DOI: 10.15468/u3szbb
title: Rapid Documentation Avifaunal Diversity of Buxa Tiger Reserve, Alipurduar, West Bengal, India

description: The dataset “Rapid Documentation Avifaunal Diversity of Buxa Tiger Reserve, Alipurduar, West Bengal, India” is published by Nature Mates Nature Club
The Buxa Tiger Reserve is a designated tiger reserve and national park located in the Alipurduar district of northern West Bengal, India. It spans an expansive area of 760 square kilometres.
As India's fifteenth tiger reserve, Buxa Tiger Reserve was established in 1983. Buxa Wildlife Sanctuary made up more than 314.52 km2 of the reserve forests in 1986. In the year 1991, an additional area of 54.47 square kilometres was incorporated into the Buxa Wildlife Sanctuary. In 1992, the Government of West Bengal announced its plans to establish a national park spanning an area of 117.10 km2 within the Buxa Wildlife Sanctuary. The national park was officially designated by the state administration through notification No.3403-For/11B-6/95 dt. 05.12.1997.
The Buxa Tiger Reserve (BTR) is located in the Alipurduar district of West Bengal. The northern limit of the region is demarcated by the international border shared with Bhutan.
It is the farthest eastern extension of India's extremely biodiverse North-East and represents the highly endemic Indo-Malayan area. The Terai Eco-System, which is characterised by its delicate nature, forms an integral component of this reserve. The Phibsoo Wildlife Sanctuary in Bhutan is geographically adjacent to the northern region of the Bumthang Trongsa District. The Manas National Park is situated to the east of the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR). The Bhutan-India Border Road (BTR) functions as a crucial pathway for the migration of Asian elephants between India and Bhutan on an international scale. The Chilapata Forests, located in the south-western region, serve as an elephant corridor connecting to the Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary.
The Buxa Tiger Reserve encompasses a diverse range of forest types, including the Northern dry deciduous, Eastern Bhabar and Terai sal, East Himalayan moist mixed deciduous forest, Sub-Himalayan secondary wet mixed forest, Eastern sub-montane semi-evergreen forest, Northern tropical evergreen forest, East Himalayan subtropical wet hill forest, Moist sal savannah, Low alluvium, and Savannah woodland (source: Wikipedia and Wild Bengal). The primary species encompass many tree species such as Sal, Champ, Gamar, Simul, and Chikrasi. 
The reserve's weather is primarily humid subtropical, with warm summers and chilly winters. The monsoon season commences in the month of June and extends through September, resulting in substantial precipitation throughout the area. (https://www.studyiq.com/articles/buxa-tiger-reserve/) 
To date, a total of 352 tree species, 133 shrub species, 189 herb species, 108 climber species, 144 orchid species, 46 grass species, 16 sedge species, 6 cane species, and 4 bamboo species have been documented from this area. Buxa exhibits a significant level of faunal diversity. A total of 68 mammal species, 41 reptile species, over 246 bird species, 4 amphibian species, 103 fish species, and around 500 insect species have been documented. https://ntca.gov.in/assets/uploads/briefnote/buxa.pdf)
The dataset comprises a comprehensive record of avian species discovered during a biodiversity survey carried out in the year 2016.
Every species has been identified at either the species or genus level. There exists a total number of 76 bird species, each of which is documented among several 35 families and 12 orders.