Little Rann of Kutch

Little desert of Kutch is a salt marsh located near the Great Rann of Kutch in Kutch district, Gujarat, India.

It is famous as the world's last refuge of the Indian wild ass (khur) for the conservation of which it has been declared as the Indian Wild Ass Sanctuary. Though a bleak landscape it is rich in biodiversity and is an ecologically important area for wildlife and many local and migratory waterbirds like cranes, ducks, pelicans, flamingos and land birds like sandgrouse, francolins and the Indian bustards.It is also home to various unique mammals apart from wild ass such as the Indian wolf (Canis lupus pallipes), desert fox (Vulpes vulpes pusilla) and nilgai (Boselaphus tragocamelus).

It is nominated by the forest department to be a biosphere reserve which are areas of terrestrial and coastal ecosystems internationally recognized within the framework of UNESCO's Man and Biosphere (MAB) programme. it will focus on conserving biological diversity, research, monitoring and providing sustainable development models, the proposal has been sent to and listed at UNESCO.

There is traditional commercial salt panning activity in the region which the state of Gujarat's Forest Department wants to discourage as it is considered a threat to ecology of the region, wildlife and to the endangered Indian wild ass.

The area is also being used to farm shrimp which is more profitable then salt panning, again this activity is discouraged by the forest department.

From the city of Bhuj various ecologically rich and wildlife conservation areas of the Kutch / Kachchh district can be visited such as Indian Wild Ass Sanctuary, Kutch Desert Wildlife Sanctuary, Narayan Sarovar Sanctuary, Kutch Bustard Sanctuary, Banni Grasslands Reserve and Chari-Dhand Wetland Conservation Reserve etc.

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Wikipedia