Tanguar Haor and Panabeel are a large inland freshwater wetland complex covering approximately 15,900 hectares in Sunamganj District, Sylhet Division, located in the floodplain of the Surma River near the foothills of the Meghalaya Hills in adjacent India. The site is one of the last remaining semi‑natural floodplain wetlands in Bangladesh and comprises a complex mosaic of permanent and seasonal freshwater lakes, marshes and pools, rivers and streams, non‑forested peatlands, reedbeds, and remnant swamp forests dominated by hijal and koroch tree species. Tanguar Haor supports large congregations of migratory waterbirds, particularly wintering ducks, and regularly exceeds international importance thresholds for several species, including Ferruginous Duck, Garganey, and Black‑tailed Godwit. The site is also nationally and globally important for threatened species such as Pallas’s Fish Eagle, Baer’s Pochard, and Bristled Grassbird. Tanguar Haor was designated as a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance in 2000 and later recognized as a Flyway Network Site under the East Asian–Australasian Flyway Partnership.

 

The wetland provides essential ecosystem services that underpin local livelihoods and national food security, with provisioning services from rice cultivation and inland fisheries forming the backbone of the local economy. Tanguar Haor supports one of the most important inland fisheries in Bangladesh, although benefits are unevenly distributed and many local households remain landless, seasonally unemployed, and highly vulnerable to flooding and climate variability. Agricultural pollution, unsustainable fishing practices, habitat degradation, and alterations to hydrological regimes are placing increasing pressure on the ecosystem. Strengthening community‑based fisheries management, expanding fish sanctuaries, improving access to microfinance for small‑scale fishers and farmers, and restoring degraded wetland habitats offer important opportunities to improve biodiversity conservation while enhancing livelihood resilience. Ecotourism, biodiversity monitoring, and strengthened water and flood management systems also present viable pathways to support sustainable development in alignment with the Tanguar Haor Management Plan.