Tanguar Haor: Accusations fly as unique biodiversity comes under threat
Blue skies overhead, green fields underneath the clear beel and the continuous chirping of local and foreign birds- that is how a nature lover or tourist would describe Tanguar Haor, one of the many significant wetlands located in Sunamganj district.The haor, with its unique ecosystem known for hosting many species of fish and as a staging area for the migratory birds that fly in to escape the bitter northern hemisphere winter, is a rich resource for the inhabitants of some 88 villages in and around it.
Yet even as the 10,000 hectare-haor, one of the country's two Ramsar Sites – wetlands designated of international importance under the The Convention on Wetlands, commonly known as Ramsar – has gradually grown into an international tourist spot, its precious biodiversity is now threatened by the spectre of overexploitation.Tanguar Haor provides habitat for at least 135 fish and 208 bird species, including 92 waterbird species and 98 migratory bird species, and including 10 IUCN Red Book and 22 CITES listed species. About 30-40,000 migratory waterfowl converge on the area in the northern winter months, according to the site's Ramsar listing.
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