Rare Yellow bittern sighted for first time in Himachal’s Kinnaur

Yog Raj Sharma

The North News

Shimla, September 18
A rare bird species, the Yellow Bittern, has been recorded for the first time in Rakchham village of Himachal Pradesh’s Kinnaur district, researchers have said. The sighting at around 3,100 metres above sea level was confirmed by Dr Himanshu, Dr Abhinav.The bird, usually found in lowland marshes and reed beds across South and Southeast Asia, is not commonly seen in high-altitude Himalayan terrain. The video of the bird was recorded by Van Mitra Rakchham Alpana Negi and senior forest guard Santosh Kumar Thakur.

Experts say the presence of the Yellow Bittern in Rakchham is ecologically significant and mirrors a similar unusual sighting in Kaza, Lahaul & Spiti, in 2021. Such records may indicate shifting habitats, climate-related dispersal or previously overlooked migratory routes. Researchers believe the discovery highlights the need for closer monitoring of wetland-associated birds even in mountain landscapes traditionally considered unsuitable for them. Native to large parts of Asia, the Yellow Bittern breeds in northern India and across East and Southeast Asia, with its range extending to Japan and Indonesia.

The Rakchham sighting adds to the biodiversity profile of Kinnaur and strengthens the case for district-level avifaunal documentation, conservationists said.