The waterbird population in Thiruvananthapuram district remains steady, the Asian Waterbird Census 2024 has found.
The annual census conducted jointly by WWF-India and the Social Forestry wing of the Forest department recorded 5,412 birds representing 70 species, including 33 migratory ones. The exercise had enumerated 5,396 birds last year.
Notably, 13 species were different from those observed during the previous edition.
The Kadinamkulam Wetlands registered the highest bird count in the district, totalling 1,302 birds across 31 species. This count encompassed notable sightings, including a sizable flock of 102 Asian openbills, 21 whimbrels, 335 little cormorants, and 107 Indian cormorants.
Asian openbills
Punchakkari and Vellayani Lake, recognised as bird hotspots in the city, recorded counts of 363 and 453 birds respectively, featuring 38 species each. At Vellayani Lake, a substantial flock of Asian openbills, that are classified as non-breeding residents, were observed. An intriguing observation at Punchakkari was the sighting of a river tern.
The Poovar estuary and beach reported new additions compared to the previous year, such as lesser-crested tern, gull-billed tern, brown-headed gull, lesser black-backed gull, and black-headed gull. However, some regular members like lesser sand-plovers, greater sand-plover, Kentish plover, and sanderlings were absent.
Godwits
Pazhanchira wetlands, near Attingal, contributed significant sightings, including 38 spot-billed ducks and 150 black-tailed godwits. This marked the first-ever major sighting of godwits in the district.
Contrarily, Akkulam Lake, once a thriving habitat for waterbirds, which has been witnessing extensive degradation due to anthropogenic interventions, showed a dwindling bird population. Nonetheless, the team found around 550 lesser whistling-ducks in the waterbody within the National Centre for Earth Science Studies (NCESS) campus adjacent to the lake.
Conservation measures
Saju S. Nair, Assistant Conservator of Forests (Social Forestry), Thiruvananthapuram, emphasised the need for implementing conservation measures for the protection of these birds. WWF-India State director Renjan Mathew Varghese and census district coordinators A.K. Sivakumar and Govind Girija also participated.
