Bird-watching is turning increasingly popular… in Bangladeh’s hospitals!
DHAKA- It is a season of bird-watching in Dhaka as thousands of migratory birds flock to a large lake at campus of Jahangirnagar University (JU) in the outskirts of this city, attracting a large number of visitors and tourists alike.
Nature lovers and bird watchers usually gather at the periphery of the lake to enjoy not just watching the birds but also to listen to the sounds and the melodies that they create.
During this period of the year, the JU campus is literally turned into a huge bird sanctuary.
Aside from the lakes, the university campus, that covers nearly 300 hectares of land, also boasts of lush forests and wide and open green spaces.
With advent of winter, JU hosts around 300 species of colorful birds which migrate to Bangladesh from northern mountainous areas, especially from the Himalayas.
Some species even come from different parts of Europe while a handful of birds migrate to Bangladesh from Siberia. “So many visitors come here to enjoy bird-watching. I also like to hear the chirping of the birds,” said Umme Hani Islam, a JU student.
Along with his friends, Umme was watching the movements of migratory birds while sitting on the edge of the lake within the campus which, like many other wetlands in Bangladesh, hosts thousands of migratory birds during this season.
Umme said it was really great to see hundreds of colorful birds freely flying around. Bird-hunting is strictly prohibited on the JU campus and the students themselves are enforcing this ban. “We should be more conscious about our nature. We must keep in mind that we can survive only when nature sustains us,” said Ashraful Islam Nishad, another student.
According to JU Vice Chancellor Professor M. Anwar Hossain, the university, established in 1970, is ranked one of the top 10 places in the world visited by a large number of migratory birds during this month.
Bird watchers say despite the adverse impact of ongoing climate change, migratory birds come to Bangladesh wetlands every year to escape the extreme cold in the regions where they come from. “Migratory birds are our natural resources. We should make efforts to protect them,” said amateur bird-photographer Zakia Roushan Runi, who visits JU every year.
Luc Citrinot a French national is a freelance journalist and consultant in tourism and air transport with over 20 years experience. Based in Paris and Bangkok, he works for various travel and air transport trade publications in Europe and Asia.
![[PR] PR_Ascott and Vimut Hospital_2024](https://www.traveldailynews.asia/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/PR-PR_Ascott-and-Vimut-Hospital_2024-400x265.jpg)
