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Lesser Whistling-Duck Index Showed Clear Long-term Increase in India, While Recent Trend Was Unclear

Lesser whistling ducks in Keoladeo National Park, India
Conservation · Population & status

The 2025 interim update from State of India’s Birds reported revised national numerical estimates for lesser whistling-duck (Dendrocygna javanica) in India. The numerical update was released on 6 May 2026.

The long-term numerical trend was estimated at +26.4% and clearly supported a long-term increase. The current annual estimate was +0.01% per year, but the uncertainty was broad enough that the recent change could not be distinguished clearly from little or no change. The species page still carries the 2023 category Stable for both time scales because these qualitative categories were not recalculated from the 2025 numerical estimates.

The species’ modelled distribution range in India was estimated at 1,972,508 km². State of India’s Birds describes the lesser whistling-duck as resident, specialised for wetlands and non-endemic to India, and retains it in the Low conservation-priority category.

The interim release updated numerical range and trend estimates for 942 previously assessed bird species using about 48 million eBird observations through 31 May 2025. The trend values describe change in a reporting-based abundance index rather than direct counts of individual birds.

Sources and image credit

  1. State of India’s Birds Partnership. (2026). State of India’s Birds: Range, trends, and conservation status – 2025 interim update (Version 2) [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.20036633Primary 2026 release, created 6 May 2026. The update recalculated numerical distribution range size, long-term trend and current annual trend values for 942 species using about 48 million eBird observations through 31 May 2025.
  2. State of India’s Birds Partnership. (2026). Lesser Whistling Duck (Dendrocygna javanica) factsheet: 2025 update.National factsheet reporting a long-term numerical estimate of +26.4% (95% CI +12.66 to +41.64), a current annual estimate of +0.01% (−0.68 to +0.70), and an estimated distribution range of 1,972,508 km². Both national trends are classified as Stable.

Image: Lesser whistling ducks in Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur, India, 25 November 2017. Representative image; not linked to the national trend analysis. Photo: Charles J. Sharp / Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 4.0. · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source

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