Siberian crane
Before the unfortunate complete draining of this lake in the 1960s by widening of the Najafgarh Drain by the flood control and irrigation department of Delhi the lake in many years filled up a depression more than in rural Delhi. It had an extremely rich wetland ecosystem forming a refuge for vast quantities of waterbirds and local wildlife. The lake was one of the last habitats of the famed and endangered Siberian crane which has all but vanished from the Indian subcontinent now. Till before independence many British colonial officers and dignitaries came in large parties for waterfowl hunting every season.