Vagrant wintering records of Chinese Egret Egretta Eulophotes from Nal Sarovar Birds Sanctuary, Gujarat, India. (First photographic record for North-West India)

Abstract: The Chinese Egret (Egretta eulophotes) is a vulnerable species, with its breeding range restricted to coastal regions of East Asia and wintering distribution across Southeast Asia. This paper reports the first photographic record of the species from Nal Sarovar Bird Sanctuary, Gujarat, India, marking the first confirmed sighting for north-western India and mainland Indian territories outside the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. On 4 January 2021, an egret resembling the Little Egret (Egretta garzetta) was observed and photographed at the sanctuary. Diagnostic features, including greyish wing coverts, greenish facial skin and toes, and a longer black bill, confirmed its identification as the Chinese Egret. Nal Sarovar, a Ramsar site and significant wintering ground for migratory waterfowl, provided suitable habitat conditions for the species. This observation expands the known wintering range of Egretta eulophotes and contributes valuable information to its distributional records in the Indian subcontinent. Classification Species authority: - Amoy, 1860 Domain: Eukaryote Genus: - Egretta Family: - Ardeidae Order: - Pelecaniformes Class: - Aves Phylum: - Chordata Kingdom: - Animalia Scientific name: - Egretta eulophotes Gujarati name: - China no Baglo