Birds, small and great, of endless shapes and colors, Here flew and perched, there swam and dived at pleasure; Watchful and agile, uttering voices wild Some sought their food among the finny shoals, Swift darting from the clouds, emerging soon With slender captives glittering in their beaks

Condensed from THE PELICAN ISLAND by James Montgomery

Punctuated by the incessant "chatter, whistle and cheep" of innumerable species of birds, the wetlands of Keoladeo present a scene of raucous calm. Once the hunting preserve of the Bharatpur royalty, this exceptional ecosystem is now one of the finest bird sanctuaries on planet Earth, which has been declared a Ramsar Site, as well as World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Keoladeo National Park was previously known as Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary and lies 174 km from Delhi and only 50 km from Agra. If Taj Mahal is "rhapsody in marble" then definitely Keoladeo is a "ballad of birds".

Located at the confluence of Gambhir and Banganga rivers and spread over 29km2 of shallow lakes and woodlands, Keoladeo National Park provides shelter to over 300 avian species, particularly during winter when the resident numbers multiply as a result of migrants. The freshwater swamp with the picturesque Kadam trees, stands of Acacia and profuse aquatic vegetation, is a habitat of various living organisms, which serve as food for the different species of animals.

Two-thirds of the birds listed in Keoladeo are land birds while one-third of the species are water birds. Pintails, teals, mallards, pochards, geese, coots, storks, curlews and sandpipers can be seen in the lake; the heronry at Keoladeo is indeed one of the finest in the world, with 14 species nesting and breeding in the Park. The woodlands and pastures are alive with the gambolling of bulbuls, babblers, sunbirds, sparrows, parakeets and orioles while the skies are set on fire by the birds of prey like the eagles, hawks, harriers, falcons, buzzards and vultures. However the rarest bird, which visits Keoladeo National Park from faraway Siberia is the globally threatened Siberian Crane (Grus leucogeranus); in fact these wetlands are the only wintering area of the western population of this beautiful, endangered bird.

But all is not "feather and crow" in Keoladeo. Non-feathered members of this largely feathered fraternity are mammals such as the Wild Boar, Sambar, Nilgai, Chital, Mongoose, Otter, three species of wild cats, Civets, Jackals and also the gigantic Rock Pythons that live beyond the Temple of Keoladeo in the heart of the Park.