A new bird species has been spotted in Nepal. A spotted flycatcher (Muscicapa striata) was discovered at an altitude of 3,650 metres in Upper Mustang on July 12.

Wildlife photographer Sanjay Tha Shrestha and nature guide Shankar Tiwari first sighted the bird and captured it in their cameras. They then reported it to ornithologists. Then a team of national and international ornithologists confirmed that the bird is a new species for Nepal, according to Hathan Chaudhary, president of the Nepalese Ornithological Union.

Shrestha and Tiwari sighted the bird at 8:58 am on July 12 at Samar near Lo Manthang in the Annapurna Conservation Area, Mustang. They provided detailed information and photographs of the new bird to the Nepal Bird Record Committee, which tracks new bird species in Nepal. After consulting with the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation and both national and international bird experts, the committee concluded that the bird is indeed a new species for Nepal, according to committee chair Tulsi Subedi.

The committee has named the bird ‘Taludharse Arjunak’ in Nepali, based on its English name, spotted flycatcher. This name was chosen due to the distinctive head markings that make it easier to identify.

With this addition, the total number of bird species recorded in Nepal has now reached 896.

The spotted flycatcher is a migratory species. This bird is generally found in Mongolia, China, Afghanistan, and Pakistan and regularly migrates to the south during the summer.

Wildlife photographer Shrestha expressed satisfaction at identifying a new bird. “This has renewed enthusiasm for bird tourism,” Shrestha said.

In May, another bird species was identified in the same area, Lo Mangthang of Upper Mustang. Tiwari sighted the bird species, identified as the white-cheeked starling (Spodiopsar cineraceus), at an altitude of 3,840 metres above sea level on May 7. It was recorded as the 895th bird species found in Nepal.

On May 13, 2023, Devraj Joshi, a wildlife technician working at the Shuklaphanta Conservation Programme of the National Trust for Nature Conservation, sighted Lesser grey shrike (Lanius minor) for the first time in Nepal.

“New bird species keep on increasing in the country. It’s great to record new species of the bird,” said senior ornithologist Hem Sagar Baral. “The advancement of new technologies helps to identify the bird species. The wildlife photographers and nature guides immediately take photos of the birds and enquire if they think they are new.” According to Baral, new species are recorded in Nepal also due to changed migration patterns of the birds due to climate change.

With the increasing number of bird population and bird species, Nepal has been a haven for birding. Given the variety of bird species the country hosts, a good number of foreign tourists have started visiting the country, exclusively to watch birds. Ornithologists suggest that bird conservation can be quite helpful to promote overall tourism development in the country. It is estimated that approximately eight percent of the total foreign tourists who visit Nepal is for birding.

However, bird conservation has many challenges across the nation. Loss of habitat, mainly due to human encroachment, haphazard extraction of riverbed materials, shortage of food and excessive fishing threaten the survival of birds in the country. Bird hunting, chemical poisoning, land fragmentation, climate change and lack of awareness among the locals are other major threats to bird conservation efforts.

Although Nepal has laws and regulations in place for bird conservation, there are still loopholes that undermine the conservation efforts. Conservationists underscore the need to include the community and the locals in every effort the government makes towards bird conservation.