Kolleru Lake

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The endangered Kolleru Lake at dusk.

Kolleru Lake is a large freshwater lake in India's Andhra Pradesh state. It is located between the deltas of the Krishna and Godavari rivers, in Krishna and West Godavari districts. The lake serves as a natural flood-balancing reservoir for the two rivers. The lake is fed directly by the seasonal Budameru and Tammileru rivers, and is connected to the Krishna and Godavari systems by 30 inflowing drains and channels. The lake also serves as an important habitat for up to 50,000 resident and migratory birds, including the Grey or Spot-billed Pelican (Pelecanus philippensis). The lake was declared a wildlife sanctuary in November 1999 under India's Wildlife Protection Act, and designated a wetland of international importance in November 2002 under the international Ramsar Convention. The wildlife sanctuary covers an area of 673 km².

Satellite images taken on February 9, 2001 by the Indian remote sensing satellite IRS-1D and analysed by Dr. K Nageswara Rao from Andhra University found that approximately 42 per cent of the 245 km² lake was occupied by aquaculture, while agriculture had encroached on another 8.5 percent. The area under aquaculture consisted of 1050 fishponds within the lake and 38 dried-up fish ponds, which together covered an area of 103 km². The agricultural encroachments were mostly rice paddies. No clear water could be found in the satellite image. The rest of the lake was being diminished by water diversions or was infested with weeds like elephant grass and water hyacinth.

A recent campaign by environmentalists has succeeded in that all fisheries and buildings meant to harvest fish from the lake have been destroyed.

Rich in flora and fauna, it attracts migratory birds from Australia, Siberia, Egypt and Philippines between the months of October and March. During this season, the lake is visited by an estimated 2,00,000 birds, which include Asian Open-billed Storks (Anastomus oscitans), Painted Storks (Mycteria leucocephala), Glossy Ibises, White Ibises, Teals, Pintails, Shovellers, Red-Crested Pochards, Blackwinged Stilts, Avocets, Common Redshanks, Wigeons, Gadwalls and Cormorants, Garganys, Herons, Flamingos & grey pelicans, among others.

The sanctuary has the following watch towers for sighting the birds.

Atapaka: 1.5 km from Kaikaluru to see varieties of waterfowl. Murthyraju tank 8 km from Nidamarru East Chodavaram: 53 km from Eluru where Open Bill Storks nest in colonies from July – December.

The sanctuary is approachable from all four sides of the lake by road, directly to the following places.

Atapaka – 1.5 km from Kaikaluru town Murthiraju Tanks – 8 km from Nidamarru Gudivakalanka – 3 km from Gudivakalanka or 15 km from Eluru Nearest city is Vijayawada, which is 65 km by road or rail. Nearest town is Eluru

Best season to visit: November to March.

Accommodation: Hotels in Eluru,Kaikaluru and Vijayawada.

Coordinates: 16°39′N 81°13′E