constitute the third major habitat type and include the rivers, streams, lakes and marshes. While many of the major wetlands are perennial with some amount of surface moisture retained round the year, some dry up during hot summer. The park is home to one of the finest forests in India, some of these trees are more than 150 years old and over tall. Fauna Major attractions of Dudhwa National Park are the tigers (population 58 in 2014) and swamp deer (population over 1,600). Billy Arjan Singh successfully hand-reared and reintroduced zoo-born tigers and leopards into the wilds of Dudhwa. Some rare species inhabit the park. Hispid hare, earlier thought to have become extinct, was rediscovered here in 1984. In March, 1984 Indian rhinoceros was reintroduced into Dudhwa from Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary in Assam and Nepal. The other animals to be seen here include swamp deer, sambar deer, barking deer, spotted deer, hog deer, sloth bear, honey badger, jackal, Viverrinae, jungle cat, fishing cat and leopard cat. Dudhwa National Park is a stronghold of the barasingha. Around half of the world's barasinghas are present in Dudhwa National Park. Smaller than the sambar deer, the barasinghas have 12 antlers that collectively measure up to . One can spot herd of these rare animals passing through open grasslands. These animals are smaller than sambar deer and weigh around . Due to their slightly woolly, dark brown to pale yellow cloak, the grasslands acts as the perfect camouflage. Birds Dudhwa National Park has a rich bird life with over 350 species, including a range of migratory birds that reside here during the winter. It includes among others, painted storks, black and white necked storks, sarus cranes, woodpeckers, barbets, kingfishers, minivets, bee-eaters, bulbuls and varied birds of prey. There are also drongos, barbets, cormorants, ducks, geese, hornbills, bulbuls, teal, woodpeckers, heron, bee-eaters, minivets, kingfishers, egrets, orioles, painted storks, owls. The marshlands are habitat for about 400 species of resident and migratory birds including the swamp francolin, great slaty woodpecker, Bengal florican, painted stork, sarus crane, several owl species, Asian barbets, woodpecker and minivets. Much of the park’s avian fauna is aquatic in nature and found around Dudhwa’s lakes such as Banke Tal. The endangered white-rumped vulture has been sighted in a group of 115 individuals. Gallery References External links National parks in Uttar Pradesh Lakhimpur Kheri district Tourist attractions in Lakhimpur Kheri district Geography of