Despite being small, Bangladesh is a country rich in nature’s bounty.
A major part of its biodiversity consists of birds.
Various species of amazing birds have made our forests, cities, chars and wetlands resonant.
Adapting to our diverse ecosystems, around 700 species of birds have made Bangladesh their home.
Depending on habitation, quite a few birds of Bangladesh have come to be known as Grassland Birds.
These birds mainly inhabit in meadows full of grass type plants.
They seek refuge in various grassy bushes like Vetiver Grass, Sungrass, Kans grass etc.
Reeds growing beside various water bodies are also heaven to these birds.
Among the grassland birds various species of Francolin, Quail, Warbler, Grassbird, Jungle babbler, Lark, Pipit, Wagtail and White-rumped munia are most common.
Francolin is one of the most common inhabitants of grassland.
Mainly they are ground dwelling bird.
Black francolin, Swamp francolin and Grey francolin are sporadically seen in some grasslands of Bangladesh.
They love living in grasslands and small thickets.
Being nearly flightless, at the slightest sign of humans the timid Francolin runs for the bushes.
Quail is also ground dwelling bird.
They too prefer the thickets of grassland.
Having plumage of dried grassy color, they easily hide themselves in the bushes.
Among the small sized birds of Bangladesh, Warbler is remarkable.
Various reed-bushes and shrubs are their main habitat.
Quite a few species of Warbler are found in Bangladesh.
Paddy field warbler, Blyth’s Reed warbler, Dusky Warbler, Leaf warbler, Yellow-vented warbler are prominent among them.
They feed on various insects.
Alongside warbler, Grassbirds are also seen in the grasslands.
Their main habitat is grassland.
The long tailed Grassbirds are often seen sitting atop woody stalks of grass or reeds.
Their chirpings resonate throughout the grassland.
Munia is one of the well-known birds of Bangladesh.
They are seen in various grassland or Kans forest.
They are quite small and restless birds.
Various species of Munia are seen in flocks in grasslands throughout the country.
Red Avadavat is the most attractive among them.
The male Red Avadavat is totally red with white spots on it.
Our grasslands also harbor another skittish bird, named Zitting cisticola.
They have small body and stubby tail.
The dusky colored long tailed Prinia is a grassland bird too.
Highlands with tall grasses are their habitat.
In the bushes of grasslands and other forests the presence of Babbler is quite common.
They roam in flocks in the reed lands and grasslands.
Wagtail, Red-wattled lapwing and Hoopoe are seen in almost all grassy open fields or even the towns of Bangladesh.
Wagtail is a long bodied land-dwelling bird.
White wagtail and Eastern yellow wagtail are mostly seen in the grasslands.
Like Wagtail, Lapwing is also a land-dwelling bird.
Among them Grey-headed lapwing, Yellow-wattled lapwing and Red-wattled lapwing are seen more.
Grey-headed lapwing’s neck and head is dusky with brown back.
Hoopoe is among the most attractive birds of Bangladesh.
Their beak are quite long and thin.
They have plumage like orange crests with black tips on their head.
They too are land-dwelling bird.
Grassland birds spend most of their day foraging.
Various insects, plant seeds and grains of crop are the major source of their diet.
Some birds forage for feeding in the grass on the soil and some others feed on the grains of larger grass plants.
So, the balance of the grassland ecosystem remains intact.
However, the grasslands are fast disappearing from Bangladesh due to land actualization for agriculture, industrialization, collecting large grass plants etc.
With declining grasslands, the grassland dependent birds too are losing their habitat.
As the birds are threatened, so is the grassland ecosystem.
Already some birds have gone extinct.
The birds still surviving may also soon face extinction, due to adverse human activities.
So, if the grasslands survive, the environment too would remain healthy, and dependent birds and other wildlife would flourish.