| Marina
Khan to lead beach cleaning on Sandspit
Famous TV artist Marina Khan, Goodwill
Representative of the Wetland Centre,
has joined over 400 school children
and 30 teachers from 15 schools
of Karachi, in cleaning the Sandspit
beach. Sandspit is a globally important
site, as it is the nesting habitat
of the Green turtles, a species
of special concern and classified
as endangered. The beach cleaning
activity is part of the turtle conservation
programme being run by the Wetland
Centre of WWF - Pakistan.
Orientation Sessions at Wetland
Centre
• The Wetland
Centre provides, develops and arranges:
• Half-Day Trip to Mangrove
Forests
• Bird Watching
• Turtle Watching
• Beach Cleaning
• Nature Excursion
• Freshwater Lake Watching
Half-Day Trip
to Mangrove Forests
This info-packed,
fun-filled half-day activity is
organised at Sandspit, Karachi.
Participants are acquainted with
the mangrove forests of Pakistan,
the importance of this ecosystem
and the various threats to it. This
activity includes study of a mangrove
tree, its root system and associated
fauna. Visitors are involved in
activities such as:
Seed collection and nursery development
:August
- September
Transplantation of wildlings :Throughout
the year
Transplantation of saplings from
nursery :December
- March
Bird
Watching
Bird watching is an enjoyable activity
and a favourite pastime of nature
enthusiasts.Although resident birds
can be seen throughout the year
it is a special treat every year,
from September to mid-March, to
watch migratory birds coming in
great flights from Central Asia.
The guided trips
are organised at Sandspit, one of
the important coastal wetlands of
Karachi, and at Haleji Lake and
Hub Dam.
More than 20,000 birds, which include
shore birds (Stilt and Avocet, Plover,
Sandpiper, Dunlin, Stint, Curlew
and Whimbrel), Gull and Tern, Flamingo,
Egret and Heron, visit the Sandspit
area in winter.
Turtle
Watching
Turtle watching is
a regular activity organised by
the Wetland Centre in the turtle
nesting season - September to January.
The visit is at night, preferably
at high tide when the turtles visit
the beach for nesting. The participants
are able to see the whole nesting
process - digging pits, making egg
chambers, laying eggs, closing the
chamber and sliding back into the
sea. The whole process takes about
2 - 3 hours.
Beach Cleaning
The turtle nesting
beach of Sandspit, Karachi, is frequented
by a large number of beach visitors
and picnickers.
They litter the beach creating hazards
for the turtles visiting the beach
for nesting. WWF's Wetland Centre
organizes beach cleaning activities
on a regular basis. Participants
get to know the importance of this
beach, the role of marine life and
the need to conserve it.
Nature Excursion
This excursion includes
a trip to the Khar Centre of Kirthar
National Park, where participants
are briefed on the habitat and fauna
distribution. The visitors are also
able to see wildlife kept in enclosures
in a semi-wild condition. Visits
are also organized for dolphin watching
in Miani Hor and Sonmiani where
frisky dolphins can be seen in the
water channels.
Freshwater Lake
Watching
Since the freshwater
lake is an important and productive
ecosystem, participants of this
trip are taken to Haleji Lake to
study its role. Haleji is a freshwater
reservoir, a wildlife sanctuary
and a Ramsar site. It is a bird
watcher's paradise and as many as
222 species of birds have been recorded
from this lake and its surroundings.
Home to the marsh crocodile, the
lake is a refuge to many species
of birds and a variety of fish.
The flora of the lake comprises
a variety of plants of which the
lotus is one of the dominant species.
After briefing, the students are
given small assignments related
to the ecology of the wetland.
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