Wildlife Warden Nehemiah Panmei of Tamenglong district along with Mordecai Panmei of The Corbett Foundation has started documenting bird species in the Tamenglong district of Manipur. Tamenglong shares borders with Assam’s Haflong and Nagaland’s Peren areas.
The initiative of documentation of birds was taken up at Atengba village, located on the western part of Tamenglong district, and located about 100 km west of the state capital.
The village is rich in biodiversity and has the scenic Zeilad Lake. The thick-billed green pigeon (Azuinah) and pin-tailed green pigeon (Ngamzainah) have been seen in the village every year from March-August, according to the villagers.
In the ongoing bird documentation exercise in order to conserve its bio-diversity, the villagers of Atengba and Charinapeng villages were also made aware through talks and field works. Hunting of these birds for consumption and commercial purpose was one of the main sources of the villagers’ livelihood. But since the last two years, the villagers have taken up the initiative to protect the birds when they visit salt lake.
As a result, these birds are safe in their natural habitat. According to RK Birjit, State Coordinator of Indian Bird Conservation Network, green pigeon is widely available in most parts of the state except in the high altitude areas. In winter, many migratory birds, particularly Amur Falcon, visit Tamenglong every year.