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Status of the Red-Breasted Merganser in India Based on Two Historical Occurrences and Recent Sightings


Affiliations
1 Zoological Survey of India, M-Block, New Alipore, Kolkata 700 053, India; Department of Zoology, University of Calcutta, Kolkata 700 019, India
2 Zoological Survey of India, M-Block, New Alipore, Kolkata 700 053, India

The red-breasted merganser Mergus serrator has a widespread global distribution with a stable population and is considered a winter vagrant in South Asia. Since 2016, this species has been recorded six times from many states in India, prompting us to analyse the speci­mens of the species deposited in the Zoological Survey of India’s National Zoological Collections. From historical collection records and present sighting trends, it can be assumed that the species might be regularly visiting wetlands in India but in scarce numbers, thereby either escaping from the attention of birders or misidentifying the individuals as common merganser in the Himalayan terai. The implication of the present study is an update to the checklist of birds in India.

Keywords

Distribution, Mergus serrator, museum specimens, red-breasted merganser
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  • Status of the Red-Breasted Merganser in India Based on Two Historical Occurrences and Recent Sightings

Abstract Views: 110  | 

Authors

Anindya Naskar
Zoological Survey of India, M-Block, New Alipore, Kolkata 700 053, India; Department of Zoology, University of Calcutta, Kolkata 700 019, India
Amitava Majumder
Zoological Survey of India, M-Block, New Alipore, Kolkata 700 053, India
Gopinathan Maheswaran
Zoological Survey of India, M-Block, New Alipore, Kolkata 700 053, India

Abstract


The red-breasted merganser Mergus serrator has a widespread global distribution with a stable population and is considered a winter vagrant in South Asia. Since 2016, this species has been recorded six times from many states in India, prompting us to analyse the speci­mens of the species deposited in the Zoological Survey of India’s National Zoological Collections. From historical collection records and present sighting trends, it can be assumed that the species might be regularly visiting wetlands in India but in scarce numbers, thereby either escaping from the attention of birders or misidentifying the individuals as common merganser in the Himalayan terai. The implication of the present study is an update to the checklist of birds in India.

Keywords


Distribution, Mergus serrator, museum specimens, red-breasted merganser



DOI: https://doi.org/10.18520/cs%2Fv127%2Fi7%2F856-859