Jahangirnogor University is a very good place for watching birds as it has lot of trees and bird friendly environment inside the premise. Apart from those common birds, there use to be lot of migratory birds during the winter season. 5/10 years back there has been lot of birds gathering during winter, but recently their numbers are decreasing. It is probably because of the environmental pollution, and unfriendly behavior of our human beings. I’ve visited this university several times to watch the migratory birds. These migratory birds use to come Bangladesh during the winter. They mainly come from the places like Siberia where the winter is too cold and lack of food that time.
I took a double decker bus from Gulistan at 12:30pm to reach at Jahangirnagar university. It was a supper local bus and dropped me near at the university at 2:30pm. It was the first time I was entering inside this university premise. After a short walking I have reached near the lakes where quite a few migratory birds have gathered. I expected to see thousands of birds chirping there. But it was only few.
There are two lakes which the migratory birds chose to stay. I have stayed beside both of the lakes for a while. During my short staying I have seen the sky patrolling Asian openbill stork, Grey Heron, Great Egret, etc birds. And in the water I have observed the Lesser whistling ducks were swimming freely. Mainly they were the most numbered birds in there along with few Little cormorants, White breasted waterhen, Bronze winged jacana, etc.
It was a nice scene to watch the Jacana and the Waterhen birds. They were walking from one lily leaf to another lily leaf and looking for the small snails which were coming over the leaf. Both of the birds are having very long feet with long fingers. I have never seen these birds from such a close distance before.
This tour was only for the migratory bird observation, that’s why I didn’t go for the most other common birds. That area was profound with plenty of common birds. In fact I have seen few of those.
I took another similar bus in front of the University gate and this time it required few minutes less to return back to the Dhaka. From the second floor of my bus seat I have enjoyed the sunset during my returning journey.
How to go:
There are lot of buses use to go beside the Jahangirnagar University which starts from Gulistan and Gabtoli. You can take any of those. From Gulistan it will take around 90 minutes and from Gabtoli it will take around 40 minutes to reach at the University gate. Alternately you can hire a CNG driven auto rickshaw. From Gabtoli it should take around 250 Taka. GPS coordinate of University gate is (23°52’47.50″N, 90°16’23.20″E).
After leaving the bus you need to have a stroll for 5-8 minutes reach near the lake where migratory birds have gathered. The GPS coordinate of the lake is (23°53’0.57″N, 90°16’4.21″E).
Best time to visit:
As the migratory birds use to visit Bangladesh during winter (which is November to January). So it would be best if you could visit the place during that time.
Where to eat:
There is a canteen inside the university area. After watching the migratory birds you could have your lunch or evening snacks there.
What else is nearby:
The National Martyr’s Memorial is very close to the university area. After or before watching the migratory birds you could pay a visit there (if you have time in hand).
Migratory birdwatching during winter,
Jahangirnogor University,
Upazela: Savar,
District: Dhaka,
Country: Bangladesh,
GPS coordinate: (23°53’0.57″N, 90°16’4.21″E)
This article has written by Lonely Traveler,
for the blog https://alonelytraveler.com/
Friday, 28 November 2014
