The Hindu : National : Rain brings back winged visitors

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Oct 16, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

National

National

Rain brings back winged visitors

Shyam Ranganathan

— Photo: M. SRINATH

TRACKING MIGRATION: Ornithology students involved in ‘bird-ringing’ as part of bird census at Kodiakkarai in Nagapattinam district.

KODIAKKARAI: A few showers have brought Caspian terns and Himalayan cuckoos, besides European gulls, Arctic waders and shorebirds, to Kodiakkarai in the past couple of days, kicking off the bird-watching season here.

The Kodiakkarai swamps, an hour’s sail from Sri Lanka and famous for scenes from Kalki’s Ponniyin Selvan, are slowly waking up to the singing of birds, escaping the harsh winters of the northern regions.

“The birds usually start arriving from late August or early September, but the dry spell during that month must have forced them to migrate to nearby places. Now the showers have brought them back to Kodiakkarai,” says K. Balachandran, scientist with the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS).

The Kodiakkarai bird sanctuary houses more than 270 species of birds during the winter. Many birds use the sanctuary as a feeding ground, fattening themselves up for the long trip back home at the end of winter, while others use it as a convenient pit-stop before travelling further south, says Dr. Balachandran.

With many species of both forest and field birds in the sanctuary, Dr. Balachandran says, it is ideal for taking regular census of birds.

The process, ‘bird-ringing,’ is a simple means of creating a unique identification tag for a bird. A small metal ring is attached to the bird’s legs with a unique number inscribed on it, along with a sign that the ringing is done by the BNHS. The bird is then weighed, its wing patterns noted, along with its beak length and other vital statistics, before it is let off into the wild again.

Dr. Balachandran, who has been doing this for nearly two decades, says the system is an effective means of learning migration patterns. “A computerised database of all the details is maintained by the BNHS with the unique serial number and the bird’s physical details. Since these rings can last for long—we have sometimes re-captured birds which we ringed 22 years ago—we have a good record for statistical purposes.”

Alok Dixit, a Delhi-based businessman who is doing a one-year part-time course in ornithology with the BNHS, says he finds the diversity of Kodiakkarai’s bird population useful for an amateur learner.

He assists in the ringing operation, part of the practicals in the ornithology course along with a classmate (a financial consultant) and Dr. Balachandran’s assistants.

The BNHS is also planning to open a permanent field station at Kodiakkarai. Dr. Balachandran says the building is almost complete. With a BNHS field researcher, P. Amudha who is doing her Ph.D., already stationed at Kodiakkarai, he feels a more detailed study of the region can be made.

P. Kandasamy, member, Tamil Nadu State Board for Wildlife, who has been conducting nature camps for wildlife enthusiasts throughout the State, says Kodiakkarai offers an ideal place for wildlife enthusiasts during the bird-watching season. He plans to conduct camps in the area for amateurs in the near future.

V. Thirunavukarasu, District Forest Officer, Nagapattinam, says the administration plans to provide all facilities for bird-watchers and wildlife enthusiasts.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

National