Grey pelican rediscovered in Bangladesh after 200 yrs

An endangered species of a bird, Spot Billed Pelican of Grey Pelican (Chitithunti Gaganber in Bangla), spotted in Rajshahi on 10 October, after more than 200 years. The photo taken by Hasnat Roni from a char of Padma river in Rajshahi city.
An endangered species of a bird, Spot Billed Pelican of Grey Pelican (Chitithunti Gaganber in Bangla), spotted in Rajshahi on 10 October, after more than 200 years. The photo taken by Hasnat Roni from a char of Padma river in Rajshahi city.

An endangered species of a bird was spotted in Rajshahi on 10 October, after more than 200 years.

The bird has been identified as the Spot Billed Pelican of Grey Pelican. In Bengali, the bird is known as Chitithunti Gaganber due to its huge wings.

Photographer Hasnat Roni, who is also a member of Bangladesh Bird Club, took a photo of the new bird at a char of Padma river in Rajshahi city and sent it to ornithologists. They confirmed it was a Chitithunti Gaganber.

Curator of Dubai Zoo, Reza Khan, sent a message to Hasnat Roni saying, “Tons of congratulations. It’s a record for a lifetime”.

Founder of the club Inam Al Huq said no one saw this bird in Bangladesh earlier.

“Gaganber lifts mouthful of water in its large beak. Then it closes its beak and filters the water to trap the fish. That is how it eats. But the scarcity of fish in natural water bodies in Bangladesh and around the world is threatening their existence,” he added.

Gaganber is a crested-neck and spotted-billed aquatic bird.

A full grown Gaganber is 152-centimetre long and weighs about 5 kgs. The wing span of this bird is 55-cm, it beak is 33 cms, legs 8.7 cms and tail 18.2 cms long.

An adult Gaganber’s body during the mating period is grey while its head, neck, back and outer wings are black. It is pale reddish white in the middle. Its lower body is pale reddish white too. The beak is orange-yellow and pale reddish white.

Gaganber lives near big water bodies, estuaries and coastal areas. It hunts in flocks and eats fish and shrimps.

During the mating season, these birds make nests on trees near water bodies in September-April. They lays 3-4 eggs each, which hatch within 30 days.

A book on birds published by Bangladesh Asiatic Society said Gaganber is an endangered species. The bird was seen in Dhaka division in the 19th century. Currently this bird exists in India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Cambodia, Indonesia and other South-East Asian countries.

Hasnat Rony discovered another variety of bird in the same place on 5 May. The Bird Club dubbed it Khoyratupi Batkurali.

Earlier in February, club members discovered another bird, mostly found in deserts, Cyxer Ratchara from a sandbar of Padma river in Rajshahi.

*This report, originally published in Prothom Alo print edition, has been rewritten in English by Shameem Reza.