, the state government transferred the area to the Forest Department from the Fisheries Department. Subsequently, fishing was banned the tank, but it took many more years before it was formally declared a bird sanctuary.[ Finally in 2010, government declared its plans to invest Rs. 1 crore towards converting Bonal Tank to a bird sanctuary.]
Location
Bohnal Bird Sanctuary is 10 km west to the city of Shorapur.
See also
*Shorapur
Shorapur, is a city and taluka in Yadgir district in the Indian state of Karnataka and a historical place. Surapura was the land of the famous prince of Surapura aasthana, Raja Venkatappa Nayaka, the young rebel freedom fighter against British ...
*Yadagiri
Yadgiri, also spelled as Yādagiri, is a city and the administrative headquarters of Yadgir district in the Indian States and territories of India, state of Karnataka. It is also the administrative headquarters of Yadgir Taluku, one of th ...
References
*Philip Meadows Taylor
Colonel Philip Meadows Taylor (25 September 1808 – 13 May 1876), an administrator in British India and a novelist, made notable contributions to public knowledge of South India. Though largely self-taught, he was a polymath, working alternat ...
.
The story of my life, by M. Taylor. Ed. by his daughter (A.M. Taylor)
'. Oxford University, 1882.
{{Protected areas of Karnataka
Bird sanctuaries of Karnataka
2010 establishments in Karnataka
Protected areas established in 2010
Tourism in Yadgir district