Question

The Siberian Crane is a regular visitor to the bird sanctuary
A) Ranganathittu (Karnataka)
B) Bharatpur (Rajasthan)
C) Vedanthangal (Tamil Nadu)
D) Lalbagh (Karnataka)

Answer 1

Hint: Bird migration is a phenomenon where birds fly extremely long distances, usually north-south. They move between their breeding grounds and wintering habitats. This is in response to avoiding intense cold climates.

Complete Answer:
The Siberian Crane is a bird that has its breeding grounds in the Arctic Tundra regions of Russia, including a large part of Siberia. As the winters are extremely cold in their native lands, they migrate to warmer, more tropical regions and are known to have one of the longest migratory paths of any bird. Amongst the various South-east Asian countries that they visit during the northern hemisphere winter, India is one of their destinations.

In India, they frequent the Keoladeo National Park in Rajasthan. This park was previously called Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary. Option B is the correct answer.

The Ranganathittu bird sanctuary is the largest in Karnataka and is close to the town of Srirangapatna. It is home to many species of birds including the painted stork, but does not host the Siberian Crane. Option A is incorrect.

The Vedanthangal bird sanctuary in Tamil Nadu is close to Chennai and hosts many migratory bird species including the grey wagtail and the common sandpiper. However, it does not include the Siberian crane amongst its visitors. Option C is incorrect.

Lalbagh in Bangalore is actually a botanical garden and not a national park. It plays an important role in protecting many indigenous species of plants, and in the study of plants as well. While as a botanical garden there are many bird species visible here, this does not include the Siberian Crane. Option D is incorrect.

Hence the correct answer is option B.

Note: The Keoladeo National Park is home to 336 species of birds, as well several snakes, turtles, amphibians, lizards, and so on. It is a world heritage site, and is also famous for Nilgai. The area was well known for tigers, but these were hunted out of existence.