Birds of Barandabhar Corridor Forest, Chitwan, Nepal

Long term monitoring of bird species was conducted in Barandabhar Corridor Forest, one of the important bird areas of Nepal (IBA). Bird species were identified by the point count method in transect surveys in two-time frames from 2002–2012 and 2015–2016 to obtain the bird species list. We compared our bird list with previously published (after 2000) checklists and compiled the updated checklist of birds of Barandabhar Corridor Forest. We documented 372 bird species belonging to 80 families in Barandabhar, including five Critically Endangered, three Endangered, eight Vulnerable, and 15 Near Threatened species. The Accipitridae family included the highest number of species (n= 32), followed by Muscicapidae (n= 30) and Anatidae (n= 18). Approximately, half of the total confirmed bird species were insectivorous. The list included 63% resident, 27% winter migratory, 7.5% summer migratory, and 2.9% passage migrant species. According to the habitat type, there were 181 species of forest, 74 species of wetland, 24 species of grassland, 70 species of open field, and 23 species of partially wetland birds. This updated checklist of bird species will serve as a reference guide for bird watchers, biodiversity researchers, and support managers for conservation effort; and can be used to track any changes in the composition of bird species in the future.