Chandigarh, May 24: Apart from killing several threatened species of fish, molasses spill in the Beas is bound to affect migratory birds too. Wildlife experts fear that after the killing of fish at such a large scale, there will be scarcity of food for the birds in winter.
Last week, the hazardous spill had killed more than 10 species of fish in the river. The water had also entered the Harike bird sanctuary, spread over 21,000 acres.
According to the wildlife experts, most of the killed species served as food for the migratory birds thronging the Harike wetland every winter. Kuldip Kumar, Chief Wildlife of Warden of the state, said the extent of destruction caused by the spill indicated that there might be scarcity of food for the migratory birds.
The winged guests start arriving in November every year and stay here till February-end.“For almost seven decades, the Harike wetland has served as a prey base for such birds. We have seen people taking away truckloads of dead fish. It clearly indicates that there will be lesser food for the migratory birds in the coming season,” said Gurmeet Singh, Punjab’s former Chief Wildlife Warden and now a member of the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Commission on Education and Communication.
Fisheries experts said: “It is an established fact that toxic waste hampers breeding, which means there will be lesser new fish,” said Dr Onkar Singh Brraich, Assistant Professor (Fish and Fisheries), Department of Zoology and Environment, Punjabi University, Patiala. “If there will be no fish, there will be lesser birds in the coming season,” he said.
He also expressed concern over the quality of fish on which birds would eat. “When birds will feed on the infected fish, it will hit their digestive system,” he said.
Source Tribune India
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