Pulicat Lake Ramsar Site

Pulicat Lake is draws birders and photographers from across South India for flamingo sightings. The site is highlighted as a Ramsar site and for its coastal brackish lagoon ecosystem supporting high biodiversity.

Pulicat Lake (Ramsar Site):

Dimension	Key Details
Type and setting	Pulicat Lake comprises a vast coastal shallow, brackish water lagoon along the coast of the Bay of Bengal into which streams drain.
Size ranking and extent	It is the second largest brackish water lagoon in India after Chilika, and it sprawls across Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
Barrier landform	This lagoon is separated from the Bay of Bengal by the Sriharikota island.
Feeding rivers	It is fed by the Aarani River at the southern tip and the Kalangi River from the northwest.
Canal connectivity	The Buckingham Canal, a navigation channel, passes through the lagoon.
Ramsar status	It has been designated as a Ramsar site in 2002.
Biodiversity	It comprises a unique ecotone that supports aquatic life such as mudskippers, seagrass beds, and oyster reefs, and it supports more than 200 avian species.
Flora	Flora comprises about 132 plant species, including Walsura piscida, Manilkara elengi, Excoecaria agallocaha, Spinifex littoreus, and Calamus viminalis.
Fauna	Fauna includes migratory birds such as Flamingo, Eurasian curlews, oystercatchers, bar-tailed godwits, sand plovers, and greater flamingos.