Great Knot / Calidris tenuirostris

Context: Unveiling yet another mystery of avian migrations, a great knot from Russia, belonging to the endangered Calidris tenuirostris (Horsfield, 1821), has found its way to Kerala’s coast, flying over 9,000 km for a winter sojourn.

About Great Knot:

• It is a small wader.
• It is the largest of the Calidris species
• It is listed as an ‘endangered’ species by the IUCN.
• It is listed in Appendix I of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals.
• Habitat: Grassland, Marine Neritic, Marine Intertidal, Marine Coastal/Supratidal.
  • This species breeds in northeast Siberia, Russia, wintering mainly in Australia, but also throughout the coastline of South-East Asia and on the coasts of India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and the eastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula.
• Threats: Loss of intertidal stopover habitats in the Yellow Sea region is thought to be a key driver in the population declines of shorebirds
  • It is also potentially threatened by climate change.
  • Recent evidence shows a very rapid population decline caused by the reclamation of non-breeding stopover grounds, and under the assumption that further proposed reclamation projects will cause additional declines in the future.

Source: The Hindu

Previous Year Questions

Q.1) Which of the following is not a bird?

1. Golden Mahseer
2. Indian Nightjar
3. Spoonbill
4. White Ibis

Q.2) Which one of the following is a filter feeder?

1. Catfish
2. Octopus
3. Oyster
4. Pelican