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Site description (2004 baseline):

Gobind Sagar (10,034 ha) is situated in Bilaspur and Mandi districts, and Naina Devi (12,300 ha) in Bilaspur district of Himachal Pradesh. As the sanctuaries are located in the Lower Shiwaliks, floral and faunal affinities are close to Dry Deciduous Forests of the northern plains (Singh et al. 1990). Gobind Sagar, as the name indicates, is a water reservoir formed by the construction of the Bhakra Dam in the early 1950s on the Sutlej River. The reservoir attracts thousands of waterfowl, while the adjoining forests of Naina Devi Sanctuary represent many Biome-8 species. These two sanctuaries are treated as one IBA due to their proximity. Forest types on the periphery of Gobind Sagar include Northern Dry Mixed Deciduous. In Naina Devi there are northern Dry Mixed Deciduous Forests (3,000 ha) and Chir Pine (1,550 ha). There are also some dry bamboo brakes. Commercial plantations of Chir and Acacia were established in Naina Devi over 1,427 ha between 1979 and 1984. Eucalyptus has also been introduced (Singh et al. 1990).

AVIFAUNA: The avifauna is poorly recorded but Singh et al. (1990) provided a preliminary list of 15 bird species. As the forest is still intact in places, and the large wetland attracts numerous waterfowl, further surveys would yield at least ten times more species than the present record. Presently, we know of only two globally threatened species occurring here. More research is required to find out the total number of waterfowl and species-wise abundance and populations. Till such time, this site is considered as Data Deficient as far as bird information is concerned.

OTHER KEY FAUNA: Almost all the representative large mammalian species of subtropical forests of the Lower Himalayas are found here, except for Tiger Panthera tigris, which became locally extinct due to hunting.

MAIN THREATS: Grazing; Collection of timber, fuelwood, forest products,; Extraction of fodder; Disturbance due to religious activities; Water pollution; Human habitations.

The local people have rights or leases for grazing, collection of timber, fuelwood and minor forest produce, fodder extraction, and religious activities. The Bhakra Management Board has control over the Gobind Sagar Sanctuary. The Public Works Department has control over the 20 km stretch of road inside Naina Devi Sanctuary (Singh et al. 1990). Therefore, this IBA is highly disturbed.

Key contributor: Sanjeeva Pandey.

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Gobind Sagar and Naina Devi Wildlife Sanctuaries (India). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/gobind-sagar-and-naina-devi-wildlife-sanctuaries-iba-india on 22/11/2024.