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Point Calimere Wildlife and Bird Sanctuary
| Site Name | Point Calimere Wildlife and Bird Sanctuary |
|---|---|
| State | Tamil Nadu |
| Ramsar Site Number | 1210 |
| Ramsar Designation Date | 19 Aug 2002 |
| Area | 38500 hectares |
| Latitude | 10.3167 |
| Longitude | 79.6333 |
| Categories | Marine or coastal wetland Coastal brackish / saline lagoon Human-made wetland |
| Elevation min / max | 0 / 6 |
| Listed in Montreux Record? | No |
| Spans over more than one country? | No |
| Details | |
| A coastal area consisting of shallow waters, shores, and long sand bars, intertidal flats and intertidal forests, chiefly mangrove, and seasonal, often-saline lagoons, as well as human-made salt exploitation sites. Some 257 species of birds have been recorded, 119 of them waterbirds, including the vulnerable species Spoonbill Sandpiper (Euryhorhynchus pygmaeus) and Grey Pelican (Pelecanus philippensis) and some 30,000 Greater and Lesser Flamingos. The site serves as the breeding ground or nursery for many commercially important species of fish, as well as for prawns and crabs. Some 35,000 fishermen and agriculturalists support their families around the borders of the sanctuary. Illegal collection of firewood and forest produce such as fruits (gathered by lopping off tree branches), the spread of Prosopis chilensis (Chilean mesquite), increasingly brackish groundwater caused by expansion of the historical salt works, and decreasing inflow of freshwater are all seen as potential causes for concern. Visitors come to the site both for recreation and for pilgrimage, as it is associated with Lord Rama. | |
| Threats | |
| Biological resource use, Gathering terrestrial plants, Fishing and harvesting aquatic resources, Logging and wood harvesting, Hunting and collecting terrestrial animals, Invasive and other problematic species and genes, Invasive non-native/ alien species, Energy production and mining, Mining and quarrying, Agriculture & aquaculture, Livestock farming and ranching, Natural system modifications, Dams and water management/use, Vegetation clearance/ land conversion, Pollution, Industrial and militar | |
