Keoladeo National Park

Keoladeo National Park Review

Founded by the Jat ruler Suraj Mal in 1733, the city of Bharatpur is famous for the Keoladeo National Park (also known as the Ghana Bird Sanctuary), once the duck-hunting forest of the local maharajas. The park is home to mammals and reptiles—blue bulls, spotted deer, otters, and Indian rock pythons—but birds are the main attraction. This famous waterbird haven is an ornithologist's dream—29 square km (10 square mi) of forests and wetlands with 400 species, more than 130 of which are resident year-round, such as the Saras crane, gray heron, snake bird, and spoonbill. In winter, birds arrive from the Himalayas, Siberia, and even Europe.

The best way to see the park is on foot or by boat (Rs. 75), but there are plenty of other options. The park's main artery is a blacktop road that runs from the entrance gate to the center. Surrounded by marshlands but screened by bushes, this road is the most convenient viewpoint for bird-watching, and is also traveled by cycle-rickshaws (Rs. 50 per hour), a horse and buggy, and the park's electric bus (Rs. 25 per person). The rickshaw drivers, trained by the forest department, are fairly good at finding and pointing out birds. You can also rent a bicycle and head into more remote areas; just remember that most roads are unpaved. The excellent guides at the gate (Rs. 120 per excursion) are familiar with the birds' haunts, and can help you spot and identify them.

Try to bring a bird guidebook: former royal-family member Salim Ali's The Birds of India is a good choice. The best time to see the birds is early morning or late evening, November through February; by the end of February, many birds start heading home. Stick around at sunset, when the water takes on a mirrorlike stillness and the air is filled with the calls of day birds settling down and night birds stirring.