Rann of Kutch, India Photograph by Nina Rao   India and Pakistan Flooded Grasslands and Savannas   10,800 square miles (27,900 square kilometers) -- about the size of Maryland and Rhode Island combined Relatively Stable/Intact

· Desert or Not?
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern

Desert or Not?

If you were to visit this ecoregion in March, youād be walking across the cracked mud of a salt flat. Come back in August, and youād be wading in water up to your knees. Thatās the nature of a seasonal salt marsh such as the Rann of Kutch. And during the rainy season, youād see a rich array of wildlife ö from flocks of pink flamingos to acres of salt marsh flowering plants.

Special Features

This region was once connected to the Arabian Sea. Geologic forces within the Earth forced the land to rise, which turned this area into a lake. Silt gradually filled it, and the area became a seasonal salt marsh. For most of the year, the ecoregion appears dry. But when the monsoon rains fall from July to September they turn the area into a vast, shallow marsh. During the wet season, areas of high ground÷known as bets÷provide dry habitat for wildlife. Bets also house trees that provide shelter and food for the areaās wildlife.

Flamingos build clay nests that rise above the water. There, both parents tend the eggs. Flamingos feed while standing in shallow water. They lower their necks and tilt their heads so that their bills hang upside-down and face backward in the water. In this way they filter plankton, red and blue-green algae, insects, fish, mollusks, and small crustaceans from the water. This diet, mostly the red and blue-green algae and insects which are high in alpha and beta carotenoid pigments, is what causes the flamingo's striking pink color.

Wild Side

This is one of the few places in the world where you will find Asiatic wild asses. These relatives of the horse have reddish-brown coats with white undersides. They are herbivorous and primarily eat desert grasses. Two cat species live here too÷the caracal and the desert cat. Other mammals include the chinkara, nilgai, and blackbuck. More than 200 bird species live in these seasonal salt marshes. Three of these species are threatened: the lesser florican, Houbara bustard, and Dalmatian pelican. During the wet season, the marshes become pink with flamingos. This area is the home of the largest flamingo breeding colony in the world. Millions of these tall, pink birds fly here each year to nest and raise their young.

Cause for Concern

Three-fourths of this ecoregion is protected. Cattle grazing, cutting trees for fuel, and commercial mining of salt all pose threats to the ecoregion ö even those areas that are protected. People also drive across the mudflats, and their vehicles damage the fragile ecosystem. Hunting of Asiatic wild asses is also still prevalent.

For more information on this ecoregion, go to the World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report.