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J. Env. Bio-Sci., 2018: Vol. 32 (1):99-103 ISSN 0973-6913 (Print), ISSN 0976-3384 (On Line)

AVIAN FAUNA OF MAHARSHI DAYANAND UNIVERSITY CAMPUS, ROHTAK, HARYANA

Vinay Malik1*, Ajita1, Vivek Goyal2 and Poonam Dalal3
1
Department of Zoology, Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak-124001
2
Govt. National College, Sirsa-125055
3
Govt. SSS Gochhi, Jhajjar-124107
[Corresponding author*: vinaymalik71@gmail.com]

Received: 09-05-2018 Accepted: 14-05-2018

Avifauna of Maharshi Dayanand University Campus, Rohtak was studied during May 2017 to April 2018. A total of 51 avian species
belonging to 43 genera in 28 families distributed in 13 orders were reported. The passerine birds with 28 species dominated the
23 non passerine bird species. The campus harboured 43 resident species and 8 migrant species. All except Alexandrine Parakeet
were having least concerned threat status. Family Turdinae representing five species dominated in the number of the species.
Insectivorous feeding habit was the most dominant behaviour and was exhibited by 31% of all the studied birds. The rich avifauna
of the university campus indicates the pertinent conservation strategies for the protection of birds in their natural ecosystems.
Keywords: Avifauna, Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak.

Rapid urban development and expansion of the cities of the requirements of the birds. The sports complex, residential
Haryana, particularly in the last two decades, has established houses and hostels are also having many trees. All this makes
an entirely new relationship between the natural and urban university campus a high green area of the city which may
habitats. Similar changes have also been observed in the city serve as a home to different species of the birds. There is not
of Rohtak, Haryana, India and so do in the campus of the even a single record of previous study related to the avian
Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak. The university campus diversity of the university campus. The sole previous
is located along the Jawahar Lal Nehru canal which fulfils the documented study of avian fauna in the city was by Singh and
irrigation and drinking needs of the city. The changes observed Laura (2013), who reported 34 bird species from Tilyar Lake,
in university campus are largely in the form of degradation or Rohtak. Thus the present study was conducted to assess the
modification of natural habitats resulting in the loss of diversity of the bird species in the campus of the Maharshi
biodiversity of endemic living species. This increased the rate Dayanand University (MDU), Rohtak, Haryana, India.
of formation of entire new ecosystems with changed land use,
composition and function compelling the flora and fauna to
adapt afresh. Habitat modifications usually reduce the habitat
specialist species and favour the generalist species (Sidra et
al, 2013). Habitat is an important spatial niche that affects
the distribution and population density of the animal species
(Meena et al, 2018). Off all other faunal diversity, bird's species
are the most easily recognized. Birds belong to class Aves
and are distributed worldwide. They are among the main
species of the ecosystem which helps in maintaining the
ecological balance of any place (Saklani et al, 2018). They
may be found in different seasons at different places and this
variation reflects the geographical and physiographic differences
of the area. The Maharshi Dayanand University campus
consists of a large green area having rose garden, botanical
garden, green lawns and road side plantations along with two
large water tanks that fulfil the food and nesting
Fig.1: Location of the study area
NAAS Rating (2017)-4.43
 MALIK, AJITA, GOYAL AND DALAL
STUDY AREA
Maharshi Dayanand University (28°8'N, 76°6'E) is a Haryana
state university located at Rohtak on the National Highway
no. 10 at a distance of 75 km from Delhi (Figure 1). The campus
covers an area of 665.44 acres and has a rich diversity of flora
and fauna. The climate is variable as it is extremely hot in
summers with 46o C and quite cold in winters having as low as
2o C. The hottest months are May and June whereas December
and January are the coldest. It is situated on the western side
of the Jawahar Lal Nehru canal and various habitats surround
the campus, like the agricultural fields, ponds and wetlands
besides the Tilyar Lake in proximity. This variable climate with
the different types of habitats encourages a broad niche to the
bird fauna in the university campus. The diverse vegetation
and flora of the campus includes trees like Callistemon sp.,
Syzigium cumini, Mangifera indica, Mimusops elengi, Grevillea
robusta, Eucalyptus hybrida, Morus alba, Psydium quajava,
Citrus jambhiri, Azadirachta indica, Ficus carica, Ficus
bengalensis, Aegle marmelos, Alstonia scholaris, Tectona
grandis, Polyaithia longifolia, Emblica officinalis, Populus sp.,
Bauhinia variegata, Cassia fistula, Kigelia sp., Delonix regia,
Ficus religiosa, Terminalia arjuna, Thuja compacta, Plumeria
acutifolia etc. The dominant shrubs around are Thevetia
peruviana, Hibiscurosa sinensis, Zizyphus numularia,
Bougainvillea sp., Murraya exotica, Hamelia patens, Acacia
arabica, Lagerstromea parviflora, Zizyphus jujuba, Capparis
deciduas, Nerium oleander, Calotropis procera, Jasminum sp.,
Lantana chamaera etc. whereas Amaranthus spinosus,
Canbis sativa, Chenopodium ambrosoides are the prominent
weeds present in the campus.
MATERIAL AND METHODS
The different major and sub habitats were identified and were
surveyed regularly twice in a month for one year during May
2017 to April 2018. Data was collected by direct observations.
The birds were observed during morning and evening using
binocular (8X40). Photographs were taken using Nikon D5300
DSLR camera. Birds were identified by field guides of Grimmett
et al, (2011). Birds were then analysed and a checklist was
prepared following Manakadan & Pittie (2001). Common names
are as per IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature)
Red Data List Ver 3.1. The present paper deals with the resident
and migratory birds of the campus of the Maharshi Dayanand
(100)
University, Rohtak, only.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
A total of 51 species of birds belonging to 13 orders
(Accipitriformes, Bucerotiformes, Caprimulgiformes,
Ciconiiformes, Columbiformes, Coraciiformes, Cuculiformes,
Galliform es, Passeriformes, Pelecaniformes,
Phoenicopteriformes, Piciformes, Psittaciformes) distributed
in 28 families of 43 genera were observed from the campus of
the Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak (Table 1).
These 51 species comprised 28 passerine birds in 13 families
and 23 non passerine birds in 15 families. So the perching
birds dominated the campus in terms of numbers of species.
All the species belonged to the least concerned status except
Alexandrine Parakeet which falls in near threatened category
as per IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Version 2017-3.
Out of all species, 43 were the residents and 8 were migrants.
Among the migrants six were winter visitors (White Wagtail,
Western Yellow Wagtail, White Browed Wagtail, Lesser
Whitethroat, Common Chiffchaff, Black Redstart) while one
each of summer (Asian Green Bee Eater) and passage migrant
(Rosy Starling) (Table 1). The six winter migrants and only one
summer migrant indicates the seasonal variations in the
species, otherwise also the winters witnessed more number
of birds than the summers.
The pattern of feeding habits showed that the insectivorous
birds (31%) dominated followed by omnivorous (29%),
carnivorous (16%), granivorous (10%) and all others were less
than 10 percent (Figure 2). Among the families Turdinae with
five species dominated in the number of species followed by
Sturnidae, Sylviinae, Columbidae with four species each,
Accipitridae and Motacillidae represented three species each,
six families represented two species each whereas sixteen
families were represented by only one species each (Table 2).
Jungle babbler, Red Vented Bulbul, Blue Rock Pigeon,
Comman Myna, House crow, Small Bee Eater, Asian Koel,
Black Drongo, Oriental Magpie Robin, Brown Rockchat, Purple
Sunbird, Rose Ringed Parakeet were common residents.
The present study suggested university as a suitable habitat
for the birds owing to its availability of different types of foods
and a variety of habitats within the campus. It is the first
document to report the avian fauna diversity of MDU, Rohtak.
(101) AVIAN FAUNA OF MAHARSHI DAYANAND UNIVERSITY CAMPUS

