Coimbatore: If all goes well, Coimbatore District will have its own ‘Bird Sanctuary’ in Singanallur Lake, which is brimming with potentials in terms of conservation activities, nature education programmes, rich biodiversity and avid support from both the scientific and administrative communities.
With more than 900 species of flora and fauna the Lake falls in line with numerous wetlands in the State that are eyeing a chance to become the 11th Bird Sanctuary of Tamil Nadu.
Coimbatore: If all goes well, Coimbatore District will have its own ‘Bird Sanctuary’ in Singanallur Lake, which is brimming with potentials in terms of conservation activities, nature education programmes, rich biodiversity and avid support from both the scientific and administrative communities.
The idea of taking conservation at the lake one step further and also qualifying its biodiversity was agreed upon by District Collector K. Rajamani, who during his visit to the lake on Tuesday, has asked for a detailed vision report for the lake.
“Identify and include all the stake holders involved be it NGOs, volunteers or Government departments. The District Administration and the Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation is always ready to conserve the biodiversity of the lake at all costs and offer necessary help,” he said during his visit.
Pledging to make the lake a model for all lakes in urban ecosystem, Rajamani said that it was important to keep intact the biodiversity of the lake.
He also assured that stern actions would be taken against threats including fishing, which was officially banned at the lake last year. However, illegal fishing continues to thrive at the lake, for which Rajamani said that it would taken care of.
The lake, spread over 300 acres, is home to 160 species of birds, 453 species of plants, 100 species of butterflies, 22 species of mammals, 28 species of reptiles, three species of amphibians, 12 species of fishes, 21 species of dragonflies, more than 100 species of insects and twenty species of ants.
Volunteers of the Centre for Urban Biodiversity Conservation and Education (CUBE) along with scientists are currently in the process of creating an All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory (ATBI) for the lake, which can be used as baseline information for further ecological studies.
More than 6100 school students have participated in the Nature Education Programme organised at the lake. A monthly-twice nature trail is also organised at the lake for general public.
In addition to the activities, a special Home Butterfly Gardening Workshop is to be organised at the lake in August, for people who want to set up butterfly gardens at their house.
Claiming that such activities should be taken to other lakes, District Collector Rajamani said that the District Administration is also taking efforts in other water bodies in the district to increase the ground water table.
“The Government has sanctioned Rs. 7.45 crores under the Kudimaramathu Scheme for Coimbatore, and 45 projects have been taken up. They will begin within a few weeks before the start of the Northeast Monsoon,” he said.
Coimbatore: If all goes well, Coimbatore District will have its own ‘Bird Sanctuary’ in Singanallur Lake, which is brimming with potentials in terms of conservation activities, nature education programmes, rich biodiversity and avid support from both the scientific and administrative communities.
The idea of taking conservation at the lake one step further and also qualifying its biodiversity was agreed upon by District Collector K. Rajamani, who during his visit to the lake on Tuesday, has asked for a detailed vision report for the lake.
“Identify and include all the stake holders involved be it NGOs, volunteers or Government departments. The District Administration and the Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation is always ready to conserve the biodiversity of the lake at all costs and offer necessary help,” he said during his visit.
Pledging to make the lake a model for all lakes in urban ecosystem, Rajamani said that it was important to keep intact the biodiversity of the lake.
He also assured that stern actions would be taken against threats including fishing, which was officially banned at the lake last year. However, illegal fishing continues to thrive at the lake, for which Rajamani said that it would taken care of.
The lake, spread over 300 acres, is home to 160 species of birds, 453 species of plants, 100 species of butterflies, 22 species of mammals, 28 species of reptiles, three species of amphibians, 12 species of fishes, 21 species of dragonflies, more than 100 species of insects and twenty species of ants.
Volunteers of the Centre for Urban Biodiversity Conservation and Education (CUBE) along with scientists are currently in the process of creating an All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory (ATBI) for the lake, which can be used as baseline information for further ecological studies.
More than 6100 school students have participated in the Nature Education Programme organised at the lake. A monthly-twice nature trail is also organised at the lake for general public.
In addition to the activities, a special Home Butterfly Gardening Workshop is to be organised at the lake in August, for people who want to set up butterfly gardens at their house.
Claiming that such activities should be taken to other lakes, District Collector Rajamani said that the District Administration is also taking efforts in other water bodies in the district to increase the ground water table.
“The Government has sanctioned Rs. 7.45 crores under the Kudimaramathu Scheme for Coimbatore, and 45 projects have been taken up. They will begin within a few weeks before the start of the Northeast Monsoon,” he said.