Rapid Documentation of Avifaunal Diversity of Mirik Lake, Darjeeling, West Bengal, India, 2017

The dataset “Rapid Documentation of Avifaunal Diversity of Mirik Lake, Darjeeling, West Bengal, India, 2017” is published by Nature Mates Nature Club. Mirik lake is also known as Sumendu Lake, which is an artificial reservoir situated in Mirik Town. Its construction was initially proposed in 1974 as part of the Mirik Tourist Project with a goal of promoting facilitation of commercial tourism in the area. This lake has been incorporated into the National Lake conservation programme, established by the Ministry of Environment and Forest, Government of India, further emphasizing its ecological importance. The lake covers a total area of 16.19 ha with an approximate length of 1.25 km and a peripheral road spanning about 3.5 km . The arch type overbridge across the lake is about 24.38m in length. Mirik experiences temperate climate, characterized by mild summers, cold winters and wet monsoons. The east bank of the lake is flat landscape, while the west bank has a hilly slope covered by rich forest of Cryptomeria japonica. The lake is fed by both perennial streams and rainwater. The dataset presented here is a comprehensive record of avian species observed during a field excursion at Mirik Lake. All the birds have been categorized and identified upto species taxonomic rank. The avian taxonomic group exhibits remarkable diversity, consisting of 63 species that are further categorized into 32 families and 12 orders. Notably, during the excursion , the elusive black-tailed crake was spotted, which is a rare find not typically observed in any other regions of India.数据集《印度西孟加拉邦大吉岭米里克湖鸟类区系多样性快速调查报告（2017）》由自然伙伴自然俱乐部（Nature Mates Nature Club）发布。 米里克湖（Mirik Lake）又名苏门杜湖（Sumendu Lake），是坐落于米里克镇的人工水库。该水库最初于1974年作为米里克旅游项目的一部分提出兴建，旨在推动当地商业旅游业发展。 该湖已被纳入印度环境与森林部设立的国家湖泊保护计划，进一步凸显了其生态重要性。 该湖总面积达16.19公顷，总长约1.25千米，环湖道路总长约3.5千米。横跨湖面的拱形天桥长度约为24.38米。 米里克地区属温带气候，夏季凉爽温和，冬季寒冷，雨季湿润多雨。 湖东岸为平坦地貌，西岸则为丘陵坡地，覆盖着茂密的日本柳杉（Cryptomeria japonica）林。该湖的补给水源包括常年溪流与雨水。 本次发布的数据集是对米里克湖野外考察期间观测到的鸟类物种的全面记录。 所有鸟类均已分类鉴定至物种分类阶元。本次记录的鸟类类群多样性丰富，共计63个物种，隶属于32个科、12个目。 值得注意的是，本次考察期间还观测到了极为罕见的黑尾田鸡（black-tailed crake），该物种在印度其他地区鲜有观测记录。