A TOTAL of 46 species of rare migratory water­birds and resident water­bird species, with a population of 24,177 birds, were recorded after the Asian Waterbirds Cen­sus conducted in Indawgyi Lake, the country’s largest freshwater lake, located in Mohnyin Town­ship, Kachin State, in January.

Indawgyi Lake annually be­comes a habitat for rare migra­tory bird species arriving from northern parts of the world and the resident waterbird species during the winter. This year, officials conducted a survey in the east, west and vicinity ar­eas of the lake, and the survey showed 17,275 migratory water­birds from 29 species and 6,902 resident birds from 17 species, totalling 24,177 birds. The num­ber of migratory waterbirds this winter added 3,970 birds and one additional species compared to last year.

The most commonly ob­served rare migratory water­bird species in Indawgyi Wildlife Sanctuary included bar-headed goose (4,805), tufted ducks (3,002), common coots (2,159), common cranes (1,768), brown-headed gulls (1,533), black-headed gulls (794), common pochards (505), ferruginous duck (580), and gad­walls (430) whereas the resident waterbird species included whis­tling ducks (2,532), cormorants (1,200), grey-headed swamphen (1,509), and Tachybaptus ruficol­lis (460).

These surveys of waterbird species were being conducted in the east and west of the lake, along the Indaw Creek and wet­lands.

This year, three bird species not recorded in 2025 – namely the common shelducks (four), Recurvirostra avosetta (three), and Mirafra javanica (six) – were rediscovered and documented.

The Indawgyi Wildlife Sanc­tuary office stated that migratory bird species have been record­ed as arriving annually starting from October. As a result, wel­coming activities for migratory birds, including public aware­ness talks and the installation of signboards, are carried out every year during the second week of October.

Indawgyi Lake became a member of the East Asia-Aus­tralasian Flyway on 15 Decem­ber 2014, and was designated as the country’s second Ramsar Site on 2 February 2016. The lake is home to 47 mammal species, 91 amphibian and crawling ani­mal species, 94 fish species, 105 waterbird species and 400 forest bird species. — Shwe Mohnyin/ KTZH