DECLINING NUMBERS: Migratory birds in the Punchakkarai Wetland.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM OCT. 11. The need for conserving the wetlands in the district in order to maintain the ecological balance has been stressed in a study carried out as part of the National Environment Awareness Campaign (NEAC) of the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests.

While there was abundant diversity of water birds in the Punchakkari-Vellayani wetlands in earlier years, the sighting of certain dry bird species in these wetlands last year was worrying, according to the study report. The study conducted at Aakkulam, Punchakkari and Vellayani and in Kandachira in Kollam reveals that the number of migratory birds has been declining over the years. Many of the birds sighted in these wetlands earlier have subsequently disappeared from there. While the wetlands at Punchakkari and Vellayani are being destroyed as a result of reclamation of land for housing purposes, sand mining, the use of pesticides and the inflow of waste from the Kannammoola canal and the Parvathi Puthanar pose a threat to the Aakkulam wetlands, the report says. The increase in the number of bird-hunters too poses a serious threat to the avifauna at Punchakkari and Vellayani, once the haven for several threatened bird species, according to the study.

Though the Forest Department has put up a signboard against hunting in these areas, birds are still being hunted here with the connivance of some local residents. Several bird species such as the Spotbilled Pelican, Oriental Darter, Openbill Stork and the Painted Snipe are under severe threat due to the use of pesticides and reclamation, it says. It has been pointed out that the "move'' to demolish the `Judgikunnu' in Thiruvallam will lead to environment problems such as ground water depletion and drought. The Government has been urged to regulate the demolition through law. Human interference and encroachment of wetlands in the name of eco-tourism in Veli and Aakkulam have added to the drop in the avifauna, according to the study. Local bodies should take up campaign programmes against the trapping and hunting of migratory birds, the study says.

Yet another wetland affected by largescale human interference is Kandachira, part of the Ashtamudi lake in Kollam district. It is considered the second largest and the deepest estuarine systems in the State. The retting of coconut husk, sewage disposal, dumping of waste from food processing units and oil spillage from fishing boats contribute to the destruction of this water body, where the number of migratory bird species has been on the decline for the past few years, the study report says.

Meanwhile, the city-based nature group, `Warblers & Waders', has submitted a detailed report on the need to protect wetlands to the State Science Technology and Environment Department as part of NEAC last month.