UP Earth Walks at Dhanauri Wetlands - Sarus Cranes and 35 Bird Species
Observing the Sarus Crane in close vicinity - A report of the Uttar Pradesh Earth Walks held at the Dhanauri Wetlands
Date: 31st May 2026
Location: Dhanauri Wetlands
Walk Theme: Silent Flyers | Sarus Trails at Dhanauri
Walk Leader: Mahesh Rajput
Walk Coordinator: Salil Dutta
No of participants: 39
The Dhanauri Wetlands have always been the heartbeat of Uttar Pradesh when it comes to spotting the Sarus Crane. To learn more about these amazing species, Asian Adventures, in collaboration with Global Wildlife Fair, Uttar Pradesh Tourism and Uttar Pradesh Ecotourism, organised an Earth Walk here. Despite the location being on the outskirts of the main city, the participants arrived right on time. This act of punctuality was even heightened when the walk leader saw even the interested kids accompanying their parents for it right in the morning. The one-on-one interaction began with the participants discussing what became their driving force for this walk, and the little ones' replies stole everyone’s hearts. One said he was just here to see the sarus crane because he feared its huge size and wanted to overcome this fear.
After hearing everyone’s reply, the walk began with the walk leader describing the wetlands, which is a major achievement in itself since it is not a Ramsar site, yet it is flourishing because of the continuous efforts of the locals, NGOs and the government bodies all working in harmony. The wetlands span over a distance of 92 hectares and comprise 3 villages - Dhanauri, Thusrana and Amir Bangar. In the middle of this conversation, the first sighting of the day was seen, which was the Zitting Cisticola perfectly balancing itself in the middle of the tiny twigs, which acted as the natural frame around the bird. The participants left no stone unturned to capture the perfect image of the bird.
The discussion then shifted towards the Sarus Crane, where the participants were bubbling with questions about the bird. The walk leader told the group that with the spectacular height of 1.8m, the bird is taller than many humans. A child quipped in quickly, asking if the bird was even taller than her, and the crowd started laughing, before the walk leader could answer, as luck would have it, a Sarus Crane was standing just at a very close distance in the fields. The walk leader told everyone to move towards the bird, even while clicking pictures cautiously, otherwise the bird would leave. After clicking several good shots of the birds, the discussion went further. Even after being on the IUCN list of endangered species, the bird can still be spotted in large numbers, where, during the peak season, around 300-500 Sarus Cranes can be seen in the Dhanauri Wetlands. A mini proof of it was seen during this walk, as 9 Sarus Cranes were spotted overall during the walk.
Yet another highlight of the walk was yet to come. The participants were busy looking at the Oriental Skylark with their binoculars when a fragment of the group that had gone in a different direction spotted a whole group of pheasant-tailed Jacana sitting at a spot. A participant exclaimed that even though they sighted the Sarus Crane, this sighting was an absolute visual treat for them. As the group proceeded further, they even came across a black-necked stork, but one of its wings was damaged. This brought the discussion on how the growing real estate business around Greater Noida had been a threat to the Wetlands themselves. On a positive note, he shared the organisations that were working on protecting the wetlands. The residents of the villages have been very active for the cause too, as they have realised that ecotourism over the years has emerged as a major source of livelihood even for them.
The last bird to be sighted while returning was the Purple Heron, and with that, the walk ended on a pretty high note. The participants were interested in knowing how to become a part of the initiatives supporting the wetlands and even requested that this issue of discussion be taken up during one session of the Indian Wildlife Network Meet. You can even make your Sundays interesting by being a part of the Earth Walks. Discover something new every Sunday with Earth Walks. Making your Sundays better, the Earth Walks way. Click here to join: https://asianadventures.info/p/af0725/
Bird List
- Lesser Whistling-Duck
- Knob-billed Duck
- Indian Spot-billed Duck
- Northern Pintail
- Yellow-footed Green-Pigeon
- Asian Koel
- Gray-headed Swamphen
- White-breasted Waterhen
- Sarus Crane
- Black-winged Stilt
- Yellow-wattled Lapwing
- Red-wattled Lapwing
- Pheasant-tailed Jacana
- Bronze-winged Jacana
- Oriental Pratincole
- Asian Woolly-necked Stork
- Black-necked Stork
- Little Cormorant
- Glossy Ibis
- Red-naped Ibis
- Eurasian Spoonbill
- Little Egret
- Indian Pond-Heron
- Eastern Cattle-Egret
- Great Egret
- Gray Heron
- Purple Heron
- Black Drongo
- House Crow
- Oriental Skylark
- Ashy Prinia
- Zitting Cisticola
- Wire-tailed Swallow
- Indian Pied Starling
- Paddyfield Pipit