The Kaliveli wetlands, South India’s second-largest brackish water lake after Pulicat, have been
recognised as a bird sanctuary.
The Villupuram district administration, where the lake is located, issued the first declaration under the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972.
Kaliveli Lake is an ecologically significant wetland that connects Uppukalli Creek and the Edayanthittu sanctuary to the Bay of Bengal. With a catchment area of 670 square kilometres, it is considered one of the greatest wetlands on the Coromandel Coast, second only to Pulicat Lake.
Kaliveli sustains around 20,000 birds each year, according to a 2004 estimate. Long-distance migrants from Central Asia and Siberia, such as Black-tailed Godwits, Eurasian Curlew, White Stork, Ruff, and others, use the lake for nesting and feeding.