Bhubaneswar: In a first of its kind, Greater Flamingos, migratory birds to Chilika Lake during winters, were tagged recently at Nalabana Bird Sanctuary, with the combined efforts of Odisha Forest department, Chilika Wildlife Division, and Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehradun.
A star attraction for visitors and bird enthusiasts visiting Chilika, Greater Flamingo has a uniquely shaped beak adapted for filter-feeding and long legs for wading in the shallow waters of the water lake.
Every year, in the month of November, these migratory birds arrive for wintering and return to their breeding ground during April-May. However, the exact place from which these flamingos come from has remained unknown.
According to previous Bombay Natural History Society studies, Greater Flamingos breed at the Great Rann of Kutch in Gujarat, and likely migrate to Chilika from there. However, possibilities are also there that they might also be arriving from other breeding sites in Asia, Iran and Kazakhstan.
With the support from WII, led by R Suresh Kumar, the team successfully captured and tagged two Greater Flamingos January 8 and 9, coinciding with the 5th National Chilika Bird Festival. A solar-powered GSM-GPS transmitter, weighing 30gm, was installed which will record the location of the birds every 10 minutes.
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The device will enable a deeper understanding of fine-scale habitat of Flamingos and will help the department make evidence-based decisions on habitat management and conservation. The initiative marks the beginning of a collaborative project by the Wildlife Wing of state Forest Department and the WII for long-term collaboration in monitoring the birds of Chilika Lake.
PNN