Table 1: List of birds in the campus of the Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak
Sr. Order Family Common Name Scientific Name Feeding Status
No. Habit
1. Accipitriformes Accipitridae Shikra Accipiter badius(Gmelin, 1788) C R
2. Black Winged Kite Elanus caeruleus C R
(Desfontaines, 1789)
3. Black Kite Milvus migrans (Boddaert, 1783) C R
4. Bucerotiformes Bucerotidae Indian Grey Hornbill Ocyceros birostris F R
(Scopoli, 1786)
5. Caprimulgiformes Strigidae Spotted Owlet Athene brama(Temminck, 1821) C R
6. Ciconiiformes Charadriidae Red Wattled Lapwing Vanellus indicus I R
(Boddaert, 1783)
7. Columbiformes Columbidae Rock Dove Columba liviaGmelin, 1789 G R
8. Streptopelia senegalensis G R
Laughing Dove
(Linnaeus, 1758)
9. Eurasian Collared Dove Streptopelia decaocto G R
(Frivaldszky, 1838)
10. Yellow Footed Green Treron phoenicoptera F R
Pigeon (Lantham, 1790)
11. Coraciiformes Alcedinidae White Breasted Kingfisher Halcyon smyrnensis C R
(Linnaeus, 1758)
12. Coraciidae Indian Roller Coracias benghalensis(Linnaeus, C R
1758)
13. Meropidae Asian Green Bee Eater Merops orientalisLantham, 1801 I S

