Birds of Himachal Pradesh, India : Diversity, Distribution and Relative Abundance

A total of 322 species of birds belonging to 190 genera, spread over 60 families and 17 orders were recorded in Himachal Pradesh. Intensive studies on residential status revealed that of a total of 322 species explored, 289 species showed short or long-range migrations and rest 33 were residents. Of 289 migrant species, 123 were altitudinal migrants, 72 were seasonal-local migrants, 61 were winter visitors, 28 were summer visitors, 4 species showed winter and 1 showed summer influx. Analyses of data on relative abundance showed that Himachal Pradesh is very rich in avifauna and acts as a home to 143 very common, 109 common, 47 uncommon and 23 rare species. Studies on avian diversity along the altitudinal gradient showed that there was a decrease in bird diversity with an increase in elevation. An insight into the bird diversity of the localities separated by altitudinal gradient revealed that the bird species present in one locality were replaced by another species in other localities. Based upon present studies it has been found that there are 11 globally threatened species of birds in Himachal Pradesh.