A few kilometers south on National Highway 11 is the Keoladeo "Ghana" National   Park (View Map). Recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, the park is   definitely   worth   visiting if you're a keen birder, but -- particularly given the recent   drought --   it's not   a must- see for people who don't know the difference between   a lark and a   peacock.
  A natural depression of land that was initially flooded by Maharaja Suraj Mal in 1726,   the park abounds in large tracts of wetlands (covering more than a 3rd of the   terrain) as well as wood, scrub, and grasslands, a combination that attracts a large   number of migratory birds that fly thousands of miles to find sanctuary here. It was   not always so -- for centuries, the area was the Maharaja of Bharatpur's private   hunting reserve, and in 1902 it was inaugurated by Lord Curzon as an official duck-   shoot reserve (some 20 species of duck are found here). In the most shameful   incident in the park's history, Lord Linlithgow, then Viceroy of India, shot 4,273 birds   in one day -- the inscription of his record can still be read on a pillar near the   Keoladeo temple. Thankfully, the park became a sanctuary in 1956 and was   ultimately upgraded to national park status in 1982.
  Today the park supports more than 375 bird species, including a large variety of   herons, kingfishers, pelicans, storks, and duck. It is the only known wintering region   of the rare and endangered Siberian crane, which flies 8,050km (5,000 miles) to get   here. The numbers are indeed staggering, and birds will fill your vision throughout   the visit -- particularly during the winter months (Oct-Feb), when the resident bird   population swells to over half a million. The park is also home to 13 snake species   (including the oft-spotted python), six species of large herbivores, and mongoose,   civet, and otter. A tiger was spotted many years ago, but you sense that the signs   urging caution are really there to inject a sense of romance and wildness into what is   otherwise a very tame experience.