14. Upupidae Common Hoopoe Upupa epopsLinnaeus, 1758 I R

15. Cuculiformes Cuculidae Western Koel Eudynamys scolopacea(Linnaeus, O R
1758)
16. Greater Coucal Centropus sinensis O R
(Stephens, 1815)
17. Galliformes Phasianidae Indian Peafowl Pavo cristatus Linnaeus, 175
8 O R
18. Grey Francolin Francolinus pondicerianus O R
(Gmelin, 1789)
19. Passeriformes Alaudidae Crested Lark Galerida cristata G R
(Linnaeus, 1758)
20. Corvidae House Crow Corvus splendensVieillot, 1817 O R
21. Rufous Treepie Dendrocitta vagabunda O R
(Latham, 1790)
22. Dicruridae Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus O R
Vieillot, 1817
23. Estrildidae Indian Silverbill Lonchura malabarica(Linnaeus, G R
1758)
24. Laniidae Long Tailed Shrike Lanius schachLinnaeus, 1758 C R
25. Motacillidae White Wagtail Motacilla albaLinnaeus, 1758 I W
26. Western Yellow Wagtail Motacilla flava I W
Linnaeus, 1758
27. White Browed Wagtail Motacilla maderaspatensis I W
Gmelin, 1789
28. Nectariniidae Purple Sunbird Nectarinia asiatica I R
(Latham, 1790) N
29. Passeridae House Sparrow Passer domesticus O R
(Linnaeus, 1758)
30. Pycnonotidae Red Vented Bulbul Pycnonotus cafer I R
(Linnaeus, 1766)
31. White Eared Bulbul Pycnonotus leucotis I R
(Gould, 1836)
32. Sturnidae Common Myna Acridotheres tristis O R
(Linnaeus, 1758)

Cont.
 MALIK, AJITA, GOYAL AND DALAL (102)

33. Brahminy Starling Sturnus pagodarum O R

(Gmelin, 1789)
34. Rosy Starling Sturnus roseus(Linnaeus, 1758) O P
35. Bank Myna Acridotheresginginianus(Latham, O R
1790)
36. Sylviinae Common Tailor Bird Orthotomus sutorius I R
(Pennant, 1769) N
37. Plain Prinia Prinia inornataSykes, 1832 I R
38. Lesser Whitethroat Sylvia curruca(Linnaeus, 1758) I W
39. Common Chiffchaff Phylloscopus collybita(Vieillot, I W
1817)
40. Timaliinae Jungle Babbler Turdoides striata(Dumont,1823) O R
41. Common Babbler Turdoides caudatus O R
(Dumont,1823)
42. Turdinae Oriental Magpie Robin Copsychus saularis I R
(Linnaeus,1758)
43. Black Redstart Phoenicurus ochruros I W
(Gmelin, 1774)
44. Brown Rockchat Cercomela fusca (Blyth, 1851) I R
45. Indian Robin Saxicoloides fulicata I R
(Linnaeus,1758)
46. Common Stonechat Saxicola torquata(Linnaeus,1758) I R

47. Pelecaniformes Ardeidae Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis(Linnaeus, 1758) C R

48. Phoenicopteriform Picidae Black Rumped Flameback Dinopium benghalense(Linnaeus, O R
es 1758)

49. Piciformes Capitonidae Coppersmith Barbet Megalaima haemacephala(P.L.S. F R

Muller, 1776)
50. Psittaciformes Psittacidae Rose Ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri G R
(Scopoli, 1769) F
51. Alexandrine Parakeet Psittaculaeupatria G R
(Linnaeus, 1766) F

Fig.2: Feeding habits of birds of MDU campus

(103) AVIAN FAUNA OF MAHARSHI DAYANAND UNIVERSITY CAMPUS, ROHTAK, HARYANA

The universities campuses could be a favourable home to bird to take all necessary steps to protect the natural as well as
species as is suggested by many earlier studies in Haryana man made ecosystems.
as well as in India. In Haryana Gupta et al, (2009) reported 92
CONCLUSIONS
bird species from Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra.
Whereas out of Haryana, Chakdar et al, (2016) reported 73 The presence of rich avian faunal diversity of the resident and
bird species in Assam University, Silchar, Assam, Bhivate & migrant birds in the campus of the Maharshi Dayanand
Patil (2016) reported 122 bird species in and around the Shivaji University, Rohtak indicated that its heterogeneous habitats
University campus, Kolhapur district, Maharashtra, Dapke et are a favourable attracting home for the roosting and nesting
al, (2015) reported 62 bird species in and around Laxminarayan of the different bird species. The campus calls for pertinent
Institute of Technology campus, Nagpur, Maharashtra. Devi et efforts for conservation and protection of its biodiversity and
al, (2012) reported 109 species of birds from Gauhati University ecosystems.
Campus, Jalukbari, Assam. All these studies indicated the
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