Mumbai’s biodiversity hotspots

Mumbai, the financial hub of Maharashtra, is also infamously known as the concrete jungle due to rampant development, much at the cost of environment. But not all is lost as in this edition, we uncover the biodiversity present in Mumbai and its outskirts. Here’s a consolidated list of locations that harbour the city’s flora and fauna categorised as birds, flamingos, snakes, butterflies, mangroves, flowers and bats. The good news is that most of these locations are accessible to the public and one can go out and spot these by themselves. 

 

BIRDS

Raj Bhavan 

SPECIES: Rose-ringed Parakeet, Common Myna, Oriental White-eye, Oriental Magpie-robin, Eurasian Wryneck, Red-vented Bulbul, Common Tailorbird and Indian Grey Hornbill.

 

(Black Drongo by Asif N Khan)

 

Aarey

SPECIES: Pied Starling, Red-whiskered Bulbul, Black Drongo, Indian Peafowl, Cattle Egret, Indian Robin, Black Redstart and Green Bee-eater. 

 

(Common Stonechat by Asif N Khan)

Maharashtra Nature Park (MNP)

SPECIES: Black-winged Stilt, Purple-rumped Sunbird, Spotted Owlet, Great Egret.

 

(Indian Roller by Asif N Khan)

 

Bhandup Pumping Station 

SPECIES: Eurasian Spoonbill, Grey Heron, White-cheeked Bulbul, Indian Silverbill, Greater Coucal, Grey Francolin, Indian Spotbill, Western Reef Egret, Common Kingfisher and Red Avadavat.

 

(Oriental White-eye by Asif N Khan)

 

Powai Lake and IIT campus 

SPECIES: Indian Pond Heron, Little Egret, Little Cormorant, Purple Swamphen, Black Kite, Coppersmith Barbet and Shikra. 

 

(Purple Swamphen by Asif N Khan)

 

Karnala Bird Sanctuary

SPECIES: 5 species of sunbirds-Purple, Crimson-backed, Loten, Purple-rumped, and Vigors’s Sunbird,  species of drongos like Black, Greater Racket-tailed, Ashy, White-bellied and Bronzed Drongo; Golden-fronted Leafbird, Rufous Woodpecker, Grey-fronted Green-pigeon, Ultramarine Flycatcher, Grey-headed Canary Flycatcher, Shama, Malabar Whistling Thrush, Orange-headed Ground Thrush, Indian Pitta and Sulpher-bellied Warbler. 

Palm Beach Road

SPECIES: Greater Flamingo, Lesser Flamingo, Painted Stork, Booted Eagle, Osprey, Caspian Tern, Broad-billed Sandpiper, Dunlin, Curlew Sandpiper, Lesser Whitethroat, Common Greenshank, Green Sandpiper and Wood Sandpiper.

Elephanta Island

SPECIES: Brown-headed Gull and Black-headed Gulls, during the boat ride birds like Greater Black-headed Gull, Heuglin’s Gull, Gull-billed Tern, Caspian Tern Little Term, Common Sandpier, Eurasian Curlew, Whimbrel, Leser and Greater Sandplover, Terek Sandpiper, Ruddy Turnstone, Common Redshank, Black-tailed Godwit, White-bellied Sea Eagle, Little Stint, Orange Minivet, Black-rumped Flameback, Paradise Flycatcher, Tickell’s Blue Flycatcher, and Common Chiffchaff. 

Mahalaxmi Race Course

SPECIES: Plain Prinia, Blyth’s Reed Warbler, White Wagtail, Pied Starling, Indian Roller, Golden Oriole, Long-tailed Shirke- and Common Stonechat. 

 

BUTTERFLIES

Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) 

SPECIES: Common Jezebel,Baronet, Yamfly, Monkey Puzzle,  Blue Mormon, Common Leopard,  Common Wanderer, Common Bluebottle, Glassy Tiger, Tawny Rajah, Psyche and Great Orange Tip.

 

(Baronet by Asif N Khan)

 

Aarey  

SPECIES: Common Rose, Lime Butterfly, Common Sailer, Danaid Eggfly, Common Crow and Common Palmfly.

 

(Blue Mormon by Asif N Khan)

 

Maharashtra Nature Park (MNP)

SPECIES: Black Rajah, Common Emigrant, Blue Oakleaf, Plum Judy, Chocolate Pansy, Red Pierrot and Tailed Jay.

 

(Blue Oakleaf by Asif N Khan)

 

Ranibaug 

SPECIES: Common Emigrant, Common Gull, Striped Tiger and Blue Tiger.

 

(Striped Tiger by Asif N Khan)

 

MANGROVES

 

Mumbai and Navi Mumbai

Mangroves are the verdant coast guards of Mumbai and form an integral part of city’s biodiversity. Despite the concretisation, Mumbai and its outskirts still has this green cover in Versova, Lokhandwala, Malad Marve, Colaba, Mahul, Dahisar, Gorai, Navi Mumbai among others.

 

SNAKES 

 

(Checkered keelback by Rahulratan Chauhan)

 

Mangroves and forests

SPECIES: Dog Faced water snake, Wart Snake (file Snake), Indian Rat Snake, Checkered Keelback, Buff Striped Keelback, Cobra among many others are found at various parts of the city. Dog Faced water snake and Wart Snake (file snake) are estuary snakes meaning, they are found close to mangrove areas across Mumbai. Other places to sight snakes in the city are SGNP, Aarey forests and MNP.

 

(Glossy Marsh Snake by Rahulratan Chauhan) 

 

(Indian Cobra by Rahulratan Chauhan)

 

 

FLAMINGOS

Mahul , Sewri, Palm Beach Road and Thane Creek

SPECIES: Lesser Flamingos and Greater Flamingos in thousands are seen in the mudflats of Sewri and Mahul and Palm Beach (Navi Mumbai). 

 

(Flamingos by Rahulratan Chauhan)

 

(Flamingo by Rahulratan Chauhan) 

 

BATS

 

(Indian Flying Fox by Commons Wikipedia)

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya and Jijamata Udyaan

SPECIES: A huge colony of fruit eating bats also known as Flying Fox roost at Jijamata Udyaan, Byculla. Another colony is at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, right  behind the head office of Bombay Natural History Society.

 

FLOWERS 

 

(Cup and Saucer Plant by Rahulratan Chauhan)

 

Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) 

SPECIES: Fox Brush Orchid, Hill Turmeric, Glory Lily, Common Marsh Buckwheat, Wild Lady Finger, Screw Fruit Bush, Common Balsam, Smithia, Jungle Flame, Graham’s Groundsel (Sonki), Hill Blepharis, Common Conehead and Forest Barleria.

 

(Balsam by Rahulratan Chauhan)

 

Aarey

SPECIES: Commelina, Cat ears, Indian Sweet Pea, Giant Milkweed, Indian Borage, Yellow-Berried Nightshade and Oriental Sesame.

 

(Clerodendrum by Rahulratan Chauhan)

 

Maharashtra Nature Park (MNP)

SPECIES: Touch-me-not , Common Lantana, Jamaican Blue Spike and Silver Cockscomb

 

(Tropical Spiderwort)

 

(Hill Turmeric by Rahulratan Chauhan)

 

(With inputs from naturalist Rahulratan Chauhan and Ornithologist Asif Khan from Bombay Natural History Society)