Baikal Teal sighted

IMPHAL, Jan 13: The Baikal Teal (Sibirionetta formosa), also called the bimaculated duck or squawk duck or clucking teal, has been sighted and photo-graphed in Lamphelpat after 108 years.
A lone male dabbling duck, known as "Su-rit-man" in Manipuri (Meiteilon) was sighted and photographed by a team of Wildlife Explorers Manipur and Indian Bird Conservation Network (IBCN), Mani- pur Chapter on January 10.
The bird has been recorded only twice in Manipur. The first record was made on March 16, 1913 and the second on November 28, 1915 by JC Higgins, later identified by Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS).
Since then the bird has not been recorded in Mani-pur. The sighting of the bird after 108 years is significant and remarkable, said E Premjit, secretary, Wildlife Explorers Manipur and member of Indian Bird Conservation Network (IBCN).
The Baikal Teal is a very rare winter visitor in Mani-pur. It breeds in eastern Russia and migrates to spend winter in East Asia.
The species is classified as Least Concern in the IUCN Red List, though it was classified as Vulnerable before 2011 due to hunting and destruction of its wintering wetland habitats.
The sighting of the bird in Lamphel wetland calls for keen conservation measures to encourage the species, it added.